Six Not-So-Secret Tips for Encouraging Literacy Development in Boys

Several years ago when I taught pre-kindergarten and kindergarten, I had a foster grandparent volunteer – a senior citizen who helped in the classroom every morning. It was a wonderful program; it was nice to have a male role model in a female-dominated profession! Whenever the boys played in housekeeping/dramatic play area, Mr. B. would tell them, “Get outta that kitchen. Boys don’t play in the kitchen.” I had many talks with Mr. B and reminded him that it was really OK for the boys to be in the Dramatic Play area. It’s such a touchy subject with men sometimes. Sometimes they just don’t want to see their boys playing with dolls – but it isn’t a sign of doom , it really isn’t – they are imitating what they see mommies AND daddies doing – dads take care of babies, dads cook, and dads clean up. Four- and five-year-olds are experimenting with these roles and it is how both boys and girls learn.

So, all things equal for boys and girls, right? Weeeellll…..not exactly. Boys and girls deserve equal opportunites…but that does not mean that we, as educators and/or parents, should ignore their differences. Sure, it's OK for young boys to play with dolls and for young girls to play with trucks; but when it comes to boys and literacy, research shows that there is a significant gap in reading achievement. Boys and girls have biological differences and we can’t expect boys to fit into our mold of what we think a “reader” should be; we instead have to be flexible and bend our expectations to meet the needs of the young boys in our lives. Boys might not sit still for a 15 minute circle time so we have to find another way to reach them.

Research shows that literacy skills are a predictive factor in school success. Creating a nation of boys that are lagging behind in reading skills means that they are at risk in other subject areas as well. Our effort to erase this literacy achievement gap has to begin in the early years. Here are just some of the things that parents and teachers can do to set a literacy foundation early in a young boy’s life:

1. Start early: I remember reading that adults tend to read and talk more to girls than they do to boys – even in infancy. We can’t set our boys up for failure even before they get a chance to crawl! It’s important for all babies to be read to; research shows that the single most important thing a parent can do to raise a child who reads, is to read to them early and often!
2. Choose books that will be of interest: Whatever those interests are, foster them. Is your two year old obsessed with trucks? Have a five year old that can’t get enough of dinosaurs? Or a ten year old who loves all things related to baseball? There are books on just about every topic under the sun! Visit the library often and get acquainted with your local librarian!
3. Value Read Aloud Time: Even after a child learns to read, continue to read aloud. Hearing the rhythm, patterns, tone, and pronunciation of written language helps children to become better readers.
4. Timing is Important: If boys seem to have a short attention span, choose books that are not too long. Or, read books in chunks – a few pages a day/night. What’s important is that you are reading!
5. SET AN EXAMPLE: Boys need good role models. Dads, granddads, uncles, or other male figures should model literacy behavior. Children see and children do!
6. Keep tabs on digital media: Boys are attracted to video games and computers. It’s unrealistic to eliminate all digital media from a child’s life; to do so would suggest that computers and video games are inherently “bad.” I suggest that the use of video games and computer time is monitored – supervise the time children spend using these devices, select games/software properly, and select well-developed websites to explore.

Related Posts:

• Teacher Tip Tuesday: Boys and Books in the Classroom
• Beyond Reading: 15 Literacy Activities for Parents with Boys 
• Literacy Challenges for “at-risk” families (coming soon)
• Should We Give In to the “Yuck Factor” When It Comes to Boys and Books?
• 25 Books Boys (and girls) Might Enjoy (coming soon)

Links and Sources:

• Are There Differences in Achievement in Boys and Girls?  
• Boys and Girls Brains Are Different: Gender Differences in Language Appear Biological
• Boys Trail Girls in Reading Success Across States
• Building Language Skills More Critical for Boys Than Girls
• Center on Education Policy

To Play or Not to To Play: That is STILL the Question

I came across an article in the Washington Post today that brings to the forefront the debate on the value of play. The article suggests that this debate has been ongoing among early childhood educators...but I wonder if this is really true. Somehow I believe that most early childhood educators know, value, understand, and respect the important role that play has in the preschool classroom. I think the debate about the value of play is one that some parents and legislators have. Legislators want children to pass tests, parents want children to be successful in school (i.e. to pass tests), so early childhood educators find themselves in a position of having to defend why play is such an integral part of our curriculum. The debate really isn't one among early childhood educators, it really is a debate that we have with the rest of the world!

The Post article recognizes that the debate about play really becomes an issue when schools are placed in a position of having to achieve certain benchmarks of federal legislation. With three and four year olds increasingly being integrated into public school programs, they are at the mercy of testing methods that are inadequate or inappropriate for their developmental ability.

The article quotes Education Secretary Arne Duncan who spoke at the NAEYC conference: "If we are to prevent the achievement gap and develop a cradle-to-career educational pipeline, early learning programs are going to have to be better integrated with the K-12 system." I couldn't agree more! But it seems now, that young children are expected to assimilate into an already existing K-12 system instead of having that system reworked to accommodate the unique needs and learning styles of young children. We all learned in preschool that you can't fit a round peg in a square hole... well, maybe you only learned this if you went to a school that valued play and exploration.

The Post article points to research that suggests what early childhood educators already know: young children who have a chance to play and explore have better social skills and reasoning ability, both of which are predictors of future school success. Surely, we have some significant improvement to make in the world of early childhood education: higher training requirements, more communication with the K-12 system, and more training for teachers of high-risk or ESL preschoolers. But the answer is does not lie in creating a society of children who can pass tests but cannot think creatively. We have to start the discussion and kudos to the Washington Post and Education Secretary Arne Duncan for starting the conversation (again)!