Play = Learning

This was the recent FB post from a friend of mind...

Momma's and Teachers!!! My child is having a hard time recognizing his letters and numbers. We've tried flash cards and it's just not working. I'm going to try wooden letters and puzzles but is there something you could recommend if you've had this issue?! I've even bought a leap pad game for letters and numbers and it hasn't helped. We've posted them around the house and have him tell us what they are and that hasn't worked. Reward charts aren't work. He's doing very well with other aspects of school but this has been hard for him.

After some Q&A I learned that her child is in Pre-K, has good phonemic and phonological awareness and command of the alphabetic principle. Not sure what all that means? Basically, he knows the difference between letters and numerals, and he can hear and produce different sounds (i.e., sound discrimination). Want to know more? Check out the Big Ideas in reading. The mama in me wanted nothing more than to reach through that computer screen (across state lines) and give her a great big hug and encouragement, but the school psychologist/child advocate in me wanted to admonish society!

I was so angry that the societal emphasis on skill acquisition and progression had lead this mother (and MANY others just like her) to feel such a pressured frenzy. What happened to the days of play? What happened to kids being kids? Some kids, a very small few, are ready for a more academic focus early on, but the vast majority simply aren't. Forcing concepts upon them before they are ready to grasp them has the detrimental "triple threat" of stifling learning, thwarting self-esteem, and eradicating the individualism that our country has valued for so long! I could continue on and on with this point, but there's already been a rather nice article in the Washington Post A Very Scary Headline about Kindergarteners.

Instead I will conclude with a couple of thoughts regarding letter recognition and discrimination. Working in the schools I always brought to the attention of parents, teachers, and anyone that would give me the time of day.

     (1) Our alphabetic system has meaning to us because of our interaction with it over time. The letter c has absolutely no inherent meaning to a child, just as ਬਿੱਲੀ has no inherent value to most reading this right now. Our letters are symbols, pictures that we have associated with some meaning or value. Nothing more. The funny characters listed before ( ਬਿੱਲੀ ) aren't confabulations. Rather, if you are fluent in Punjabi, then you'd readily recognize the word cat.

     (2) Our alphabetic system is one of the most complex symbolic linguistic systems. Think of it this way. In other systems each symbol is discrete; no two symbols are alike. Our physical world is no different. A chair, is a chair, is a chair, is a chair. It doesn't matter how you turn it, flip it, shape it, or color it. A chair is always a chair. But what about this little symbol: b. If we think of it as a symbol and don't associate it with meaning the letter b  that says /b/, then one could reasonably deduce that, just like chairs, balls, or tables, any way that symbol is rotated, flipped, or manipulated, it's the same. Makes sense, right? So, if we say that the symbol b means doodle, then that symbol should still mean that regardless of it's orientation. Following me? So, b, d, p, q should all have the same meaning because they are all the same symbol, just rotated or turned in some way, right? For clarity's sake, consider the pictures below. We will continue with the chair illustration, because that is perfect for demonstrating my point.

So, here's your average, typical chair. Humor me with the second picture. In this orientation it is representative of the letter d. See that in the second picture?

Okay. So, what if we rotate it 180 degrees? Would you agree that the first picture is still a chair? But, if we're thinking about our alphabetic system, that symbol just changed from a d to a p. Huh???

Now, flip it:)! What happens? First picture is still just a chair, but the second picture has now taken on a third meaning, b. If you're following my line of thought, then you know what's coming next...

A quick rotation, and voila! Picture 1 is a chair, but picture 2 is a q.

No wonder kids are so darn confused! You take one, meaningless symbol, turn it around a few times and it has at least four DIFFERENT meanings???!?!?! Crazy, right?

     (3) Okay, so my third, and final comment a child's ability to identify the name of a letter is far less important than his or her ability to imitate, discriminate and use sounds during early development. Don't believe me? Look it up. It's like the chicken and egg debate? What came first? No one can definitively say. They might have both just "popped up" at the same time. The same is true for identifying letters. Over the course of time and through repeated exposure, the vast majority of children will learn what those pesky little symbols mean.

So, what does all this mean???

• Expose your children to letters and numerals. If they are confusing the two, don't panic! Just calmly point it out by saying something like "I know that looks funny, but that's a number." 
• Emphasize foundational skills in literacy and mathematical concepts. Play board games that use dice (subtilizing is a critical skill!), play word games in the car, point out environmental print in your daily life. 
• I can't say this strongly enough, play, play, PLAY with your children! Our brains (and their's) learn best when they are actively engage in something that is fun and the stress is minimal. If you don't like what you're doing with your child, then I can guarantee that feeling is mutual!

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Want more on this topic, comment here or send me an email with your questions and interests, and I'll be happy to give you my 2¢, for what it's worth!