do you point when you read to young ones?

[olien]

I didnt really know how to title this.?

I was reading the other day to my 15mo & I read the word pig & pointed to the pig when doing so. My brother was over & said I should be pointing to the word, not the picture of the pig. It seems strange to me to do it this way, especially since the word was the name of an object on the page. Maybe if I was reading a story I may point to the words as I read them. I havent gotten there yet.

What do you do?? Does it really matter at only 15mo in your opinion? With our guy I think it might. I have started to notice he is paying more attention to the writing on the pages & not just the pictures.

[theretohere]

At 15 months it doesn't matter at all. When I'm reading out loud to a kid who is getting nearer to reading I follow the words on the page with my finger in simple books to show which direction print moves in and to correlate the spoken word with the text. At 15 months pointing to the picture is fine- your little one is still learning what words mean!

[annettemarie]

With a 15 month old? If I were pointing, it would definitely be to the pictures and not to the text. For an older kid, I might point to the words if they were repetitive or if there were a lot of words that had to do with a letter we had learned.

[craft_media_hero]

I agree that at that age, I would point to the pictures. That will enrich his vocabulary more knowing "oh, that's what 'pig' means" by seeing it when you say it (I mean, if he's never seen a real pig, lol, that's just an example).

My dd is 6, and I just started pointing to the words as I read them, if I notice she's paying attention to the text more than the pics. This is mostly modeling because I notice that her independent reading is smoother when SHE points to the text.

If I'm reading something long, then no way do I point to any of it. It slows me down and is distracting from the story. But if it's something like Dr. Seuss, then I do point to the words because I think that it probably does reinforce her reading skills to see it as I say it.

[Tjej]

I think it just depends on what you naturally do (and the layout of the book - some of them you block the whole picture to point to the words).

I was reading about learning to read, and there are theories out there that if you just always read and point to the words in books as you read, your child will naturally pick up on reading and you won't have to teach them. I don't have personal experience with this, my kids are young and do not yet read. I personally point to the words when it is convenient, and just read and don't point to stuff when it isn't.

Tjej

ETA: for pointing to things in the book to clarify what the word is - well, if it is a page with just a pig on it and you say pig, I'd bet your kid will get the idea without pointing. If it's reading and I'm not sure if my child knows what I'm talking about, then I ask them to point to things (and if they don't, then I do).

[onyxravnos]

in general i point to the words and follow them as i read i do sometimes point to the picture but i try to follow along with the words. I don't think that's how my parents read to me but it seems like a natural way to connect the words i'm saying with the printed words on the page.

[St. Margaret]

I point to whatever I think DD needs to see the connection to. Like if we're reading a new book I might point to the illustration of some part of the story, or if it's showing all kinds of unfamiliar animals, or whatever. But now that she's starting to read I do sometimes point to the words themselves. And sometimes I just let it flow and don't point at all

[accidental_hs'er]

I only start pointing when the dks are/were learning to read. For example, dd is 4 and in the early stages of reading. She'll bring me a BOB book or some short level 1 reader (inteding for us to practice reading) and I will slow my tempo and point the words as I read them - pausing to get her to read a few of them to me.

As far as pleasure reading, no, I don't point. It would take too long to get through and kind of annoys all of us.

[boigrrrlwonder]

I only started pointing to words now that my DD (2.5yo) has shown an interest in the early stages of reading, and then, really, only erratically. It really messes up the the tempo and pace of reading. I rather she just learn to enjoy books while she's super young.

[mom2ponygirl]

Originally Posted by Tjej

I was reading about learning to read, and there are theories out there that if you just always read and point to the words in books as you read, your child will naturally pick up on reading and you won't have to teach them.

This was our experience. I didn't tend to run my finger under words, but I began to very rarely when dd was 2. She was fascinated by books since she was old enough to sit up and hold them herself. She would carefully turn pages and look through books for hours.

One day shortly after she was 2, we were reading Mr. Brown can Moo can You? and she became extremely excited. She grabbed my finger and pointed it at one of the words -like boom boom or moo moo. Then she flipped back in the book to another page with the same word and pointed my finger at it. She repeated this with several words in the story and it was just so fun seeing the light bulb light up! She began reading shortly after that!

[EmmysMama]

Like Tjej is talking about, the concept of native reading (not being taught to read but rather picking it up by being exposed to letters/words and connecting them to the spoken language) intrigues me. This is how I learned to read myself. Nobody ever taught me, but I was reading fluently at 2 1/2. Text pointing is a big part of the native reading approach.

I point naturally and I have been ever since I started reading to DD. It never occurred to me not to. It's really not like pointing at each individual word though, it's just running my finger under the text in time with my speaking. It doesn't disrupt my reading and it doesn't seem to bother DD either. I don't slow down or read any differently than if I was reading to myself. Sometimes she looks at the words as I point, sometimes she doesn't.

I point at both the word and the picture when we're looking at simple books though, when there's just one word and one picture per page. I read "pig", run my finger under the word as I read it, and then point at the picture.

There's a book called Native Reading, by Timothy Kailing, if it interests anyone. It outlines the method very well.

ETA: DD points my finger too, mom2ponygirl! She will bring me a book and grab my finger to make me point at the words, and demand "Ree! Ree!".

[ChristaN]

Just to give you some perspective here, I do think that a lot of the pps who mentioned their young children learning to read have very early readers. Most kids aren't starting to pick up reading until closer to 5-6 y/o. Like others have said, it makes sense to start pointing to words and/or following the direction of the text with your finger when the child is showing readiness for pre-reading skills, which likely won't be for some time yet. I, too, pointed to pictures when dds were your dc's age. The text for "pig" isn't going to mean anything to most 15 month olds, but the picture of a pig will.