Literacy skills open the doorway to learning for children, so it makes sense that we put a lot of emphasis on it as Speech Pathologists. But that isn’t to say that Literacy is simple! There are lots of misconceptions out there about literacy skills – let’s explore a few of them in this article.
5 Common Misconceptions About Literacy Skills
1: AAC Users Don’t Need to Learn Literacy Skills
First up, let’s tackle the misconception about Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) users not needing to learn literacy skills. AAC users typically have complex communication needs – leading to them using multi-modal communication systems like keyword sign and PODD books to communicate with those around them. While this form of communication differs from verbal communication, it is not a reason to skip past the development of and prioritisation of literacy skills.
Why? Well, think about it – there is no system in the world that has every word that an AAC user would ever want to say. Learning literacy skills so they can access new vocabulary is just as important for AAC users as it is for non-AAC users. Literacy skills open the doorway to greater communication abilities and truly autonomous communication.
2: Reading Difficulties Are Caused by Vision Problems
Dyslexia is a learning disorder characterised by difficulty with reading words. This greatly impacts literacy skills and outcomes for Dyslexic children. However, there are some pervasive misconceptions about Dyslexia being a ‘vision problem’ – it’s simply not true! The Australia College of Behavioural Opthamologists have issued a position statement regarding the lack of evidence for prescribed lenses that is a must-read on the topic.
The best research evidence we have now indicates the elements required for literacy are: phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. Not special glasses!
3: Traditional Spelling Rules Should Be Prioritised to Improve Literacy
Sometimes we get caught up on the way we spell things – thinking that if we teach the correct spelling, children will be able to learn to read with ease. But the truth is, teaching traditional spelling rules (I.e. I before e, except after c) shouldn’t be the primary focus if you want to help a child learn to read.
Many of our Speech Pathologists have been trained in the Sounds Write literacy program and some of the key learnings from this professional development are:
- English speech is written in a visual code where symbols, known as spellings or letters or graphemes, are used to represent individual sounds (phonemes).
- You can spell a sound with 1, 2, 3 or 4 letters. (e.g. ‘eigh’ in ‘neigh’ has 4 letters but it is just one sound)
- There are many different ways of spelling a sound. (e.g. the sound /ae/ as in ‘rain,’ play,’ ‘gate,’ or ‘break.’
- A spelling can represent more than one sound. (For instance, the spelling <ea> in the words sea, head, break.
As you can see, developing literacy skills takes a lot more than an understanding of spelling words! That’s why working with a Speech Pathologist to support your child to develop the literacy skills they need to engage in the classroom is so important.
4: Literacy Skills Are Developed Once Children Start School
Have you ever heard of the term ‘Pre-Literacy Skills’? Maybe not, but this is stage is an important stepping stone for any child as they build the literacy skills they need to succeed in the classroom. Pre-literacy skills are developed long before your little one steps foot in their Prep classroom for the first time. In fact, your child begins learning the sounds they will need to communicate right from the time they’re in the womb!
There’s a lot that parents and families can do to support little ones to build the vocabulary and skills they need to be set up for literacy development by the time they reach primary school. For more information on how you can support your child’s language development, read this helpful article.
5: Good Reading Skills Means Good Writing and Spelling Skills
Reading, writing, and spelling skills are often put in the same box. While they are related, just because a child is good at reading doesn’t mean they’ll be good with writing/spelling. Some kids can be great at using context, patterns, pictures, and cues from people around them to guess words on the page rather than truly reading them letter-by-letter. This is why Speech Pathologists often use non-word reading and writing tasks to test literacy skills. If a child can decode a non-word letter-by-letter, they have a better chance of being able to read, write and spell!
We hope you’ve found this article interesting and maybe even learned a few new things about how literacy skills are developed. If you would like to learn more about speech sound milestones and how children develop communication skills over time, take a look at the SpeechEase blog.