Why reading and comprehension are so important in the Early Years

Reading and comprehension are important in the early years of education for several reasons:

• Foundation for Learning: Reading and comprehension skills form the foundation of learning. They are essential for success in all other academic subjects. By focusing on reading and comprehension in the early years, teachers ensure that students develop strong foundational skills that will benefit them throughout their academic journey.
• Language Development: Early childhood is a critical period for language development. Reading aloud to young children helps them develop vocabulary, understand sentence structure, and grasp the nuances of language. Comprehension activities further reinforce these skills by encouraging children to understand and interpret what they have read or heard.
• Cognitive Development: Reading and comprehension activities stimulate cognitive development by challenging children to think critically, make connections between ideas, and solve problems. These activities promote cognitive skills such as analysis, synthesis, and evaluation, which are essential for academic success and lifelong learning.
• Social and Emotional Development: Reading and comprehension activities provide opportunities for social interaction and emotional development. Group reading sessions encourage collaboration and communication among peers, while discussing stories can help children explore and understand their own emotions and those of others.
• Preparation for Literacy: Developing strong reading and comprehension skills in the early years sets the stage for literacy development. By exposing children to a variety of texts and teaching them comprehension strategies, teachers help them become fluent readers who can effectively understand and engage with written material.
• Promotion of a Lifelong Love of Reading: By fostering reading and comprehension skills from an early age, teachers aim to instill a lifelong love of reading in their students. Children who enjoy reading are more likely to continue reading independently and derive pleasure and satisfaction from it throughout their lives.

Overall, teachers prioritize reading and comprehension in the early years because these skills are fundamental to academic success, language development, cognitive growth, social interaction, emotional well-being, literacy development, and a lifelong love of reading.

Mrs Sue Zweck, Head of Learning K-5