Shared reading experiences with young learners

Abstract

The aim of this study was to stimulate young children’s motivation towards reading, through shared book experiences with the help of a set of big books. Motivating young readers through shared reading experiences can occur within the home and classroom settings. The study was conducted over a period of five weeks with two Year two classrooms in a small, state school. In order to collect information about children’s shared reading opportunities, data were collected through parent/guardian questionnaires, classroom observations, and teacher interviews, big-book reading and post-activity sessions, pupil questionnaires and interviews. Data yielded information about current practices, family perspectives and children’s background in addition to children’s reading experiences in school. Results suggest that children love listening to stories read out to them and that shared reading can motivate young readers. During shared reading sessions children participated by reading aloud with the reader, predicting what was about to happen, and generally reacted to the story on the basis of their personal experiences. Children preferred activities that required movement, or initiated an element of curiosity rather than writing tasks. These results are discussed in light of reading practices to be fostered in early years.