THE NATURE AND PSYCHOLOGY OF READING

Reading – a process of getting meaning from the book and bringing meaning into it
- the key which admits us to the world of thought, fancy and imagination

Miles Zints illustrated the reading process as follows:

1. Word Perception – the ability to pronounce the word as a meaningful unit
The eyes see the printed symbols with the aid of light rays that strike the retina. Together the eye s move in a swift and well – coordinated manner, jumping from word to word in a series of fixations. Reading takes place when the eyes pause or rest. The eyes do not really see much nor read when they are constantly in motion.

Span of perception or recognition span – distance/number of words between fixation points.

A good reader makes few fixations and fewer regressions or backward eye movements. Therefore, his perception span is much longer than that of a poor reader.

Word perception involves the identification of the printed symbol and the meaning intended by the author.

Example:
The reader identifies the combination of the letters c-a-t as cat and not as cot or cut.

The printed word, then, acts as a trigger to release a meaning which the reader already possesses.

In order to do this task known as a decoding process, one should possess the following skills:

a. use sight vocabulary and configuration theory
b. use context clues to determine pronunciation and meaning
c. determine pronunciation and meaning through an analysis of the structure/parts of the word consisting of its root and affixes, and inflected, or derived in form
d. relate the sound of the spoken word to its visual or graphemic symbol, a process referred to as phonetic analysis
e. use a dictionary to determine pronunciation and meaning of words resistant to analysis through the use of other skills

2. Comprehension – requires the fusion of meanings of separate words into a chain of related ideas

On the literal level, one reads to understand the passage – its main thought, specific detatils, sequence, and directions to be followed.

3. Reaction – ability to judge accurarcy, quality or worth
- these judgments are the result of critical reading and experience

- these judgments are the result of critical reading and experience
- on the emotional level, reaction requires value judgments, background experience, and the ability to recreate sensory images
- one’s reaction is affected by culture.
- culture controls the quality of experience available to the reader. Thus, experience becomes the foundation of the reading process.

4. Assimilation/Integration – if ideas are accepted, they become a part of his total experience
- they are integrated with all previous related experience
- wrong concepts are corrected and new insights are acquired
- involves applying ideas acquired to problem solving

Rate – refers to the speed of recognition, comprehension, reaction and assimilation
- vary according to the reader’s purpose and the difficulty of the materials

PROCESSES THAT AFFECT READING

1. Reading is a social process. It is affected by one’s attitudes, loyalties, conflicts and prejudices.
2. Reading is a psychological process. How one feels about oneself and about others affects the reading process. Emotional stability determines one’s comfort in the reading situation. Defense mechanisms like inhibition, repression, projection, aggression, rationalization and nervousness are responses to anxiety in all types of situations.
3. Reading is a physiological process. They are skills in auditory and visual discrimination, verbal expression and eye – hand coordination.
4. Reading is a perceptual process. It utilizes cues such as combination of sounds and letters, size, shape and color.
5. Reading is a linguistic process. It requires sound – symbol relationships, understanding of intonation, stress, rhythm and tone sequences.
6. Reading is an intellectual process. It is dependent on vocabulary, memory, verbal reasoning, generalizing and critical judgment.

How is a Dictionary Organized?

A dictionary tells you the meaning of words and how to say them.

Words in a dictionary are arranged in alphabetical order. The guide words at the top of the page name the first and last words on the page.

Example:
Stream [strem] n. 1. a body of running water, such as a small river. 2. A steady flow. A stream of people walked past the shop. -v. streamed, streaming, streams. To flow in a stream

Each word defined in a dictionary is called an entry word. The entry word is printed in dark type.

Stream [strem] n. 1. a body of running water, such as a small river. 2. A steady flow. A stream of people walked past the shop. -v. streamed, streaming, streams. To flow in a stream


A special spelling of the word comes right after the entry. This special spelling shows the word’s pronunciation, or how to say it aloud.

Stream [strem] n. 1. a body of running water, such as a small river. 2. A steady flow. A stream of people walked past the shop. -v. streamed, streaming, streams. To flow in a stream


The letter or letters after the pronunciation tell the part of speech. Most dictionaries use abbreviations.

Stream [strem] n. 1. a body of running water, such as a small river. 2. A steady flow. A stream of people walked past the shop. -v. streamed, streaming, streams. To flow in a stream

The definition tells the meaning of the word. When a word has more than one meaning, the definitions are numbered.

Stream [strem] n. 1. a body of running water, such as a small river. 2. A steady flow. A stream of people walked past the shop. -v. streamed, streaming, streams. To flow in a stream

Some dictionaries show the inflected forms of the word.

Stream [strem] n. 1. a body of running water, such as a small river. 2. A steady flow. A stream of people walked past the shop. -v. streamed, streaming, streams. To flow in a stream

Some definitions have an example sentence that shows how the word is used.

Stream [strem] n. 1. a body of running water, such as a small river. 2. A steady flow. A stream of people walked past the shop. -v. streamed, streaming, streams. To flow in a stream

CALL NUMBERS

Remember, a call number is like the book’s address in the library. It tells where the book lives on the library shelf.
Our library has three kinds of books, so we have three kinds of call numbers:

fiction

easy fiction

non fiction

A fiction call number is made up of two parts:

F (for fiction)
first three letters in the author’s last name

So a fiction call number for the author, Beverly Cleary would look like this:

F
Cle

An easy fiction call number is made up of two parts:

E (for easy fiction)
first three letters in the author’s last name

So an easy fiction call number for the author, Jan Brett would look like this:

E

Bre

How do we put fiction and easy fiction call numbers in order?
Think……How can we put letters in order?

That’s right, fiction and easy fiction call numbers are in ABC order.

Nonfiction call numbers are made up of two parts:

Numbers (for the subject)

first three letters in the author’s last name

So a nonfiction call number for a mammal book by Jane Mosley would look like this:

599

Mos

How do we put nonfiction call numbers in order?

Think...nonfiction call numbers have numbers and letters, so..

Nonfiction call numbers are put in number order first, then in ABC order.

One kind of nonfiction book has a different recipe from the rest.

biography

What is a biography?
A book about the life of a famous person.

Biography call numbers have their own special recipe.

Biography call numbers are made up of two parts.

92 (the number for biography)
first three letters of the famous person’s last name

So the call number for a biography about George Washington would look like this:

92
Was

How are biography call numbers put in order?

Since all biography call numbers have a 92, they are put in ABC order.