Young Learners Essential Visual Attention and Discrimination Skills for Struggling Readers more

English is the main medium of instruction in Singapore’s preschools. However, many young children with learning needs often face challenges in learning to read, write and spell. Despite attending regular preschool and English enrichment classes, these children often exhibit avoidance, inattention, and anxiety during reading activities both at school and home. Possible variables affecting these struggles include inappropriate reading materials, anxiety, poor visual attention to print, weak working memory and vocabulary, low motivation, limited exposure to books, and English not being their first language. This workshop will focus on how to support these children in engaging with print. It will highlight the application of an eclectic approach that emphasizes positive engagement, visual discrimination skills, visual memory, and motivation. It will demonstrate appropriate reading strategies to help their foundational reading skills. It will also present the use of developed physical and digital materials to engage them to reading.