When Carden teachers talk about “rhythmic reading,” they aren’t talking about music. What do they mean, and why does it matter?
When we begin preparing children for reading, we’re concerned with helping them hear and recognize the sounds that build English words. Then we help them to learn the letters and combinations of letters that make those sounds. That’s when it’s possible to sound out a word.
Being a good reader isn’t limited to sounding out words. In fact, reading well isn’t about individual words at all. It’s about ideas. It’s about the transfer of thought from one person to another.
When we speak, we group words for emphasis and for meaning. When we write, we do the same. With grammar and punctuation, we string words together as a way of sharing our thoughts. Rhythmic reading happens when the reader is able to group words together for understanding. When we read rhythmically, we read a sentence as though it were simply something we were saying to a friend. It’s reading with the natural rhythm of speech.