20170822 The Reading Mind: What makes a proficient reader

It is really difficult to read the first few chapters of the book, which topics are about writings and spellings. So I skip to the last few chapters to see if I can collect anything that makes more sense.

Chapter 8: Becoming a Reader

**Three factors affecting whether children choose to read: attitudes, motivation, and self‐concept. **

• Reading attitudes
  We said that reading attitudes are primarily emotional, and they are a product of positive reading experiences, and a product of associating reading with other things that we like.

• Motivation
  Our motivation to undertake an activity is composed of our assessment of the value we place on the outcome, and our expectation that we can complete the task so as to obtain that outcome. That calculation of the expected value is influenced by reading attitudes, but also things like the utility of reading a particular text, or what reading it might mean to social relationships. The expectation of successful reading is based on one's sense of reading self‐efficacy, and factors like whether the external environment will disrupt or support our reading.

• Self-Concept
  Finally, we said that our self‐concept as a reader is a product of observing ourselves over time—I see that I frequently read, and I feel that reading is important to me. Comparison is an important part of that ”

**What we could do to boost the kids' reading? **

Basically two ways:

• Rewards

“Rewards should not be the first strategy to get reluctant kids to read, because they have the potential to depress reading attitudes once the rewards stop.”

• Make the choice easy and change other choices

“Changes to the environment that can boost reading include: making books very readily available—that is, visible in the environment—and restricting access to other choices, especially screen‐based entertainment.”