ABSTRACT
Learning to read is a complex cognitive activity which lasts a lifetime, from earliest infancy to adulthood. From being able to read only a few words at the age of two, the reader eventually acquires, as an adult, ”swing-wing”, that is to say versatile and varied, reading skills. Learning to read is a process which lends itself to a developmental and structuralist approach. The idea that the child learns to read at the age of 6–7 stems from a view of reading as essentially the ability to apply a precise deciphering technique, rather than to understand a message. The activity of the learner-reader basically consists of integrating the various sources of information he has available, in order to arrive at a probable hypothetical meaning. Deciphering is a way of reducing uncertainty and guiding the reader’s hypotheses.
