ABSTRACT
Children must enjoy words, understand the uses of writing words and reading books, have experiences they are eager to share and have opportunities to practise talking and listening, writing and reading, and recording in many ways. Children do not choose their environment; they play with what lies before them, and for some children there is tragically little to play with. It is all too easy to create an environment in which children strive to speak and behave as they believe adults desire—children who seek to buy approval and love and do not feel they are of value in themselves. Careful observation and cumulative records are an essential. It is obviously impossible to carry all aspects of physical, intellectual, social and emotional development of thirty or more children in one's mind. Teachers in junior schools will carry much of the responsibility for helping children to read and will therefore need to possess the techniques required.
