NICHD Report

Why Children Succeed or Fail at Reading

Research from NICHD’s Program in Learning Disabilities

Introduction

Most children will learn to read, no matter what method is used to teach them. But unless they receive special help, at least 20 percent of them cannot master this simple task that the rest of us take for granted.

Their difficulty is painfully obvious when they try to read out loud. Children with reading difficulties stop and start frequently, mispronouncing some words and skipping others entirely.

The first casualty is self esteem: they soon grow ashamed as they struggle with a skill their classmates master easily. In the later grades, when children switch from learning to read to reading to learn, reading-impaired children are kept from exploring science, history, literature, mathematics and the wealth of information that is presented in print.


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	Home The Phonics Way Parent Help Topics Differentiating Sounds of Letters Teaching the Difference Between “b” and “d” Speech Problems and Reading Letter Confusion Reading Below Grade Level Discouraged Parent Separating Siblings Free Learning Programs Hooked on Phonics Commercial Phonics Products Testimonials Phillip’s Story NICHD Research A Note About NICHD Research How the NICHD Program is Different Developing a New Understand of Reading Difficulties Research on Treatment Major Implications for Early Reading Instruction Other Important Research Questions and Findings Future Directions References Bibliography NICHD Report Statistics and Reports 2003 Reading Statistics 1998 Reading Statistics Teacher & Parent Resources Blog Site map	NICHD Report Why Children Succeed or Fail at Reading Research from NICHD’s Program in Learning Disabilities *Introduction* Most children will learn to read, no matter what method is used to teach them. But unless they receive special help, at least 20 percent of them cannot master this simple task that the rest of us take for granted. Their difficulty is painfully obvious when they try to read out loud. Children with reading difficulties stop and start frequently, mispronouncing some words and skipping others entirely. The first casualty is self esteem: they soon grow ashamed as they struggle with a skill their classmates master easily. In the later grades, when children switch from learning to read to reading to learn, reading-impaired children are kept from exploring science, history, literature, mathematics and the wealth of information that is presented in print.