A Study On English Reading Teaching Based On Picture Books In The Primary School Education

Reading comprehension is an integral part of English proficiency.As one of the key forms of linguist input,reading comprehension plays a crucial part in the pupils' acquisition of skills and knowledge.Since the reform of syllabus,the New Standard of English Curriculum in Compulsory Education poses more concrete requirements on reading comprehension.Because the primary education period is the inception phase of the development of reading skills,a good one will definitely lay sound foundation for pupils' excellence in secondary and higher education.Current textbooks,nevertheless,cannot satisfy the needs of pupils' linguistic development,and the teaching methods also fail to spur the interests of pupils.As good complementary materials,picture books contain large quantities of vivid images,which are no longer subordinate to texts,but indispensable in a comprehensive teaching syllabus.Illustrations cater to the unique cognitive needs of pupils,thus receiving increasing focus,research and utilization across the arena of primary education.By reviewing both domestic and overseas researches on this subject,this paper summarizes the hypothesis of linguistic input,cognitive theory,bracing theory,double-deciphering theory,and multimodal theory.Based on behavioral research,field questionnaires,and classroom observations,this paper focuses on the following two respects:Firstly,is English reading teaching based on picture books in primary school education able to enhance reading abilities of pupils?Secondly,what principles and strategies should be followed in this pedagogy?This research selects a sample of 40 pupils in D Primary School of Z City in Jiangsu Province.With three rounds of researches,this study lasted for five months.Results suggest that reading skills of pupils are enhanced through illustration-based teaching.Meanwhile,upon a summary of experiences and problems in behavioral research,the paper proposes a series of factors to take into account in the selection of picture books: plots,themes,linguistic properties,illustration styles,and available auxiliary materials.The difficulty of the books should be properly challenging to the pupils,and the contents are easy to comprehend,memorize and apply.Furthermore,the multimodal resources that can be invoked should be as much as possible.Effective teaching based on picture books in primary education ought to follow a number of strategies: 1.Fully respect the pupils' ideas and preferences;2.Nurture the skills of conjecture and anticipation by illustrations;3.Take account of the pupils' individualities in designing teaching methods;4.Infuse vocabulary and grammar elements in teaching;5.Integrate organically the picture books and English textbooks in the syllabus.