First International Conference on Theory and Practice (ICTP-2015) ISBN: 978 0 994365651 www.apiar.org.au Asia Pacific Institute of Advanced Research (APIAR) Page114 REVITALIZING THE ART OF READING ALOUD TO CHILDREN Khemendra Kamal Kumar Fiji National University, Fiji email: Khemendra.kumar@fnu.ac.fj Abstract If reading would come naturally, teaching would be a much easier job. Children would learn to read as readily as they learn to speak and teachers would only need to give students the chance to practice their skills. But in truth, learning to read comes more easily to some children than to others and there are many factors contributing to a child’s success in reading such as exposure to oral and written language. My paper explores the relationship between books and reading aloud in the early years of second language acquisition and learning. According to Stephen Krashen (2000), children learn to read by reading and other languages skills will follow eventually, especially for a second language learner. To add on, Brian Camborne (1988) proposed eight conditions of literacy acquisition. Immersion is one of the conditions which emphasizes that children need to be surrounded by interesting, high-quality children’s books and different kinds of text (e.g. , charts, labels, newspapers, magazines) and reading aloud every day to children will generate lively engagement in language, literacy, and stories. Thus, this paper explores the advantages and disadvantages of reading storybooks aloud at early stages of learning English as a second language in primary schools. Key words: Reading aloud, Read-Aloud, Second Language Acquisition, Second Language Learning, Immersion, Children’s books, ESL, Pedagogy. 1. Revitalizing the Art of Reading Aloud To Children Literacy gains from Reading storybooks aloud at early stages of learning English as a Second language in Primary schools If literacy is bone then literature is the flesh of any language system. In Fiji, English language teaching and learning at the primary level focuses on literacy - the ability to read and write basic instructions and communication; the purpose of reading is for enjoyment and to get and use information. The focus, no doubt, provides the basic language skills: to listen, speak, read and write. What is amiss is the intrinsic or aesthetic use of these skills. Intrinsic or aesthetic appreciation of any language is a result of literary studies, metaphorically, adding ‘flesh to the bone’. The teaching of literature has always been a vital component of English language teaching. The claim that "the study of literature is fundamentally a study of language in operation" (Widdowson, 1971) is based on the realization that literature is an example of language in use, and is a context for language use. Thus, studying the language of literary texts as language in operation is seen as enhancing the learner's appreciation of aspects of the different systems of language organization (O’Sullivan, 1991). Literature generates creativity in language and imagination and should feature in any education system that regards discovery and enjoyment as essential components of the learning process; a process where learners use language at a proficient, sophisticated, creative, and scholarly level; an indication of a true literate society.