Transitional Stage

The transitional stage is a pivotal time for children who are learning to read and write and usually lasts from second to fourth grade. During this stage, children begin to depart from amateurish techniques such a word-calling or invented spelling in their reading and writing. Though their sentence structure and vocabulary remain simple, some children begin to revise by adding details and edit with basic punctuation. Their writing is longer and more developed and, at times, discusses topics that have moved outward from personal experiences.

My transitional stage was certainly crucial, for, during this stage, I fell in love with LeVar Burton, host of the television show Reading Rainbow. As a child, I loved to watch Reading Rainbow; it was my show. Everyday after school, I would grab my snack and park myself in front of the television, waiting to hear that theme song. Of course I sang along: “Take a look. It’s in a book. A Reading Rainbow! I! I can go anywhere!” Here’s a better version:



This show really propelled me to go beyond the egocentric. In each show, a narrator would read a selected text with a particular theme, and LeVar would travel to different places and interview different people about their careers while focusing on the theme presented in the book. I had my favorite books from various episodes: Bringing the Rain to the Kapiti Plain, Caps for Sale, A Three Hat Day, Stellaluna, and many more.

In addition to Reading Rainbow, I watched other shows that encouraged children to read, like Wishbone and The Magic School Bus, based on the books of the same name. Wishbone was very similar to Reading Rainbow. The main segment included a plot that was based on some classic piece of literature such as Romeo and Juliet, Frankenstein, or even Beowulf.

I originally read The Magic School Bus series, which helped teach scientific ideas to children while entertaining them, and I most readily began watching the television series.

Most of the television series listed here are commonly labeled as edutainment, or educational entertainment for youths. These shows helped spark my imagination and truly encouraged me to read. By the time I reached the Basic Literacy stage (fourth to sixth grade), I was reading series by Philip Pullman, Lloyd Alexander, Madeleine L’Engle, and C.S. Lewis.