I have looked at the different phases of learning to read: from the logographic phase (recognize words as pictures), to the alphabetical phase (letter-sound-recognition) and orthographic phase (automatic word recognition). Especially relevant for kids, who are wanting to learn how to read, are phonological awareness, decoding and fluidity in reading. I researched which typefaces could be more suitable than others, e.g. Grundschrift or Comic Sans. I also found out that illustrations are not only decorative but help kids understand the storyline better, train vocabulary and help motivate the kids. Additionally I tried to look beyond the type systems that are common in my daily life and made a pit-stop on how to read in other systems like Chinese or Arabic and e.g. what role reading directions could have.
Experiments I planned:
- Unreadable Fonts: Different letters that could look alike in fonts are tested in different typefaces and distorted with a blur to test letter recognition in these typefaces
- Unreadable Stories: An ongoing story is being told in different typefaces and sizes.
- Spacing: The same sentence is written in different Kerning and Spacing.
- Storytelling through pictures: Disconnecting a story from its illustrations could show how important an illustration could be.
- Storytelling through the words itself: Taking the story out of the context of the finished book could also show flaws in the storyline if it cannot be reconstructed.
Let´s see how these experiments turned out throughout the weeks 🙂
