Reading Together!

Children have a lot to learn. They have to be taught everything from how to walk, to how to dress, and even how to act. This means that parents are not only parents but teachers as well.

In today’s society there seems to be one value losing significance in the lives of many- reading. We have gradually replaced our reading culture with the internet. A friend of mine would blatantly put it this way; “keep surfing the net until you surf away your life!” Whatever that means, I am sure you are beginning to connect.

Think about it, there is more to life than surfing the net. Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t say be less active on social media. That’s a good and welcome civilisation–but how about reading? In what position have we placed reading in our overall daily schedule? Is it 30 mins-once-a-day, or maybe every other weekend, or twice a week, or once in a month or maybe not at all? You can tell yourself the truth.

So far so less, many of today’s parents and children have not quite wrapped their minds around the notion of being obligated to one another. As a parent you should be a model of the values that will help kids give back to you handsomely and the society they live in as well.

We have put together a good starter list, to help you transition smoothly into becoming a model reader:

Make up your mind to read actively every day.

We can use our phones to read something new a day. Don’t be tempted, it is more disciplined to get hard copy books and stay focused to what knowledge you plan to or expect to gain in a day. Varieties of books abound; motivational, inspirational, educational, religious, professional, fictional, adventurous, novels, romance, etc. Take a pick and get reading.

Readers are made, not born; start them off with story books

When parents are readers themselves, they assume that their children will be readers too- the truth is that these children do tend to be readers — but kids don’t just arrive at a love of reading by watching others read. That passion results from exposure to lots of books. At a very tender age, start engaging them with stories that occupy their imagination; from here you could move to religious books, adventurous, educational, and so on. This way, opportunities to explore a variety of interests, and the pleasurable memories associated with these experiences might start budding.

Get him/her a library card

Good readers need to have access to many books. Having a library card opens doors to more than just borrowing free books. Again, the library opens doors to rich reading resources, these resources feed children’s imaginations in ways that deepen literacy and mental development. When children have broad experiences, they become better readers because they connect previous learning to new learning.

Time to read books

Don’t time your children while they read; this just turns what ought to be a pleasurable experience into a chore. Rather, sit down with them and explore their books. Ask them why they chose these particular ones and all.

 Engage him/her

Make it your business to read what they read so that you can ask them questions. The more you engage with your child around what she’s reading, the more she wants to read. Good readers thrive and grow when they have opportunities to share their thoughts about something they’ve read with someone. Let that someone be you!

Choice in selecting books

Good readers need to know that if a book they chose isn’t interesting, they can put it down and find another one. When we impose rules around how and what children read, the experience becomes ours and not theirs.

George R.R. Martin said “… a mind needs books as a sword needs a whetstone, if it is to keep its edge!”

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goparents.com.au