“The more you read, the more you know.
The more you know, the smarter you grow.
The smarter you grow, the stronger your voice,
In speaking your mind and making your choice.”
(author unknown)
We parents, grandparents, authors and teachers focus on helping children develop reading skills with one main purpose in mind: to give them choices in their lives. Skills attained through education allow the individual more choices as they progress. They won’t have to depend all their lives on someone else to interpret the world for them as they will have skills to do that themselves, they won’t have to pick just one way to provide for their needs in this world because their skills will give them abilities to have a variety of paths open to them. Isn’t this what we want for our children? The skills necessary to make responsible choices that are beneficial to them and to the others in their communities, their countries, their world.
Well, helping them learn to read well is of MAJOR importance in developing these skills. And there are some things we adults can do to encourage this development.
NUMBER 1– READ TO KIDS
Read to kids — from birth, every day. It is 15 minutes, 30 minutes, an hour that will reap fantastic rewards in their developing reading abilities. And don’t give it up once they begin to read.
NUMBER 2– READ WITH KIDS
Let kids be involved with the reading; pointing, talking, asking questions. LISTEN to what they say, comment on what they say, make it a give and take conversation.
NUMBER 3– LISTEN TO KIDS READ
Let kids read to you when they can, or even before they can, when they just want to pretend they are reading what you have read to them.
Two main words in the last 3 points READ, and LISTEN. By doing these two consistently, you are helping children learn the skills they need to interpret their world. Helping them develop so that they will be able to make responsible CHOICES that are beneficial to them and to others in their world.
That’s what it’s all about. Choices.
Please, please comment on the three points made in this article and your experiences with them.