Friday, March 14, 2014

Reading

Blog post #472 of 365

A friend of mine read books to her unborn child. Mostly rhyming books. She placed headphones on her stomach and played a variety of music as well. She was planning to be the best mom ever and give her kid every advantage. Then the child was born. For the first year she said her child was too young to read to because "they don't get it when they are under a year." (So not true.) The year passed and she got too "busy" to read to her child. Nine years have passed and I have yet to see or hear of her reading to her child.

I read to kids. I love reading to kids. I've read to all of my children, nieces, nephews, students, random children in waiting rooms, now to my grandchildren, great nieces and great nephews. There is a great benefit in reading to children and to letting them see you read for pleasure and for study (school, church, etc.)

More important than just reading is knowing how to read to kids. Include them. Let them make a choice of books. You might give them a this one or that one instead of standing in front of a shelf and overwhelming them but also to insure variety. Then as you read touch each word with your finger as you go. Ask questions about the pictures or the story. Like, "What do you think the frog did?" Or "Why do you think he looks sad?" Engage the kid(s) in a conversation as you read. After you have read for a period of time see if they can guess simple words. Especially words that are repeated in a story. Talk about what you've read as you go and then again as you go through your day.

Once I had a parent of one of my students say they couldn't read to their child because books are too expensive. Well they have these things called libraries. Also these magical library places usually have book sales where you can get a book for a dollar or less. Then there are garage sales and secondhand stores. I find little reason one cannot read to a child.

Recently I read a study that says continued reading keeps the mind sharp and expands the reader's vocabulary. Well I for one intend to continue reading for my own entertainment and to keep my mind sharp. Also every time I have the opportunity I plan to read to the kids in my life and maybe just maybe they will eventually read to me too.

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