Learning to read for fun
"Reading should not be presented to children as a chore or duty. It should be offered to them as a precious gift." — Kate DiCamillo
The latest survey by the National literacy Trust shows
record numbers of children reading for enjoyment. This in some ways is in stark
contrast to the idea of teenagers glued to digital screens and is great news.
There are so many great books out there and with the apparently unstoppable
rise of young adult fiction maybe that is why more children are finding things
that they enjoy. If everything you read is either too young or too old for you
you’re not going to stick to reading but finding things that resonate with you
will build a love of reading that will hopefully last a lifetime.
In hindsight, the best things we achieved with home schooling
were to give the children a thirst for knowledge and a love of books. We were
all excited when the youngest took those first steps of reading independently. A love of reading is not just a pleasure in itself but an open door to access the writing which makes up our everyday world. Making decisions on who to vote for, reading the pilot book before arriving in a new port, communicating on social media, all rely on our ability to read.
As we travelled we tapped in to their loves; the things that
they saw around them. We found books about the places we visited and the things
we saw. We enjoy reading and the children saw us sat with books. We talked about stories and read books out loud together. By using kindles we were able to obtain books quickly on top of the
other books that we already had. Family brought books to us when they came to visit. Book swaps
can introduce you to books you may never have come across and social media makes getting
recommendations easier from contacts on facebook to suggestions on Goodreads.
Obviously there is still a long way to go before there is a
fairness and equality for all children to be able to unlock reading. And not
every child will enjoy it. Not everyone likes sitting down with a book the
same way that not everyone enjoys going walking or shopping or sky diving. There is so much out there; graphic novels, magazines, short stories, poetry, anthologies, novels, the list goes on. The
important bit for our children is to ensure that they have the chance to
explore reading, to decide for themselves, to make sure that they have seen and
had access to texts of a rich variety. Then we will have given them the chance of that precious gift of reading.
My kids love to read. It wasn’t always like that though. For several years (they are 10) we have had them read for 30 min before bed. They learned quickly to pick out books they liked because reading was daily. Now they read at other times a day and not just at bed because they want to.
ReplyDeleteIt's lovely when they read because they want to isn't it, sounds like you found a great way to encourage their love of books.
DeleteWe love to read but I am going to send this to all my homeschooling friends. They will like this.
ReplyDeleteThanks :)We loved homeschooling our boys
DeleteI am so glad my mom was ok with my reading obsession growing up!
ReplyDeleteLove it!
ReplyDelete