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Reading is like Spinach...Oct 31 '01 Write an essay on this topic.
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The Bottom Line Ease your kids into reading; let them enjoy its intricacies, its mysteries, and most of all its surprises.
Kids and reading sometimes seem similar to oil and water…they just don’t mix, but on occasion you can turn a child into an avid fan of reading; this task is not always easy and may take Herculean efforts to accomplish. I have forgone the long lecture style of writing, in favor of a more useful format. What follows are not instructions…they are merely ramblings that I believe will be helpful in your quest to open your child’s eyes to the wondrous places reading can take them. Don’t Force the Issue First and foremost, you cannot force children to enjoy reading anymore than you can force them to like spinach. Making children read is likely to more harm than good and may turn them off to the idea all together. Instead, attempt to expose your finicky little creatures to the multifaceted worlds that reading can offer. Allow them the choice to discover the joys of reading at there own pace. Reading does not involve Books I’m glad you kept on reading; lesser people would have stopped at that line. Variety is an important part of any readers diet. I know lots of people who love to read, but do not enjoy books. Magazines, comic books, scripts, short stories, cereal boxes, cartoons in the paper, sub-titled movies, plays, the list of reading material is endless and I’m glad it is such. Personally, I think kids get a little scared (just shy of terrified) when their parents start talking to them about reading. And I’ll bet eight out of ten view the whole ordeal as work that is better saved for the classroom. Reading is not a torturous act and need not be dreaded. Reading is a lighthearted activity and should be talked about as such. Have a discussion with your kids; explain to them that you don’t want them to read Moby Dick (although you won’t discourage it), and that you want them to enjoy their reading choices. If your child is into Brittany Spears by her a magazine that contains an interview with the pop star. If you want you children to enjoy reading you have to play to your kids likes and dislikes; talk to them about what they are into and allow their reading to flow around their personal tastes. Read with you Children If your child likes Harry Potter, read the book (all of which are quite good), and then talk to your kids about the antics of Harry and his friends. Have a little time set-aside after dinner that you use to sit down with your children and read. Buy two copies of the book (or magazine, or whatever) and read right along side of them. Bring up bits of the book in conversation; kids of all ages will enjoy talking about the frolics of there favorite character, and they will know that you are actually interested in what they have to say. Teach them to cherish their reading time and to view it as an escape, not as a punishment. I Hate Reading This line is inevitable and relates to all of the aforementioned musings. If your child despises reading find out why he or she feels this way. Do some investigating, are they having trouble reading, is the material really that boring, or they the breed that just does not like to read (there are lots of em’ out there). See if they need help, ask them to read to you out loud, tell them to stop wasting there time on the boring book that they hate and pick up a sports magazine or a comic book, or if they really do hate reading don’t tell them they are lazy…they may just not like it and that is not a crime. Let them explore and you may find that you have under that word hating exterior lies a mathematician or an artist. Reading is Profound Allow your kids the choice and responsibilities that come with reading. Get them a library card and remember to participate in their development. Discuss the latest issue of Nickelodeon magazine at the dinner table, read the new Vogue and do a make over with you daughter. Show them that reading is the river from which all knowledge flows. Words are what carry our heritage up the family tree, make the past memorable, and allow the future to be dreamed into existence. Open your kid’s eyes to reading and let them see that it can carry them to worlds that are greater than our own. Suggested Reads Here is a short list of books that I think children and adults will both enjoy: Harry Potter, anything by R.L. Stein, James and the Giant Peach, Cat in the Hat, If you Give a Mouse a Cookie, Hatchet, My Side of the Mountain, White Fang, V.C. Andrews, Homecoming, and of course the collected works of Marvel Comics :) Writing is the birthplace of reading and I could write a whole article just on the joys of the written word, but I am including it here simply because if you are at Epinions you probably already love to write, but I would encourage you to introduce the concept to your children. Suggest that they keep a journal, or just see if they will write you a story. Keep the process low profile and just see if they catch on to the fine obscurities that can be wrought out of the written word. Explain to them or let them discover that ideas, people, monsters, whole universes are at their whim when they pick up a pen. As always, I would like to thank you for reading my opinion and I hope it was of some use. If you have any question or comments please contact me at Diversion4u@excite.com  |
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