Read! Read! Why is reading an important attribute for children?

Having fluent reading skills is essential to living a productive and capable life. In Western society, those who cannot read or can barely read are disadvantaged severely. Children need to develop reading skills as early as possible to  better ensure their success in school and in life. However, if you need a more specific explanation for the importance of childhood reading, here are five reasons as to why children should read.

Reading expands a child’s imagination.

Sure, you may think a child’s imagination is vast enough. However, that is not true. Imagination fuels creativity that can be carried into a child’s adult years. Children who spend time reading are forced to create visual images and scenarios within their head in order to comprehend the book that they are reading properly. These visuals and scenarios often lead to self-created visuals and scenarios that they will share excitedly with you. The more imagination is encouraged and developed within a child, the more likely that the child will utilize their imagination to build a productive academic and professional career in the future.

Reading books can trigger important, landmark conversations.

Sometimes, books discuss topics that parents or adults cannot bring themselves to talk about with a child. When a child reads a book that strikes them with deep curiosity, this child is learning how to ask questions about subjects that confuse them. Whether the subject be concerning race, gender, emotions or another topic, books have the capability to trigger milestone realizations and questions within a child. Because of the questions a child asks and hopefully have answered, he or she will learn important life lessons early on. They will also develop the skills to deal with difficult situations later on in life. Although books cannot replace the guidance of an adult, they can help an adult guide a child to a healthy and aware life.

https://www.amazon.com/Imagination-Like-Mine-Kids/dp/0998599050

Understanding and following a story improves a child’s attention span and cognitive abilities.

There are so many portions of the brain that are activated during the process of reading. In order to understand a story, a child must recall key moments within the story while simultaneously building on top of those memories. While all of this is going on, kids are being engaged emotionally by story that they are reading  and must channel that emotion into continuing with the book. The combination of all this brain work ups a child’s ability to pay attention to consistently developing ideas and a child’s cognitive abilities.

A child’s vocabulary will expand once they learn to read.

An important aspect of growing a child’s intelligence is expanding his or her vocabulary. Books expose children to a wide variety of words and, in order to understand the story, they need to figure out what these words mean. As a child reads more, the words that they have learned the meaning of become a part of their vocabulary, which expands their interpretation of the world.

“The more words you know, the more clearly and powerfully you will think… and the more ideas you will invite into your mind.”           – Wilfred Funk

Literature can inspire a child.

At the heart of all these benefits of reading is the inspiration literature can spark in a child. Books can inspire a child’s desire to learn. They can inspire a child’s willingness to be exposed to different people and ideas. Most importantly, books can inspire a child to start the trek to becoming a well-rounded and intelligent adult.

If you are an adult with a child in his or her life, set aside a minimum 15 minutes a day for the child to read. Make sure you’re available  to talk to the child if he or she has any questions. This small of amount of daily time can benefit a child for years to come.