Why Are Books Important
It is how we discover new things. Reading is vital in developing a good self image.
Being able to read is a crucial skill in being able to function in today's society. It is important because it develops the mind and develops the imagination.
A person who knows how to read can educate themselves in any area of life they are interested in.
Non readers or poor readers often have low opinions of themselves and their abilities. They feel isolated and behaviour problems can surface. As we live in an age overflowing with information, reading is the main way to take advantage of it.
"Reading, like no other medium, can transform your life in a flash, and you never know which book, at which time in your life, might be the one that rocks your world and inspires you to grow in ways you never thought possible."
---Burke Hedges.
10 Reasons Why Reading Is Important (for kids AND adults)
I thought it a good idea to give a short (and concise) list of ten reasons why reading is important. I have these posted in my classroom and am always encouraging my kids with them. I found this list at:
Kids who read often and widely get better at it. This is pretty much just common sense. After all, practice makes perfect in almost everything we humans do and reading is no different.
Reading exercises our brains. Reading is a much more complex task for the human brain than, say, watching TV is. Reading strengthens brain connections and actually builds new connections.
Reading improves concentration. Again, this is a bit of a no-brainer. Children have to sit still and quietly so they can focus on the story when they’re reading. If they read regularly as they grow up, they develop the ability to do this for longer and longer periods.
Reading teaches children about the world around them. Through reading, they learn about people, places and events outside their own experience. They are exposed to ways of life, ideas and beliefs about the world which may be different from those which surround them. This learning is important for its own sake however it also builds a store of background knowledge which helps younger children learn to read confidently and well.
Reading improves a child’s vocabulary, leads to more highly-developed language skills and improves the child's ability to write well. This is because children learn new words as they read but also because they unconsciously absorb information as they read about things like how to structure sentences and how to use words and language effectively.
Reading develops a child’s imagination. This is because when we read our brains translate the descriptions we read of people, places and things into pictures. When we’re engaged in a story, we’re also imagining how the characters are feeling. We use our own experiences to imagine how we would feel in the same situation.
Reading helps kids develop empathy. This is something I’ve only recently realised but it makes sense. As my fifteen-year-old son said to me when we were discussing it, ‘Of course it does because you’re identifying with the character in the story so you’re feeling what he’s feeling.’
Because reading does all the things I’ve mentioned above, children who read do better at school. And they don’t just do better at subjects like reading, English and history. They do better at all subjects and they do better all the way through school.
Reading is a great form of entertainment! A paperback book doesn’t take up much space so you can take it anywhere and you’ll never be lonely or bored if you have a book in your bag. You can read while waiting in a queue, while waiting for a friend who’s running late or during a flight delay at an airport.
Reading relaxes the body and calms the mind. This is an important point because these days we seem to have forgotten how to relax and especially how to be silent.
The constant movement, flashing lights and noise which bombard our senses when we’re watching TV, looking at a computer or playing an electronic game are actually quite stressful for our brains. When we read, we read in silence and the black print on a white page is much less stressful for our eyes and brains.
Kids who read often and widely get better at it. This is pretty much just common sense. After all, practice makes perfect in almost everything we humans do and reading is no different.
Reading exercises our brains. Reading is a much more complex task for the human brain than, say, watching TV is. Reading strengthens brain connections and actually builds new connections.
Reading improves concentration. Again, this is a bit of a no-brainer. Children have to sit still and quietly so they can focus on the story when they’re reading. If they read regularly as they grow up, they develop the ability to do this for longer and longer periods.
Reading teaches children about the world around them. Through reading, they learn about people, places and events outside their own experience. They are exposed to ways of life, ideas and beliefs about the world which may be different from those which surround them. This learning is important for its own sake however it also builds a store of background knowledge which helps younger children learn to read confidently and well.
Reading improves a child’s vocabulary, leads to more highly-developed language skills and improves the child's ability to write well. This is because children learn new words as they read but also because they unconsciously absorb information as they read about things like how to structure sentences and how to use words and language effectively.
Reading develops a child’s imagination. This is because when we read our brains translate the descriptions we read of people, places and things into pictures. When we’re engaged in a story, we’re also imagining how the characters are feeling. We use our own experiences to imagine how we would feel in the same situation.
Reading helps kids develop empathy. This is something I’ve only recently realised but it makes sense. As my fifteen-year-old son said to me when we were discussing it, ‘Of course it does because you’re identifying with the character in the story so you’re feeling what he’s feeling.’
Because reading does all the things I’ve mentioned above, children who read do better at school. And they don’t just do better at subjects like reading, English and history. They do better at all subjects and they do better all the way through school.
Reading is a great form of entertainment! A paperback book doesn’t take up much space so you can take it anywhere and you’ll never be lonely or bored if you have a book in your bag. You can read while waiting in a queue, while waiting for a friend who’s running late or during a flight delay at an airport.
Reading relaxes the body and calms the mind. This is an important point because these days we seem to have forgotten how to relax and especially how to be silent.
The constant movement, flashing lights and noise which bombard our senses when we’re watching TV, looking at a computer or playing an electronic game are actually quite stressful for our brains. When we read, we read in silence and the black print on a white page is much less stressful for our eyes and brains.
So there you have it – the Top 10 benefits of reading!
Reading Help
The world of words is a great place, but we all have needed reading help. Those marks on paper can be frustrating and embarrassing if we don't know what they mean. Sometimes it is more than just inconvenient. It can be dangerous if, for example, a person cannot correctly read the instructions on a medicine bottle. And, let's face it, there was a time when all of us were in the dark. For some of us the light was turned on early as we received the reading help we needed. For others it has been a lifetime struggle with those mysterious lines and swirls.
Reading, unlike spoken language, is a learned skilled. Those who are older and need reading help now are no less intelligent that those who no longer need reading instruction. The vast majority of times the only difference is in the method used to teach the skill. [It is possible that the whole word method was originally introduced to purposely slow down the reading process.] Everyone who can speak can learn to read. The phonetic approach of the Academic Associate program has proven very effective with providing reading help to those who are still struggling. Students are led through all the phonetic rules one small step at a time. Patient repetition and reenforcement aid even those who struggle the hardest and feel it cannot be. Faces radiate with excitement as they discover that, yes, they too can read. We should all be on the same page!
Whether you are a client or a visitor, I trust you will enjoy our pages below. They are not directly part of the program, but they should be fun and educational for all. And don't forget, if you are a visitor, it's easy to become a client and reach your reading potential in our reading help step-by-step program. Everyone can learn to read
Reading Instruction:
Why Dick And Jane Can't Read
and What We Can Do About It
By Academic Associates founder Cliff Ponder
Copyright 2006 by Cliff Ponder
The new elementary school principal could hardly believe what he was hearing - an eighth-grade student struggling to read a fourth-grade book! "He must be severely handicapped," the principal thought. Upon investigation, however, he found that the reader was a typical 14 year-old boy. Except for one thing - he couldn't read.I was that school principal, and I soon discovered that those students were not alone; half the adults in the United States can't read simple instructions like those on a job application or a medicine bottle. Canadians fare only slightly better.
So why can't these students read? In desperation I sought an answer from the district's experts. They sent me 2,000 miles away to a reading specialist with a Ph.D. I hung on every word she spoke, but returned to my school no wiser for the effort.
Over the next twenty years I examined every reading instruction methodology that promised even a glimmer of hope, but none provided the answers I so desperately needed. Although some of the methods seemed to help some of the students, there were always large gaps that left many unable to read.
Years later new scientific research on the complex functions of the brain revealed that all the reading instruction programs used in schools - even those that include basic phonics instruction - are predicated on faulty assumptions. They attempt to teach reading to an area of the brain that can't process language in any form. It is the old "Dick and Jane" whole-word method. The entire system was destined to fail from the start.
Armed with the latest research, I began designing a step-by-step protocol that would gently guide students through all the complexities of reading. It had to work in harmony with the brain's sophisticated neurological architecture, and it had to include everything needed to enable students to read and comprehend written English. It must transfer the information on the printed page to the brain smoothly and logically, and result in an orderly, one-way flow of information. Nothing like this had ever been done before.
Following that initial success, other students soon responded very much like the first student had. Some were taught individually or in small groups, while others were taught in regular school classrooms. They typically gained between two and six years in total reading skills after only 30 to 60 hours of instruction.
Many of these students had severe learning disabilities. The new method could not cure their disabilities, but it helped them to develop strategies for bypassing some of the defective parts of the brain. In so doing, they suddenly discovered that reading was no longer a problem. Today learning centers, clinics and schools around the world use the reading instruction method. Thousands of students of all ages who were previously doomed to a life of failure and frustration have seen lifelong barriers crumble.
One California school used the method in their first- and second-grades. While other schools in the area failed to reach a 50-percent literacy rate, the first-graders of that school scored an average of 3.7 [third-grade, seventh month] in reading while the second-graders averaged 6.2 [Sixth-grade, second month]. Every student scored at grade level or higher.
A severely dyslexic 55 year-old woman said upon completion of the course, "I feel that I've lived my entire life wandering in a long, dark cave, and now I'm in the sunshine for the very first time." Her reading level rocketed from fourth-grade to college level.
The reading instruction method has proven effective at every stage of learning from preschool to adult level, as the primary mode of instruction as well as remedial instruction for the learning disabled. It is called the Academic Associates Reading Course .
It is extremely satisfying to know that so many students have been saved from a lifetime of failure and frustration because of this simple, yet effective method of teaching reading, which any good teacher can use.
[If Dick and Jane were around today they would probably be held back a grade or two, so ineffective was the reading methodology with which they were taught.]
Using this method also helps with spelling difficult words.
Sign up for our complete reading instruction program now.
If you would like to share your experiences or advice with teaching reading, click here. Or you may like to share a review of your favorite Children's book
Read to Succeed
Read to Succeed is an exciting program that encourages students in grades K through 6 to read for fun. Students who complete six hours of recreational reading earn free tickets to Six Flags! The program is available to teachers and schools at no cost to participate, and it's a great way to motivate kids to read.
To register for Read To Succeed for the 2012-2013 school year, please click the Registration link below. Even if you participated last year, you will need to register again for the new school year
