As the oldest child, I can also see the love of reading being instilled in my younger siblings. I would read them bedtime stories. We would do "reading parties," where all five of us would pile up blankets, pillows, and make epic forts. My youngest sister would be reading Junie B. Jones, and my brother would likely be snuggled up with at least one of the Harry Potter books. My mom would probably have a romance, and my dad would probably have some nonfiction book on posture or chess. But we would all be together, in our own little worlds.
Sometimes we would even be grounded from reading--if we were staying up too late or reading at the dinner table.
My Grandma Mellor had the same problem when she was growing up, and she hasn't stopped reading since. She read to her kids, and she reads to her grandchildren. She was an elementary school teacher and a primary teacher for many years.
I wonder if the young age that my mom, my grandma and I all started reading had any effect on our work ethic or love of learning. We all succeeded in school and read for pleasure. I'm going to be conducting a research paper exploring the effects of reading on young children, and if there is any connection to academic success later in life. I think reading is valuable and fosters good qualities such as imagination and a love for life.
No comments:
Post a Comment