After food, shelter and company, stories are what we need most in the world, and anyone who breathes should know the truth of this phrase. From telling stories around the fire, to the invention of the printing press, or even watching Netflix, our culture has always revolved around stories , and that is why it is so important to know how to convey the importance of them to the little ones , preferably through reading.
The stories are everywhere
Through stories we define our world and discover our place in it. In other words, stories help us understand the world we live in, teach us where we come from and help us see the future in the best possible way. Stories are our education and our escape, they help us fall asleep and have inspiration and motivation for action that is needed daily.
And the truth is that children, from a very young age, also know how to appreciate the value of stories and are always willing to listen to their elders, so we could say that children also know how to love good stories and enjoy them through movies, television, family games … methods that allow them to enjoy a good story or story without having yet learned to read. This means that children, even in the pre-reader stage, are on the way to becoming good and avid readers , but it is the adults around them who have the key to make this happen, because if a child The pre-reader just approaches a book, he will get tired and move away from it because he does not understand anything.
We must bear in mind, in any case, that films, television or video games are not our enemies as educators, but simply alternative narrative methods that do not have to displace books if we know how to introduce their use properly at home or in the classroom. In this sense, what we need to do is encourage each child to appreciate storytelling through the written word at least as much as they appreciate storytelling through visual media. The process can be hard and slow, but let’s not forget that it is very difficult to reach a high level of reading or interest in books if you cannot read, which is why it is important that we understand the little ones and do not force them to nothing.
How do we inspire our children to love reading?
- Know the tastes and hobbies of the little ones
Talk to them about their favorite movies, TV shows or video games and find books that expand on those universes and characters that already have tons of captivated children, like Harry Potter. You can also show them how dynamic visuals and written narration work together in comics and graphic novels, or have kids make their own comics or write their own fan-fiction and share their work with their classmates or friends.
- Surround the children with good books
When we give children access to a rich and well-organized library, we provide hundreds of opportunities every day for their eyes to fall on an intriguing title, or for them to see another classmate choose a book and absorb it. When we surround children with books, we show them that reading is something that permeates life, something to do at any time of the day . When we give children a library and allow them to choose their own reading material, we provide opportunities for learning that are deeper, more pervasive, more personal, and most importantly, self-driven.
- Read books aloud
The best thing you can do to foster a child’s love of reading is to read with him or her. Reading aloud is a foolproof, low-pressure way to engage the imagination through the written word . Once you have the kids well and truly hooked, leave copies of the book in the classroom or in some corner of the house and give them free reading time. How many children do you think will decide to take the book and finish it on their own?
- Show the little ones how much you like to read
In childhood, many times it is parents, avid readers, who are the first stone to make a child want to read, but teachers are no less influential in children’s lives than parents, and that is why it is essential to equip oneself with the skills. appropriate dynamics. Many teachers who are passionate about some type of topic or specific reading, are able to transmit that interest and passion to their students, and when teachers find ways to show students the importance of reading in their own lives, they open the door so that reading is also important in the lives of their students.
- Enjoy and pass on stories
The love for stories is embedded in every human being and today we have more means to know and receive them than in any other time in the world. Today and new technologies allow us to guide a character under our own orders or to see the course of a lifetime in a couple of hours, but above all we can read and immerse ourselves in these stories and then transmit them to others, as our own did. ancestors long before us. A unique, unrepeatable and romantic way to discover other worlds and that we must not stop teaching the little ones.
And you, do you foster a love of reading and books in your home or class?
