Give Back Sundays: The Love of Reading

I heard a while back that prison systems project their growth needs based on third grade reading levels.  In other words, if third graders are reading at low levels, the prisons plan to expand.  This week, I heard another statistic.  Something like 58% of adults do not read another book after they leave high school.  That's a big number.

To me, this seems very disturbing and sad, because both of these things can be controlled and improved.  For whatever reasons (and none excusable to me), kids aren't reading, probably because the adults around them aren't reading.  Yet, here's another thing I've heard many times.  Successful people read - a lot.  If we want kids to succeed, why are we not teaching them to love reading?

My mom read to my "next-in-line" sister and me when we were young, every single night.  We got to pick the stories she read to us, and we mostly stuck to the essentials.  You know, Green Eggs and Ham, Baby Sister Says No, Frog and Toad Together, There's a Wocket in My Pocket.  To this day, we both love to read.

I don't have kids, but I am still around kids quite a bit.  I have several MUCH-younger-than-me siblings and a nephew, and I know that I can still influence them to some degree.  My nephew comes to my house here and there, and anytime he's over, we sit down and read Tumblebooks online.  (Since I don't have kids of my own, I don't really have an extensive children's book library.)  Tumblebooks are great, though.  They're like illustrated, audio books.  A narrator tells the story, as the pages change, and the words are highlighted along the way.  You can find them through public libraries (like this one).  My nephew's favorite is The Fire Station.  He's starting to memorize it now, which is kind of funny.  He's three, so he's very animated and silly.  When it's time for his bath now, he'll say, "You messy boy.  You can't come in and play with Michael.  YOU'RE TOO DIR-TY!"  (Read the book, and you'll understand.)

I guess I'm hoping he'll start to love reading the same way my "next-in-line" sister and I did, through silly little stories that are just fun to read.  I think that it doesn't really matter WHAT you read.  What matters is establishing the love for it and establishing the habit.

When I got into middle school, naturally it wasn't cool to have your mom read to you every night, so our little tradition stopped.  I got out of the habit of reading and only read when I had to for school, which was still quite a bit (fortunately).  When I got out of high school, I started wishing that I read more.  I started going to the local library on Tuesday afternoons.  I knew the librarian well, and she had started dropping books off to me every once in a while.  I'd stop by to return the old books, and after a while, I would browse for a few new ones before I left.  I didn't push myself, which is why I know it doesn't matter WHAT you read, as long as you read and establish the habit.  I picked up books that interested me.  At first, I only read fashion and gossip magazines, but after a while, I'd read anything and everything, and I still do to this day.

My love for reading started with my mom when I was very young and was encouraged by a librarian who saw I had an interest in books.  Without those two influences, I probably would never have learned to love to read, and I can contribute every single success I've had to that love.

I know a lot of people talk about "giving back."  I know I do, yet most people never manage to find the time to do it.  This is an easy thing that anyone can do.  If you have a child, read to him or her every day.  If you know a child, buy him or her a book every now and then.  Local shelters and Boys & Girls Clubs would probably welcome you, if you wanted to stop by and read a book or two every once in a while.  This year, instead of buying toys for the kids you know, why not buy them books instead?  That's what I'm planning to do this year.  Fortunately, my siblings and nephew still think I'm cool (for now), so maybe I can convince them that reading is cool, too. ;)

(Note: If you want to learn more about Tumblebooks, click here.  Then click "Tumblebooks" and then "Story Books.")