Reading: A Parent's Guide, Part I

10.18.2010

In Sunday’s LA Times, there’s a special section about reading and a parent’s guide to it. I haven’t read it in its entirety but there are a few things that I thought were interesting. Instead of overwhelming the one or two readers I have, I’ll try and space the information out as I, myself, go through the guide. Since I’ll be picking and choosing info that I find interesting only, if anyone would like to look at the guide in its entirety, here’s the link: http://www.latimes.com/extras/readingby9/. The following info was gathered by Shelly Gabert (for the LA Times), I just consolidated it.

Beverly Hills based family and child therapist, Jenn Berman, Psy.D, and guest expert on parenting on “The Today Show,” urges parents to start reading with their child/ren as soon as possible and as often as possible. She outlines six “immediate” benefits of reading toward a child’s development.

Increases Vocabulary: “Just reading three picture books each week has been shown to increase vocabulary by 15% to 40%...”

Improves Listening Skills: “Being read to at home appears to help with listening comprehension…since most of the instructions a child receives early in life are oral, they will better understand what their teachers and their parents ask them to do.”

Improves Attention Span and Memory: “The ability to pay attention and the ability to remember facts are interconnected.”

Hones Reading and Writing Skills: According to research conducted by the US Department of Education, “children who are read to at least three times a week by a family member are almost twice as likely to score in the top 25% in reading…[and] students who read more had less fear of writing because of their exceptional grasp on written language.”

Builds Creativity and Imagination: "Reading nurtures a child’s ability to think outside the box.”

Enhances Enjoyment of Books: “Each time you read to your child, you are conditioning his or her brain to make an association between reading and pleasure. It starts when they are infants and as they learn to read themselves.”

Tomorrow I’ll have info on the Developmental Milestones of Early Literacy. Oddly, I found it fascinating.