Learnings from my reading journey so far....

By Namitha

I am an avid reader, wanted, hoped and wished that my habit be contiguous to people around me. When I became a mother, I promised myself that I was give it my best try to make my son "reader". I introduced books to my son when he was hardly one. Got him a hardbound book which he turned, twisted, tried to pull the pages out, threw and tried all his skills.

Fast forward 8 years, now he also enjoys reading thoroughly. Grabs anything and everything and starts reading. It's a proud moment for a "reader" mother to see her offspring getting lost in the world of books :)

So you may wonder, why read? What’s so great about reading?

Here are a few ways in which I feel books have added value to my life and also how academic excellence is directly related to reading habit:

1. Reading is the jump start for all types of learning. For any type of self-learning, the first step is to "read" and analyze the read words. Thus reading forms the foundation for learning.
2. We know that attentiveness/mindfulness is a luxury these days. When a kid digs himself/herself into a document, there is complete concentration and a hundred percentage mindfulness in the current task. As research confirms that such an engrossed brain is a super active brain working hard to get the most, unlike the passive brain during a video game.
3. I recently came across a De-Stress therapy known as "Bibliotherapy", wherein books are used to reduce stress in adults. So, if a book can be so effective for adults we could consider how fruitful can a "book" be for a child. We cannot negate the fact that young children are under stress and need a means to let that stress out. So reading can be an effective means to reduce stress levels. Also as they grow up, books could be an effective means to "let-go" than surrendering to bad habits.
4. In this age of technology-based learning, most of the teaching happens with the help of technology, be it audio-visual or e-learning modules, etc. But the capacity to further enhance one's knowledge comes only by self-learning. The key to self-learning is reading and comprehension. There is no limit to knowledge if one is capable of critically analyze the read topics and assimilate it to one's knowledge base.
5. Increased vocabulary is one of the best "side-effects" of reading. While enjoying an interesting book, one is unaware of how fast is his/her vocabulary is building. In no time the child starts making use of the words in their daily life.
6. My son named his new drone-like toy "spy-der", I was surprised on where he had learned on the word-splitting skills. When asked, the reply was that he had seen similar word-breaking in one of the books he has read a couple of days ago. When he was thinking about a name for his toy, this name flashed, almost with no effort. This shows the depth of the influence a book can have on personality development of a young mind.

Yes, the new generation needs to learn the nitty-gritty of the technology, but equipping them with life-skills of “reading” at a young age is also equally prime.

Happy reading!