Editor:

“Reading is at the heart of education,” according to Jim Trelease, author of “The Read-Aloud Handbook,” reading is essential to building a large vocabulary.

It is never too early to start reading to a child, in fact, the younger the better. It is our job as parents and teachers to get kids motivated at a young age to love reading. 

Children are “like little sponges,” they will sit there and soak up all the words and actions of their parents and other adults. It is our responsibility to be a good role model for them. If they see us carrying a book around and reading a lot, they will want to do it, too.

A child spends 900 hours a year in school and 7,800 hours outside school.This means that parents are the bigger influence to teach their kids and make positive changes in the household to get their kids to read. So instead of letting a child spend hours in front of a television or computer screen, motivate them to read or read to them.

Trelease has researched that “The more you read, the more you know. The more you know the smarter you grow. The smarter you are, the longer you stay in school. The longer you stay in school, the more diplomas you earn and the longer you are employed—thus the more money you earn in a lifetime…”

The more you do with your kids or the more places they visit, the more experience they will gain. This ‘background information’ is crucial in how well they understand what they read. The more experience a child has, the more they get out of what they read. Trelease explains that “Reading is like riding a bicycle, driving a car, or sewing: in order to get better at it you must do it. And the more you read, the better you get at it.”

Reading is an accrued skill so it is extremely important to start reading to your kids as early as possible, and as they get older put aside time to read with them and spend one-on-one time with them.

Fathers should be reading to their kids just as much as mothers. Trelease’s research shows that the top 10 percent of high school classes is 56 percent female and 44 percent male. This is because boys spend so much more time playing and watching sports with their dads or do not want to be associated with reading books. It is extremely important for fathers to read to their sons and daughters.

Finally, I just want to emphasize the importance of reading aloud. It does not matter what the socioeconomic status of a family is, books are available to read at every public library; it’s just a matter of taking the time to read with your child. 

“Those who read the most, read the best” and also score higher on standardized tests, as proven by Trelease’s research.

The more time you spend reading aloud to your child, the more they’ll grow.

Richelle Records

Stonehill College, Class of 2011

Kennebunk