Why help children read for pleasure?

Teaching this course at the start of the summer holiday means it is the perfect time to help students begin reading for pleasure! There is less on their plate, and they have more time.

You might be wondering:

Why include ‘Reading for Pleasure’ within a Technologies for Academic Success curriculum?

What has reading for pleasure got to do with helping students get better grades at school?

Reading for pleasure significantly improves academic success

The impact of reading for pleasure on academic success cannot be overstated. In fact, reading for pleasure was found to be more important for children’s cognitive development than their parents’ level of education.    Click here for the full report.

Why use technology to read for pleasure

This video introduces the topic of using technology to read for pleasure

Improved well-being

Students who find school challenging are more likely to struggle with mental health issues.

Reading for pleasure not only improves academic success, it has also been shown to improve emotional intelligence, empathy, creativity, confidence and general wellbeing. Research can be found here.

To better understand why students who find school difficult might struggle with their mental health, I highly recommend this short but powerful video, How Dyslexia Affects Mental Health.

Still not conviced?

If you are still not convinced that this is an area to invest in, I recommend you listen to the radio program that explores the benefits of reading.

To listen https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m00187ws

Want to help your child enjoy reading?

Then it is time to do some research.

Firstly, try to find a book your child will enjoy.

Secondly, explore which technology would improve the reading experience.

Remember this is not about learning to decode text but enjoying the story, Listening to books is an ideal way to do this.

What if your child finds reading difficult?

This topic is even more important when children dislike reading Heping them to develop a love of reading can be challenging.

In my eagerness to help improve the skill of reading, I unintentionally extinguished any enjoyment.

Wanting to help others learn from my mistakes, I have created an eBook and a supporting video for parents