I have picked up reading lately, and find that it is really a very useful way to gain knowledge. Through books, we get to explore vast unknown domains and gain insights and different perspectives. To me, it is important to instill the spirit to learn through reading in kids when they are young so they find it a pleasure and do so when they grow up.
How do we develop this habit of reading in our kids?
I believe we need to do this from young. Make it a habit to read to your child when they are very young, whether they understand each and every word or not. Make it a routine to read perhaps just before they sleep. One day they will pick up books themselves and develop the habit of reading.
We can also bring them to libraries, let them choose what they like, and let them own their reading journey. Attend reading session activities at the library so they participate with other children.
How to read to them when I don’t have time?
I found that recently there are avenues where we can allow kids to watch videos of other people reading books. For example, National Library Board (NLB) has Storytime videos where they have video recordings of people reading storybooks.
There are stories in English, Chinese, Malay and Tamil, and you can find the videos on Youtube:
Recently I have also found on Facebook that Sun Xueling has been doing weekly storytelling sessions and you can find those videos online.
If you want more videos, you can click into the link above and find the “Sun Xueling Reads FB Live” playlist.
Photo: image above taken from Unsplash
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