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Why is reading important for child development?

AuthorPosted by: Daniel on April 6, 2016 Under: Reading tips for parents

Reading is the primary skill to be literate. Your child can start reading small words at the age of 3 to 4, depending on your teaching skills. At the age of six, your child would be able read small sentences and phrases with a fair bit of fluency.

The most crucial stage to enhance the reading skills of a child is 10 to 11. At this stage, your child would be able to read fluently and understand meanings of a wide range of words. Your child should have reached the 5th grade by this age and your slight circumspection at this point can boost his intellectual development.

Here are some reasons to focus on the reading skills of your fifth grader:

Skills Development

Reading skills are directly linked with lots of other mental abilities. According to the National Reading Panel, reading can enhance five different skills in kids and all five of them are essential to lead a successful academic life. These skills include:

  1. Phonemic Awareness: This skill represents your ability to hear and identify different sounds. It also allows you to play with different sounds separately, which is also known as phonemes.
  2. Phonics: This skill enables you to link the words and symbols with different sounds. It is an essential skill for the right pronunciation.
  3. Vocabulary: It is the library of words in your mind. This size of this library decides how effectively you convey your message.
  4. Fluency: This skill represents your ability to read the script quickly and accurately.
  5. Reading Comprehension: It is the ability to understand what you have read.

Reading right books can enhance these abilities in your kid rather quickly.

Literacy by stage of development

Superior Knowledge

Another obvious benefit of reading books is that it enhances the knowledge. You may think that it is too early for 10 years old to focus on enhancing knowledge. Keep it in mind that reading at this stage is not about increasing knowledge but it is about igniting the spark to learn something new. It will line up the mind of your kid to read new things and it will become his habit. In the modern era of science and technology it is very difficult to compel teenagers to focus on reading but if you take smart steps at the right time you will not need to make huge efforts in later stages. The habit of reading can take your kid to the highest level of any field because we all know that knowledge is power.

knowledge board

Stimulate Imagination

It is natural for a human being to imagine new things all the time. The imagination power of children is very strong therefore they keep on asking new question every day. According to a study, on average a child under the age of 7 asks almost 100 questions every day. Unfortunately, this imagination power decreases with time due to distractions like TV, computers, video games, and smartphones. Some books can stimulate imagination in your kid. The books of fantasy genre contain lots of imaginative stuff. You can select some fantasy books to open the mind of your kids but make sure to keep this exposure limited so that child doesn’t lose the sight of reality.

imagination text paint

Enhance Creativity

Books are the best source to increase the creativity. Every book has its own way to enhance creativity. Some books use the pictures to illustrate new designs and structures. Book with puzzles can increase the brain activity of your kids which is good for growing kids because they will have to solve complex mathematical question and these puzzles will prepare their minds to handle amplified brain activities.

You can also use book reading as a way to build a strong bond with your child. Read them few pages every night or ask them to read something for you. These activities will not only improve your relationship but also build the confidence of your child to speak in public.

parent reading

All these benefits of reading for your child development indicates that it is the time for you to go through some book series in order to find the best book for your kid. It is important for you to select books after serious consideration because it may decide your child’s carrier.

You may also be interested in: How To Improve Kids’ Reading Ability?