... ...Educators, librarians and children nationwide are celebrating reading this week in honor of Children’s Book Week.
The first Children’s Book Week was held in 1919, and book lovers across the country use the week to emphasize the importance of reading each year.
Midway Primary School kicked off this year’s celebration with a puppet show presented by the children’s department of the Rome-Floyd County Library. All week, students can get prizes for reading and the school’s closed-circuit TV program will show clips of famous Georgians reading stories, said media specialist Leann Fowler.
Emphasizing reading throughout childhood is essential, she said.
“Books are very important at an early age, even when they’re born, to create a love for reading,” she said. “If you don’t do it at this age they’re probably not going to love to read. The parents need to start it and continue throughout their childhood so they’ll
Hannah Jackson, a kindergartner at Midway Primary, giggles at a puppet show to kick off Children’s Book Week. (Ryan Smith / RN-T) |
love it as adults.”
Fostering an early love for reading will help children throughout their school careers, said Lorie Barnette, media specialist at Model Middle. She said it can be challenging to keep kids interested in reading at a time when they begin to have other interests, such as sports, clubs and their social lives.
“I’ll do anything I can to turn them into readers,” she said, noting that students who may not be interested in traditional books may read magazines or graphic novels.
Barnette said she can see in her middle-schoolers the difference it makes when a parent starts reading to them early.
“I think those children start school so much ahead of the ones who have never been read to,” she said. “You learn what you live. If parents think books are important, you grow up thinking that is normal and hopefully fun, and continue it.”
“The habits you create when they’re young like that are the ones you’ll continue throughout their childhood,” Fowler agreed.
Most parents understand that early childhood reading helps develop language skills. However, reading throughout childhood, into adolescence and beyond will help build comprehension, vocabulary and reading speed, said Melinda Holmes, head librarian for Darlington’s upper and middle schools.
“The more you read, the better you’ll read, even at the high school level,” she said. “That’s really key. We’re always trying to improve on reading comprehension.”
The school media specialists want children to read not only for language skills; they want to encourage a love of learning in general.
“Through reading I have discovered ancient tombs, empathized with the troubles of other people, learned how to hang wallpaper and read aloud stirring poetry,” said Pam Russell, media specialist at East Central Elementary.
“I learn something every time I read the editorials in the newspaper or research a topic on the internet,” she continued. “In America, we have been blessed to have access to books and the freedom to read them. It is a great joy to share my love of reading with my students.”
EXPERT RECOMMENDATIONS
School media specialists, along with students Alan Loveman, Jeremiah Hayes, Tashmina Momin and Elena Diller shared these recommendations for books children and teens may especially like:
Pre-school age: Books from the “Biscuit” series by Alyssa Satin Capucilli and Pat Schories
Primary age: “Armadillo Tattletale” by Helen Ketterman; “A Bad Case of Stripes” by David Shannon; “Little Whistle’s Medicine” by Cynthia Rylant; and “The Cat in the Hat” by Dr. Seuss
Elementary age: “Inkheart” by Cornelia Funke; books in the “Deltora” series by Emily Rodda; books in the “Charlie Bone” series by Jenny Nimmo; “Chasing Vermeer” by Blue Balliett; “Ruby Holler” by Sharon Creech; and “Truesight” by David Stahler
Middle school age: Books in the “Harry Potter” series by J.K. Rowling; “Spiderwick Chronicles” by Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi; “Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants” by Ann Brashares; and “Eragon” by Christopher Paolini
High school age: “The Kite Runner” by Khaled Hosseini; “A Lesson Before Dying” by Earnest J. Gaines; and “My Sister’s Keeper” by Jodi Picoult
