Here's my latest kick....reading about reading. The following books were recommended by a friend and I polished them off in no time! Both are based on the same subject and would be worthwhile reading for anyone with young kids in their lives.
The first is Raising Confident Readers by Dr. J. Richard Gentry. As a mother of three I quickly picked up on the fact that kids learn differently. As such, I was curious as to why reading has been easier to pick up by one child and not the next. They were raised in the same environment, with the same parents and grandparents, so did we unconsciously do something differently or, is there something deeper going on that we need to look into? Gentry's book looks at the five phases of reading and how to guide your children through these phases before they even enter kindergarten. He feels parents can do this naturally though fun word games and play and without the parent becoming the "teacher". He emphasizes reading aloud daily to your children from infancy, always having writing utensils available for children at home, and many fun activities that go along with reading and writing. He also gives suggestions to help figure out which phase your child might already be in and how to help them get up to speed if they are lagging behind.
While I found all of the info in this book to be really good, I couldn't help but wish I had read it sooner. Most of the things Gentry discusses we did with our kids somewhat naturally. But looking back, I can see where one of my kids picked up on things easier then another, and if I had known to watch for these things I could have encouraged them a bit more. Welcome to the quandary of parenthood, right? If I'd only known... But, then again, would that have fixed all the problems or just alerted me a bit sooner to the fact that there was a problem at all?
Gentry also suggests a milestone diary for each child which I'm sure is a great thing, but have to admit outright, is something I would never keep up with. The diaries would end up on the shelf next to the journal's I'm supposed to be keeping of the kid's best quotes and most loved activities, and on top of the pile of pictures I swear I will someday put in a scrapbook. Regardless, Raising Confident Readers is a book that gave me some wonderful insight into what I can still do to encourage reading in my kids, no matter what phase they are in now.
The second book is called Reading Magic by Mem Fox. The main focus of this little gem is to read, read, read and then read again to any kids in your life. Read with enthusiasm, read with gusto and model reading yourself. In this one thing I feel I have done well as a parent. If I've accomplished nothing else as a parent, I have modeled reading to my children. They have seen me ignore laundry for days at at time, let dishes pile up in the sink, and compile meals all while absorbed in a book. In this I can feel no guilt! (Much to my husband's chagrin!) I'm not sure I learned anything new while reading this book, but much like The Read-aloud Handbook, (which I did actually read before I had kids), it was a joy to spend some time with someone I will most likely never meet but who has a passion for something that I too love. Kids and books are a great combination, and just as I make sure I am never far from a book, we should make sure the kids in our lives have equal access.
