(3) Books piled up since age 5 were the shortest route to becoming a 'book-reading child' - To the mom I met 10 years ago -

The letter continues.

"Building a habit of 'reading' with books at home before getting hooked on digital devices"

...is what I am talking about.

・Click here for letter (2).
(2) Books piled up since age 5 were the shortest route to becoming a 'book-reading child' - To the mom I met 10 years ago - | Emi Suzuhara (note.com)

Today,

"Books piled up are like a menu at a family restaurant"

is the topic.


--Now, come to think of it, I suddenly brought up the term 'tsundoku' (piled-up books), but Shiori-san, have you ever heard of it?


Originally, as the name suggests, it means 'books piled up'... books you bought and were satisfied with, but left in a pile without reading...but of course, it is better to 'actually read' them, isn't it?


Also, I think there are homes where books on the bookshelf that are always within reach are sometimes read and sometimes not, becoming like piled-up books as well.
The term 'tsundoku' is metaphorical, so it is perfectly fine if they are properly on the bookshelf.


However, in our home, books that aren't neatly organized on the shelf are piled up here and there (sorry about that), and it seems that this environment created a situation where it was 'easy for my second daughter to pick them up'.


--In any case, I think the point is
"having a variety and number of books that are fun to choose from always in the house".


It is not about what the mom and dad think, like 'Look, there are books over there,' but it is very important that 'there are always books' within the child's line of sight.


However, for my second daughter, the 'piled-up books' that have been in the house since she was old enough to understand were not necessarily all to her taste, and some matched her growth in terms of font size, amount of text, and presence of pictures, while others did not.


She chooses and reads from them in her own way, so there are probably books that will end up never being picked up for the rest of her life--truly, piled-up books.


But I think for a child who has started to become interested in books, this is like a menu at a family restaurant or a diner with a large menu.


--Hmm? What does that mean... that was a bit sudden!

Imagine it.

I think everyone has experienced this, but if you look at a rich menu at a restaurant and are told, 'You can choose whatever you like from this,' you feel happy and excited, right?

Even if you agonize over it and end up ordering the 'same dish as always,' if there are many dishes you haven't tried left on the menu, don't you think, 'I want to go to that restaurant again!'?


For example, even if you go to a restaurant with 100 menu items once a week, if you think about it carefully after a few years, it is possible that you realize, 'Oh, I only ever ate about 10 of them...'


Don't you think people's tastes are surprisingly like that?


But, if it were a restaurant that only had those 10 items from the start, would you have gone there daily?


I feel like the excitement wouldn't be there.

It is the same with books at home; it is okay to have books you read and books you don't.

Even if the majority are 'cheerleading squad' books that never get read to the end, that is okay! (Of course, it is better if they are read, though).


I don't want you to think, 'I bought these thinking my child would be happy, but they didn't read them. It was a waste of money...'.

This is actually a quite important way of thinking, and I think many moms and dads don't want to buy books unless they are 'books that will definitely be read.'
Of course, I understand. Money is precious, after all.

Even so, even so, I think that just having 'lots of books piled up' and 'books that might be read someday...' that kind of scenery is what makes the heart excited.


For a child who has only been alive for a few years since they were born and became aware of the world, 'books' and 'reading' are unknown things.


It is only the adults who have expectations for reading from the perspective of 'I hope they become a smart child,' but for the child, 'books' are still a blank world.


At such a time, having an environment of books where, even if they don't know what they are, there are 'things they can choose freely' and 'things that make them excited' is, I think, quite a shortcut to becoming a child who loves books.


And another wonderful thing about piled-up books is the possibility that if they whimsically reach out and think, 'Maybe I'll read that book that's been here for a while...', they might find it 'surprisingly interesting!'


When this happens, the child reads with absorption.


I chose it myself, and it was interesting...!


Choosing for yourself is precious. The experience of choosing for yourself and finding it to be the best is a treasure, and it leads to trust in your own heart

.

Beyond just reading, I think experiences like this are a big trigger for a child to 'come to love' something.

What do you think?

--The letter continues.

<'Sensitivity' is invisible, but it is the jewel of the heart that shines when you say 'interesting'>

・Click here for letter (4).
(4) Books piled up since age 5 were the shortest route to becoming a 'book-reading child' - To the mom I met 10 years ago - | Emi Suzuhara (note.com)

・Click here for letter (1).
(1) - To the mom I met 10 years ago - Living with 'piled-up books' since age 5 was the shortest route to becoming a 'book-reading child'. | Emi Suzuhara (note.com)