(13) Books left unread from around age 5 were the shortest route to becoming a 'child who reads' - To the mom I met 10 years ago -

　Continuing the letter.
　

“Building a habit of 'reading' with books at home before getting hooked on digital media”

...is what I am talking about.

　　Until the lower grades, children can spend their time happily enough without videos or games.
　“Everyone is watching them,” “That’s just the era we live in” — let’s put those thoughts aside for a moment...
　I want to cherish the time when they can naturally encounter the “joy of reading.”


・Click here for letter (12).
(12) Books left unread from around age 5 were the shortest route to becoming a 'child who reads' - To the mom I met 10 years ago - | Emi Suzuhara (note.com)

　
　Today, I’d like to talk about

“What it means to 'read' stories during a childhood that will never return

Part 1”

　...is the topic.


　Now, Shiori-san.

　While we use the word “books” as a catch-all term, there are many genres and types, but Ihope that children will read stories and novels in particularwith all my heart.
　

　There are many reasons for this, but first of all, becauseexcellent stories provide children with “a world of their own”
just by themselves.
　“What will happen next?”
　“Can the protagonist defeat the enemy?”
　“How will they solve this problem?”
　
...and so on; stories are what allow them to experience suspense, excitement, and thrills.

　Stories written for adults don’t always have happy endings, but

the majority of children’s books leave a pleasant aftertaste that makes children think, “I’m glad I read that!” 　However, if you just want a moving story,

some might think that anime, manga, or movies are enough as well.
　I love anime and movies myself, and my own children watch them often. 　But I believe that

“reading” a story is a special experience for a child.

I truly believe that.
　　

　—Reading text is what’s important.

　Reading through a story that is primarily text, imagining it, and slowly understanding it at one’s own pace......

　If it’s a book with hundreds of pages, they might not even finish it if they try to tackle it all in one day on a holiday.

　It uses that much time, brainpower, and physical energy, and unlike video works that can be “glanced at” or “watched while doing something else,”

following letters and sentences is a voluntary and active act that can only be done if you have the intention to “read.”

　—This
is a wonderful thing!
　If you love books, you probably understand, but

reading a story that is just text (or even if it isn’t, a book that is primarily text) is quite mentally taxing—it’s actually tiring—even for adults who love books. 　However, being tired means you are using your brain that much.
　Even I, who love books, find that when I’m exhausted or have a lot on my mind, the content of a novel doesn’t sink in even when I turn the pages.
　At those times, I read manga or put on a movie I’ve seen many times for a change of pace.
　And then I realize again,


“How much mental energy does it take to read a novel...”
　—Which means, don’t you think that for achild who is in the process of growing both mentally and physically, engaging deeply with a “text-heavy book” is something that greatly encourages growth?

　And if, after using all that time and brainpower,
a feeling of “I’m glad I read that!” is waiting for them
...
　　　What a wonderful experience that must be for a child.
　There is a reason why I especially recommend stories and novels among children’s books, and that is because

countless authors convert “what they want to tell children now”

—their important messages—not into preachy words delivered from above, but into “exciting stories.”

　And for a child, a story that they spent hours or days “reading” is something that is firmly incorporated into their own heart.

　—

Reading slowly at one’s own pace until it is fully understood. 　This is a situation and a method where information is easily absorbed by anyone.
　

I think it is an experience I really want children to have while they are young. 　


the high volume of information in the act of reading.
　
For example, suppose there is a “video work” and a “novel” of the same story.
　The main plot is the same, but for instance, in the video version, there might be a scene where the protagonist is standing while looking at the sea.　You can tell it’s a lonely scene, but the “protagonist’s inner feelings” aren’t spoken in dialogue... this happens often, doesn’t it?
　

Since a video work’s job is to tell a story through visuals, expressing everything in words or dialogue can sometimes be trite.

　This is beautiful in its own way, but if the viewer doesn’t have the sense to “feel” it, nothing might be conveyed (this can be especially difficult for children). 　However,

stories and novels are, naturally, “written entirely in text.”

.
　Why did the protagonist want to go to the sea? What are they feeling while looking at the sea...?


　In that way,stories and novels are written by professionals called authors who use all their words to describe “what people think and how they act.”

　If you have the experience of reading many such books while you are a child,
children will naturally come to “think in text,” “imagine from text,” and “have their own words.”
　I’ve heard that children who read a lot of books by around age X develop reading comprehension and vocabulary... and I think that is because it really depends on
　

“how much they read” during the period when they are absorbent and are bundles of sensitivity during their growth phase. 　And also, this

habit of “reading” also leads to self-confidence for a child.

I truly believe that.


　For a child, trying hard to read a story of “a certain length” is also asmall challenge (if they start with short ones and take steps, most children will be able to read them).


　Even so, when they feel they have worked hard and “read it,” and also when they feel “that was interesting!”
a sense of trust in themselves as someone who “can read a book and find it interesting” is born.
　At this time, the child

Acquiring the single drawer of 'reading books'

I think that's what it does.

To put it in modern terms, it's like installing an app called 'reading books' onto yourself.

And once acquired, it's a power that is never uninstalled (just like once you learn to ride a bicycle, you can ride it for the rest of your life).

This sense of trust is

a sense of trust in oneself that 'I could read it,' and

a sense of trust in books that 'they will entertain me'

as well, and when you have this, going to libraries and bookstores becomes fun.


And also, when children become able to read many stories, it becomes a habit for children to 'think with their own heads' more and more,
and furthermore, they naturally stock 'patterns of thinking' and 'patterns of overcoming obstacles' in their minds.

--Why is that?

The letter continues.


<'What happens next?' The hand turning the page won't stop; I'm training my reading muscles now>

・Click here for letter (14).
(14) The 'to-be-read' pile from around age 5 was the shortest route to becoming a 'child who reads' - To the mom I met 10 years ago - | Emi Suzuhara (note.com)



・Click here for letter (1).
(1) The 'to-be-read' pile from around age 5 was the shortest route to becoming a 'child who reads' - To the mom I met 10 years ago - | Emi Suzuhara (note.com)