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When reading is fun, the only
discipline required is the discipline to stop reading when it is time to
wash up and go to bed.
Research shows that students who have good reading skills and high
comprehension do better academically. Exemplary students have a high
level of reading comprehension. Reading comprehension is central to
academic success, more so than any other skill. If a child cannot
comprehend the written language, he or she will find it difficult or
even impossible to excel in any field.
It is vital for parents to help their children learn effective reading
skills at an early age. These skills are not inborn; they must be
learned. Usually, children who enjoy reading have parents who also enjoy
reading. They have grown up watching their parents read and benefit from
it. Perhaps their parents also read aloud to them. Few things encourage
reading more than reading a good story together. Parents who rarely read
would do well to explore the possibilities of establishing good reading
habits with their children.
To become an excellent reader, a child must have the desire to achieve
and the discipline to read regularly. At first, to establish good
reading habits, it is fine for a child to read a newspaper or magazine.
Once their reading habits improve, they can move on to more difficult
material. Often children resist reading because they don't have anything
interesting to read. How can parents motivate their child to read? One
way is for parents to select topics that they know their child is
interested in. Does he or she like science? Fiction? What kind of
fiction? Art? Nature? There are many good story books and books on every
topic for readers of every age and reading level. Parents can go to the
library with their child and help them pick out a book. A child is more
likely to read a book that he chooses himself.
A practice schedule can be established in different ways. One way is to
present reading time as a fun and relaxing activity before or after
supper. With little ado, a parent might sit down on the couch, pick up a
book, and begin, “Once upon a time…” and before long, the child is
hooked. Soon the child is sitting on the couch, too, reading along with
the parent, and parent and child are both immersed in the story,
wondering what will happen next. Sometimes the child reads aloud to the
parent. As the days go by, they begin to look forward to reading time.
When reading is fun, the only discipline required is the discipline to
stop reading when it is time to wash up and go to bed.
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Improving
A Child's