What is Reading?

Reading is a multifaceted process of looking at a group of written representations and getting meaning from them. It involves word identification, fluency, understanding and motivation. Reading is also a thinking process.

What are Reading Skills?

An ability of an individual to read, understand and decipher the written words of an essay or any other reading element is called a reading skill. Reading skills provide a child the ability to  read and understand.

Reading is one of the four language skills besides listening, speaking and writing. It is the third language skill that the children learn in their native language after listening and speaking. Kids learning is of importance as it is necessary for children’s overall development. There is a broad category of reading skills that children develop and work on throughout their education.

Significance of Reading Skills

We look at written representatives when we are reading and use our brains to transform them into words and sentences that have meaning. Reading skills build up the majority of the child’s intelligence. Kids have a wide range of reading abilities. Once they start reading on their own, parents must involve them in the process of reading together. Child’s reading skills are significant to their success in school, life and in general.

Reading enhances children’s life in several ways:

• Exercising the minds of young children: Reading engages various parts of the brain. It enhances a child’s imagination and stimulates memory. Reading skills help recall information and sustain children’s emotions.
• Finding oneself: Books have the ability to broaden children’s perspectives and shape their attitudes towards life. It assists in shaping a child’s identity.
• Becoming a well-read individual: The more the child reads books, the more they learn about the world and people around them. It helps kids to evolve their understanding of the world.
• Keeping calm and entertained: Reading relaxes young minds and bodies. Reading can cheer up, and motivate kids as a hobby.

Benefits of Reading Out to Children

Children are constantly learning, and they will imitate their parents and teachers. Reading helps to ensure a child’s success. Parents play a vital role in developing reading skills in their kids by sharing bedtime stories, reading books, asking simple questions like Disney trivia questions, discussing their everyday life situations, reading journals etc. They must start reading to their children at an early age. It doesn’t matter whether they read novels, fiction or fairy tales, but reading it aloud can significantly benefit the children.

• Reading can enhance thinking abilities and analytical skills: Reading a book to your child helps them think and analyze it. They will start thinking about the characters and situations explained in the book. They will also analyze them from their own perspectives. It helps to construct thought processes, problem-solving, and decision-making.
• Develop language skills: Reading out to young children helps them acquire language skills, communication skills, literacy skills and social skills. It is because reading arouses children’s part of the brain that permits understanding the meaning of language.
• Equip for academic success: Children always communicate with their parents, and parents communicate with their children. It helps children to grow their vocabulary skills. They will get exposure to new words by hearing someone reading or speaking. The more words they learn in childhood will strengthen their language skills when they reach kindergarten.
• Promote a special bond between parents and children: Reading out stories or newspapers to your child regularly can help build a strong relationship between parents and children. Reading your children’s favorite books will give them a sense of well-being and intimacy. The feeling of love and attention enhances positive growth and development in children.
• Sharpens concentration and discipline: It is challenging to make children sit and focus for a long time. They rarely sit, and they can not concentrate on things for a long time. When parents introduce regular reading to their children, they could see changes in their behavior. Reading regularly will increase discipline and concentration in children. Initially, they become distracted, but gradually they will learn to focus on reading for a long time.

These benefits are remarkable. Reading is the key to lifelong learning, and parents need to teach love for reading in their children’s life.