Building a House of Books

I believe that a love of reading is something that starts at a young age, while the mind of a child is young and fresh. Children long to learn, and what better way to learn then by reading?

My mother taught me to read, and I have grown a stronger love of reading ever since. I spent my childhood reading rich classic literature, everything from The Secret Garden to The Lord of the Rings. I learned so much from reading, and there was never a time as a young child that I was ever turned away from a book or from someone reading to me.

Good reading breeds good writing. And so, learning to read and read well inherits the ability to write strong sentences and articulate essays of speech. I not only grew a love of reading, but a love for writing as well.

We live in an age where good books and writing skills are unappreciated, undervalued, and underprioritized. Children aren't reading good books, merely comics and picture books. Whilst comics and picture books make for a fun read, they provide little foundation and enthusiasm for books of more depth and difficulty. But aside from this, it seems many children don't even start their learning journey by reading picture books. Instead, they are given tablets, phones, and television. This holds no long-term learning lessons for children and are simply means of distraction and laziness. It's no wonder teenagers grow up mindless and unenergized, as their minds are lacking nutrition all throughout their younger years.

I recall an instance where I witnessed a teacher take a book from a young child as he wasn't listening to her lesson. Whilst I understand teaching a child is one thing, I think the greater lesson you are teaching is that their curiosity is a punishable action. What was the harm? He wasn't doing anything dangerous. The child merely wanted a book of his own to look at. He was also quite young, so understandably it would be hard for him to sit still and listen to a story every day. (Much less the same story on repeat.) Humans are curious by nature and children even more so. How else are we going to learn if not through experience? If a child has engagement through their own lens of curiosity, why shatter it? All children are unique and so must be their view of the world. So how crippling would it be to deprive someone as impressionable as a child of not only their curiosity but of their curiosity of something as important as a book? The first few years of a child's life are crucial. So, what are we to mirror for them? After all, in the story above the child was also copying the teacher reading a book. He wanted to do what she was doing. Participation for the win! So perhaps we should self-reflect and make sure we are someone they should be copying for a brighter future, not a dimmer one.

It is also my observation that children learn much more from their parents then from someone outside of the parental box and unit. Children pick up habits of learning and reading from their parents long before anyone else. Children who are worked with at home have a much faster comprehension rate and a higher level of speech and communication. Who knew one on one time with a child and actually talking to them like they're humans being as well (because they are) would excel them so much.

I am not writing this article to bash parents and daycares. I am simply communicating what I have learned in my own path of reading and what I have observed from others. I think it is so important that we build a house full of books, for reading brings so much more intellect, knowledge, curiosity, communication, and conveyance. Crucial skills that are missing in society today.