More than ever, reading matters.
We are bombarded with messages that tell us how technology is making the written word obsolete. Books supposedly are archaic, and magazines have been supplanted by podcasts. Why read when you can listen to something while you’re folding the laundry? Newspaper readers have cancelled their subscriptions and instead rely on television news. Even the small amount of reading required to follow social media is being replaced by 60-second videos on TikTok and its competitors.
So why do we insist that reading is important?
Regardless of the hype about artificial learning, video dominance, and the power of podcasts, reading still is essential. It’s as true today as ever — reading opens a world of possibilities. It feeds your intellect, your imagination, your aspirations. On a more practical level, it’s essential for success in school and the workplace. If you want to succeed, you have to read.
“Everybody talks about technology and AI and that sort of thing,” says Lawrence Kloth, co-founder of Reading Success Plus. “Technology is a great thing, and I’m glad things are being developed to help our struggling population. But that technology isn’t available to everyone at all times. Children have to learn to read.”
Building the brain
Reading is more than a language skill. It is an important factor in brain development, beginning in infancy.
According to the article “Why Is It Important to Read to Your Child,” published by the Child Mind Institute, reading to a young child, even before they’re able to communicate verbally, starts training the brain in language use.
“Just exposure to words is the single most important thing that you can do to help build the language pathways in your child’s brain,” neuropsychologist Laura Phillips says in the article. That is especially true in building vocabulary. According to an Ohio State University study, a child who is read one book a day will hear about 290,000 more words by age 5 than those who aren’t exposed to reading. That exposure helps children build vocabulary as well as exposes them to a broad base of background knowledge.
The article says reading has other benefits:
- It helps children develop empathy. Reading can help children understand situations from the perspective of others, allowing them to “gain an appreciation for other people’s feelings, as well as other cultures, lifestyles, and perspectives.”
- Stories can help youngsters understand their own feelings. “Seeing characters in books experience big emotions like anger or sadness lets kids know that these feelings are normal,” it says.
- Reading can develop a bond between the child and parent or another caregiver. It “isn’t just about the activity of reading. It’s about having consistent, focused time together, without other distractions or demands.”
Start early
Reading has benefits at the youngest ages. Use those opportunities, because once a child begins school, reading takes on greater importance. You’ll be glad your child has the advantage of years of exposure to language and vocabulary.
“You’re learning to read in kindergarten, first grade, second grade,” Lawrence says. But the transition happens in third grade, and that’s a critical point in a child’s education. Until then, they are learning to read. Now, they have to read to learn. They must be able to read the material and understand it.”
Studies have shown that 74 percent of students who struggle with reading in third grade still read poorly in ninth grade, and third-grade reading ability is a predictor of high school dropout rates.
That’s why Reading Success Plus recommends getting your child help at the first sign of a reading struggle. Avoid the temptation to believe that suddenly “it’ll just click.”
“Some people might say, well, the student just needs to give it a good old try and not provide any support or anything to help them out. That’s not going to work.”
Reading difficulty may be caused by a learning disability such as dyslexia. A student can overcome dyslexia, but not by simply working harder. It requires a long-term commitment to an evidence-based program that recognizes how the struggling student’s mind works and how to teach them effectively. Older students and adults can be successful in such programs. But by starting an intervention at the first sign of difficulty, the student can get to grade level earlier, sparing them the frustration of perhaps years of failure in school.
Breaking through
“It’s possible to be successful without being able to read,” Lawrence says, “but it is very, very difficult. The best way to be successful in life is to be successful in school. And while schools are becoming more accepting of alternative teaching styles, they still are predominantly about reading and writing. If you’re weak in those areas, school is going to be hard.”
Without proper intervention, a student’s problems will become more severe. Grades will get worse as the material gets more difficult. Frustration will build, and the chances of dropping out increase.
“People who don’t do well in school tend not to do well in life,” Lawrence says.
The consequences may be an unsatisfying job and the frustration that goes with lost dreams. In the worst case, it could be incarceration, as this previous blog on the Reading Success Plus website explains. Over 70% of inmates in America’s prisons cannot read above a fourth-grade level.
“A lot of people who can’t read are incarcerated because they don’t have the skills to get a good job,” Lawrence says.
That’s why Reading Success Plus stresses the importance of getting help as soon as possible.
“If we can help our students to read, they will be able to understand the material. School will be easier for them. Their confidence will grow when they see they can do what all of the other students are doing.
“Our kids don’t want to be different, but they are. But they’re also smart, even brilliant. If they get the support they need, their brilliance will shine through. They will be able to get into the college or trade school they want, go after their dream job, and lead successful lives. They just require the right help. If they get it, they have no limits.”