Sapience Authour and Publisher Mary Pouline

It’s really hard to eat when you are not hungry. Isn’t it? To eat well and enjoy eating, one must have an appetite. Our appetite helps us to eat, grow and live a healthy and happy life. But there is another kind of appetite that kids need to develop. It is called an appetite for reading. It is as important as the appetite for food!

Some kids have a natural appetite for reading. But in the case of most, the appetite for reading has to be developed through training. Reading is one of the most basic skills children require to do well in studies and to be successful in life. Reading is the backbone of learning, but sadly, today’s students prefer to play a video game or watch TV instead of reading a book.

Parents too, these days, do not concentrate much on developing good reading habits in children. Like any other skill, a reading habit also needs time and dedication to develop. The important thing is to create in children an appetite for reading. When the appetite for reading is there, they will naturally go for books. Parents and teachers only have to provide the right kind of books.

Research has shown that among children, the excitement to read often declines with age, especially if students’ attitudes towards reading become less positive. If the students do not enjoy reading when they are young, they are not likely to continue with it when they get older.

Many teachers and parents worry a lot about their kid’s diminishing interest in reading. The primary task is not only to get them to begin reading but also to enjoy it. It should be remembered that good reading skills not only benefit students academically but are also needed for lifelong success.

Home and School

To develop good reading habits in children, both the home and the school have a role to play. For their physical nourishment and good health, parents provided the right kind of food to the children. In the same way, for the development of the intellect, reading provides a good part of the needed nourishment and stimulus. The foundation of our intellectual development is laid in the home, long before the child is admitted to a school.

Kids learn what they observe. So parents become role models for their children when they read in front of them. Whether you love books, magazines, newspapers or whatever, let your child see you reading. If you are excited about reading, your child is likely to catch your eagerness. Motivate your child to join you with his or her own book when you are reading. We often see even tiny tots picking up books or newspapers and parroting to read! Once the child enters a school, he or she begins to learn to read systematically.

Reading Circle Method (RCM)

Here is a way to help students to increase their appetite for reading and improve their reading skills.We call it Reading Circle Method (RCM). It is also known as Literature Circle Method (LCM).

Reading circles are small groups of students who meet in the classroom or elsewhere on a regular basis to talk about what they have read. We know, a student’s appetite for reading is one of the predictors of academic achievement and a mark of one who is a lifelong learner.

So, how do we use RCM in the classroom or elsewhere to make reading enjoyable?

Step 1: Following the students’ choices, divide them into groups of 5-10 members. Ask each one to choose a book they like and read a page or a chapter before they come for the next meeting.

Step 2: When they come together again, each one speaks about what he or she has read. Others listen, ask questions and hold a discussion in order to deepen their understanding of the book.

Step 3: The teacher has a guiding role in all these processes. The teacher observes each student and takes note of their special skills as well as their weaknesses, with a view to following them up with personal attention later on.

Benefits of RCM

  1. RCM will improve the students’ attention span, promote their analytical thinking, and develop their vocabulary. By learning to make reading fun, students are more likely to develop a love of reading.
  2. RCM will encourage the students to read the book carefully with a view to explaining it to others.The group will discuss even the most minute details, to benefit everyone in the group.
  3. RCM becomes helpful in terms of encouraging positive reading habits. RCM guarantees that students would continue reading books.
  4. RCM method is delightful and fun and encourages collaborative learning.
  5. RCM increases social interaction and encourages listening to others and developing their logical skills. reading at their own speed, conducting tasks, engaging in group discussions, and working on a project.
  6. RCM helps the students to appreciate as well as critique their peers constructively.

Take Away

Nothing fuels imagination like reading. Kids who start reading at a young age have a better vocabulary, comprehension skills, attention span, and a higher level of confidence. However, getting kids to start reading and turning it into a habit can be challenging for parents and educators alike.With the right approach and method, parents and primary educators can ignite in children the curiosity about books and instill in them a desire for reading. 