In today's fast-paced digital world, our children are consumed by screens, social media and watching TV shows. But ask yourself this question, when was the last time your child read a book? Through my academic coaching work, I have noticed a big drop in the number of students reading books for enjoyment. Similarly, the National Literacy Trust estimates that only 28% of 6-18 years old children read books frequently.
As a parent, you may wonder - why should your child read, and what benefits does it truly offer? Apart from reading being an enriching and timeless activity, it also provides inarguable benefits for students’ cognitive development. Let's delve into the importance of children reading books and how it can help students to succeed in their academic endeavours.
Benefits of reading for children:
1. Increase in focus
Often my students say that they don’t read because they can’t focus. But this is a catch-22; if you don’t read, you don’t develop your focus. It is important to understand that focus is a skill that can be trained. Unfortunately, we live in an era where the majority of students grow up binging excessively on social media. This in turn results in a reduction of focus, so much so that simple activities like reading can become harder and harder to achieve.
To overcome this, I highly recommend setting dedicated reading time, at least 30 minutes per day when your child will read any book of their choice. A good practice to implement is to have no phones after 9pm and to instead read a book after this time.
2. Increase in cognitive development
When your child reads, their brain undergoes an increase in mental activity as they visualise scenes, comprehend complex plots and follow character stories. This cognitive engagement boosts critical-thinking skills, expands vocabulary, and enhances comprehension abilities.
Interestingly, recent research has shown that reading for pleasure (RfP) exhibits positive correlation with the cognitive test scores and negative correlation with mental health symptoms in young adolescence (Feng et al., 2023). In addition, MRI scanning has shown that there is a significant increase in the size of the cortical area of the brain as well as other increased regions for adolescents who had higher RfP scores (Feng et al., 2023).
The conclusion is that the sooner and the more often your child starts reading the books the better it is for their cognitive development. Remember that a child’s brain doesn’t finish developing until they are 20, and therefore it is so important to aid this development with the right cognitive activities.
3. Increase in empathy and emotional intelligence
Books provide windows into diverse cultures, worlds and a variety of perspectives. By immersing themselves in these different narratives, children develop emotional intelligence as well as empathy by putting themselves in the shoes of characters facing various challenges. This emotional insight gained through reading translates into improved social interactions, better conflict-resolution skills and a deeper understanding of human emotions - all crucial aspects of personal growth during the teenage years. Therefore, help your child select a variety of genres of books to expose them to different scenarios and life learning opportunities.
4. Enhance creative thinking and reduce stress
Compared to mindless and passive consumption of social media scrolling, reading requires active engagement of the brain to visualise the book’s world and bring characters to life. This in turn enhances child’s original creativity, problem solving and cultivates curiosity and a sense of wonder.
Furthermore, Jonathan Haidt, in his new book “Anxious Generation” (which I highly recommend to all parents and educators!), provides data and convincing arguments on how social media drives a significant decline in the mental health in adolescents. This is further supported by work of Amy Orben, who analysed large data sets and showed strong negative correlation of social media and its impact on mental health decline, which is more severe in girls (Brussoni et al., 2017).
In contrast, reading is a known activity which can reduce stress as it serves as a therapeutic escape, allowing them to unwind, relax and recharge their mental batteries. The immersive nature of books aids in decreasing stress by transporting readers to different worlds and narratives.
5. Boost in academic success
The benefits of reading extend far beyond leisurely enjoyment; they directly impact academic performance and future success. Countless research shows that students who read more tend to have better writing and verbal abilities, reading speed and comprehension, spelling and higher grades (reviewed in McGeown et al., 2020). The habit of reading not only enhances literacy but also broadens knowledge horizons, exposes readers to new ideas and cultivates a love for learning far beyond the school curriculum. I strongly believe that children who love reading from a young age and continue to do so into their adolescent years, tend to do better academically.
Therefore, it is the role of parents to nurture this love of reading and create sustainable reading habits. You can actively encourage and participate in book discussions as a family, recommend book titles and set aside dedicated reading time. This will inspire your child to read from younger age and bring so many inarguable benefits to their academic journey.
Watch my latest Youtube video below for more tips and subscribe to my channel for more educational advice and insights.
With warmest regards,
Dr Anna York-Weaving
Academic Coach, Scientist and Founder of York-Weaving Education
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