Reading

Help Someone Learn to Read

High School Student Studying in LibraryWith the technology and electronics available today, it’s hard to imagine that anyone could be illiterate. Sadly, many individuals around the world do not have basic access to educational and reading materials to help them improve their lives. The International Literacy Association estimates that about 12 percent of the global population, or about 781 million people, are functionally illiterate. The United Nations considers literacy a fundamental human right that is essential to social development. Education is one of the key factors in eliminating poverty, and literacy is a big step to education.

Isn’t the Problem Overseas?

Although the literacy problem is more pronounced in third world countries, Canada has a literacy problem of its own. The Canadian Literacy and Learning Network reports that about 42 percent of adults in the country between the ages of 18 and 65 do not have high literacy skills. One study shows that many Canadians aren’t keeping pace with the literacy skills needed for today’s technology. Just a 1 percent increase in the literacy rate would increase economic growth by about $18 billion annually. Investing in literacy has a high rate of return on investment, at 241 percent.

Here in Canada, the people most affected by illiteracy are:

  • People who experienced abuse or neglect when they were young
  • People who had their schooling interrupted by poverty or discrimination
  • Children with undiagnosed learning disabilities
  • Seniors who only received an elementary education
  • Aboriginal individuals
  • Immigrants who do not speak English or French as their main language

Learning To Read Is An Essential Life Skill

Literacy reaches beyond just reading. There are aspects of literacy in practically everything we do. From finding a doctor and making healthy lifestyle choices to taking the right bus to get to work, the need for reading skills are all around us. We have to make reading a priority from childhood into old age.

There are many reasons people do not get literacy help when they get behind in their skills. It might be fear, or low self-esteem or a lack of confidence. Sometimes, it’s simply poverty and not having the time to better oneself. It might even be a lack of resources and not having books to read.

The United Nations has designated September 8 as International Literacy Day. This year marks its 50th anniversary, and the theme for 2016 is “Reading the Past, Writing the Future.” Over the past 50 years, the number of young adults who don’t have literacy skills has decreased by 25 percent. UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova stated in her message for ILD, “The world has changed since 1966 – but our determination to provide every woman and man with the skills, capacities and opportunities to become everything they wish, in dignity and respect, remains as firm as ever. Literacy is a foundation to build a more sustainable future for all – this is UNESCO’s message.”

You Can Make a Difference

Multiple organizations throughout the world are working hard to bring books and other reading materials to people in areas that lack these things. Here in Canada, you can learn to be a reading tutor and help individuals learn to read or to improve their skills. As a tutor, you have to be part coach and cheerleader, teacher and friend to keep someone on the track to literacy.

Read to your children. Encourage others to read and maintain their skills. Get news through reading and not watching and listening. Partner with an organization that is bringing books to communities where there are no books. World Literacy Foundation has many ways to volunteer for literacy and education. Don’t let this year’s International Literacy Day pass by without taking some time to make a difference in the life of someone who needs to learn to read.

The Importance of Reading to Children
Mother with her daughters reading a book at home.

Reading to children has so many benefits that will help them to develop.

Do you remember the movie, “Three Men and a Baby?” There’s a scene in the movie where Tom Selleck’s character is reading a sports article to the baby. He says something to the effect of, “It doesn’t matter what you read to a child. Reading is beneficial to the development of a child.” Most people know that reading to children is fundamental for academic excellence. However, there are a number of other benefits of reading to toddlers and preschool-age children:

  • Children have a stronger relationship with the reader. Cuddling up while sharing a good book keeps you in touch with each other.
  • It promotes basic speech skills. It reinforces speech and language sounds.
  • Children who have books read to them have better ways of expressing themselves. They can relate to how the characters of a book talk to each other and can use those skills in their own relationships.
  • It teaches children how to read a book. No one is born with an innate knowledge of reading left to right.
  • Toddlers learn to increase their attention spans through with books. Even though many children squirm when they start out with story time, as you practice reading to them, they’ll find more discipline to sit still and enjoy the story.
  • Reading also helps children adjust to new experiences. A story about starting school to a child who is anxious about going to school all day helps a child see that he or she isn’t the only one who is scared.
  • It can also expand a child’s vocabulary.

In a 2014 study out of Harvard University, it was discovered that when dads read to children, especially girls, there is an even bigger benefit than when moms read to children. Additionally, men tend to be more abstract when talking about what they’re reading. For example, a woman approaches reading very factually. An example might include a mom asking a child, “How many blue fish do you see?” Men ask questions that challenge the child’s brain. For instance, a dad might say, “Look. Do you see the bus? Remember when we rode the bus to go to the zoo?”

Teenagers Benefit From Reading, Too

Preschool children aren’t the only ones who need to be engaged in reading. Once your child begins junior high and high school, reading a book out loud is very beneficial to development and cognitive thinking skills. You may have to be crafty at first, because your teenager may see the practice as childish. Start out with short articles from the newspaper or magazines, or maybe some poetry that you enjoy. Read during a meal time, then discuss it.

Take advantage of car rides. Listen to an audiobook that your children might enjoy. Listen to one chapter, then turn it off. You might be able to read something to your child when he or she is loading a dishwasher or doing another chore. Use the moments when you have a captive audience. Choose adventure stories that keep a child engaged from the very first chapter. Limit reading time to one chapter a night, kind of like Scheherazade. Ask your local librarian for books that fit your child’s interests and age level. Read biographies of people who did great things.

Most pediatricians recommend that a child’s screen time be limited. It’s very difficult to keep children from watching television or using their smartphones. You have to give them an alternative activity to make it feel like a privilege instead of a punishment. Reading can be this activity. Model good reading skills to your child, and help him or her find worlds that can only be imagined in words. You may not immediately see the benefits, but years later, your children will thank you.