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Have you ever heard the saying, "don't watch the movie until after you have read the book"? Why do we say that? It is because nothing competes with our imagination, regardless of how great the cinematography and special effects are.
Sitting idly in front of screens, we miss so much, stifling our imagination.
Why do so many children these days not have a love for reading? It has yet to be fostered. Screens have replaced books in so many contexts.
If we see the value of reading and want our children to read, we must set a better example.
The other evening, I was on a flight back to Boise from Phoenix.
My eight-year-old daughter and I were reading Roald Dahl's BFG' – Big Friendly Giant. We were both imagining the BFG sprinting through the Queen of England's garden to set Sophie on the Queen's window sill. So that when the Queen awoke from her dream, she would see Sofie (who appeared in the dream) and realize her dream was real, and that she needed to listen to Sofia and mobilize the army to fight the other giants that were slurping up "human beans' in the night.
Spoiler alert: eventually, the nine 50-foot giants were all caught and thrown to the bottom of a 500-foot pit (so that if they each stood on each other's shoulder, they couldn't escape) with only snozzcumbers thrown in for them to eat for the rest of their lives.
Can you picture that?
In this large plane with approximately 175 passengers, two other reading lights were on. Everyone else was on a device.
How can we set a better example for the children around us?
Put away your device.
Find someone to read to.
Give the gift of books!
To manage my phone addiction, when I get home, my cell phone goes into a little time lock safe for the evening, and my four young children and I pull out the books. What world will we explore next? Another Roald Dahl book? Maybe Charlie and the Chocolate Factory? Are kids getting a chance to read that book before watching the movie so their imaginations can soar?
Much of what I read is to my two toddler boys. We read many of the same books over and over. Familiarity, predictability, and control are important for them, and repetition strengthens the brain's neuro-connections that enhance learning. If they watch a show before bed, they tend to not sleep as soundly because of the stimulation and because the blue light from screens can suppress their little bodies' melatonin production and throw off their circadian rhythm. So at my house, we choose books!
Let's all do more to foster the love of reading around us.