Children's Book Week: Why it's beneficial for children to read

This week is the first week of Children's Book Week, where we celebrate the joy of reading and books for children.

Children's Book Week consists of two weeks in 2024, the first being this week and the second taking place in November from the 4th to the 10th. The idea of Children's Book Week is to celebrate "books for young people and the joy of reading."

Whilst researching Children's Book Week, I discovered the fascinating history behind the annual celebration. It began in 1913 when Franklin K. Matthiews proposed the idea of Children's Book Week as a way to "promote higher standards" in books for young people.

In 1944, the Children's Book Council took responsibility for the celebration and in 2008, the Council's charitable division, Every Child a Reader, took over the admin responsibilities.

As a lover of books and a fan of children's books, I thought I'd kick off Children's Book Week by sharing why it's beneficial for children to read – and read frequently.

Deeper understanding of the world

Books contain hundreds of thousands of different stories. They include a plethora of different characters, stories, life situations, cultures and more.

Therefore, reading makes children more well-rounded people by providing an insight into other lifestyles that they perhaps aren't aware of. Books can also provide a window into different places and events across the world, allowing children to experience them through words, thus creating a deeper understanding of the world they are growing up in.

Increased empathy

Because books include different cultures and lifestyles, as mentioned above, children can have an increased empathy from reading.

Learning about different lifestyles through the lives of characters can help children recognise emotions and also understand different life situations. Reading also means that children can emulate these emotions in their own lives.

Language and communication development

When children read, they are exposed to various writing styles from different authors. For example, Roald Dahl's writing style varies significantly from, say, Lynne Kelly's.

As a result, children can learn new vocabulary, and improve their grammar and written communication, but also boost their self-esteem through feeling more confident with their verbal communication.

Cognitive improvement

In addition to improving a child's language and communication skills, reading benefits their cognitive activity. When reading, not only are children picking up on vocabulary and grammar, but they also understand the intricacies of storytelling, such as characterisation and plot.

This means that the neuropathways in a child's brain are strengthened due to the complex thinking reading requires because of the logical structure of a book.

Improved concentration

Reading requires you to sit still, pay attention to the words on the page or listen if you're being read to. As a child, this develops their concentration skills because they have to pay attention to the story and actively engage with it.

A child's attention span is also improved by reading because children learn to focus on one thing for a period of time, but in a scientific capacity, reading flexes areas in the brain that relate to prolonged attention.

Another thing to note is that regular reading benefits a child's education, making them more likely to succeed academically.

Increased creativity

Books are full of imagination and creativity, especially children's books. There are worlds full of wizards and magic, Greek gods, mythical creatures, secret lands, etc.

By exposing children to this creativity in books, their minds can be transcended and developed to have a broader way of thinking. It can also ignite a creative spark in them to tell their own stories and to use their imagination, which is an incredible tool.

Promotes bonding

This benefit is true in two cases: when a child is being read to and when a child shares a story with another.

What I mean by this is that when a parent, for example, reads to their child, it promotes a closer relationship between the two because they get to explore the different stories together, having quality time. And when a child shares a story with another, they can develop a bond because they enjoy the same story or love the same characters.

Enjoyment

Reading is an activity that is fun, immersive, imaginative and exciting. Children may not appreciate the full power of books at first, but if they read regularly enough, they will experience the full enjoyment that reading has to offer over time.

Children can become immersed in different stories with engaging plots and characters; they can experience the escapism that books have to offer and feel relaxed when reading.

If you haven't heard of Children's Book Week, I hope you know why it's an important week to celebrate. Children are ultimately our future and through reading, they can experience new skills and new worlds.

Reading is one of the best activities people can do, so if you're a parent or someone who works with children, or in the publishing industry, getting children into books and exposing them to the joys of reading is fantastic.

Until next time...