By Alyssa Moses
Just as children need to eat to develop, they also need to read, Alice Osborne told an Education Week group Tuesday.
In her class 'Why We Should Read, and Making Time for this Valuable Habit,' Osborne said eating feeds the body while reading feeds the soul.
Osborne is the program director for Children's Way and has a bachelor's degree in art and design. She is presenting a series of classes at Education Week about establishing a home library for children of all ages.
'If an adult reads to a child everyday, the child will one day read by himself of his own volition,' Osborne said.
She expressed her concern for the many children who spend a lot of time in front of the TV or computer screen. Osborne encourages the audience to read 'living books' to children to help improve the each child's character.
' 'Living books' are books that have endured the test of time,' Osborne said. 'They are what we consider classics for all ages. They are the reading material of greatest worth.'
Living books are neutral teachers who are indifferent to the child. Children can put their guard down and then they can embrace the message, Osborne said.
'Parents have a vested interest in teaching their children,' she said. 'A child knows that and at a certain age the walls go up. But books are neutral.'
According to the class, reading often to a child gives the child an academic, emotional and moral boost.
Two of our modern-day prophets, President Gordon B. Hinckley and David O. McKay, had libraries in their home and were prolific readers. President Hinckley grew up with a home library of over 1,000 books, Osborne said. McKay memorized hundreds of poems and often used them in his church addresses.
'The apostles have referred to the great masters of literature as the 'minor prophets,' ' Osborne said. 'Great books are the legacies great minds leave to mankind, of which we are the beneficiaries.'
Osborne read excerpts from her recommended children's books, demonstrating her techniques in reading to children.
'I'm going to read and pretend like isn't even here,' she said. 'I am going to pretend that I am reading to children.'
Osborne read the books, stopping often to ask an imaginary child if she understands what a word means or to ask if the child notices something in the picture.
She taught the class to look carefully at the pictures and talk about them with the child. Don't rush reading with children, she urged. Also, 'don't dumb down' the story.
'Who says a 5-year-old can't learn what raucous means?' she asked. 'Teach them. They'll love it.'
You can also read a book without pictures to children, Osborne said. Even without pictures, they'll listen if you love the story, you love them, and the story is so interesting that you can't wait to tell them.
Osborne told the audience how to entice a non-reader child. Before reading a book to them, go through the book and find all the cliff-hanging moments, she said. Then stop right at the cliff-hanger every time. The suspense will entice them to read on their own to find out what happens.