Why Do Kids Need Books? - The National Children's Book and Literacy Alliance (2024)

FAQs

Why Do Kids Need Books? - The National Children's Book and Literacy Alliance? ›

Books strengthen our self-confidence and help us to understand why we are who we are. They help us discover where we come from and help us figure out where we want to go. Books help children and adults to open up, to move beyond self-absorption and connect to other people.

Strong reading skills have been shown to improve children's academic attainment across a range of subjects, including English, maths and science. Find out more.

Social impact of books and reading

Book reading in general helps encourage people to actively participate in social events and activities, improving the world around them. People who read often are three times more likely to be involved with charity and volunteer work than non-readers.

From a didactic point of view, storybooks can provide children with new information about the world, enrich vocabulary and enhance specific language skills (in the classroom or at home), nurturing communication between the storyteller (teacher, parent or other professional staff) and the listeners.

Big books are a rich source of activities that promote reading and meet curriculum objectives, including activating prior knowledge, modelling the thinking process, tracking print, encouraging prediction skills, and providing varied linguistic and creative activities.

Literacy empowers and liberates people. Beyond its importance as part of the right to education, literacy improves lives by expanding capabilities which in turn reduces poverty, increases participation in the labour market and has positive effects on health and sustainable development.

Books let kids try on the world before they have to go out into it. Books give kids an opportunity to experience something in their imaginations before it happens to them in real life. Books help prepare kids for their next stage of maturity, vicariously preparing for the “grown-up” world.

children's literature is important to a child's development. The purposes of children's literature are varied: they play an important role in budding readers' linguistic, social, emotional and intellectual development, not to mention the foundational development of their interpersonal relationships.

Books provide an opportunity for children to learn and expand their understanding of the world around them. Through books, parents can expose children to life lessons that help them engage with other people, develop ideas, and build new skills.

Early literacy plays a pivotal role in shaping a child's future academic success and lifelong learning by honing crucial language acquisition, phonological awareness, and comprehension skills. Through parental involvement, direct instruction, and interactive strategies, these essential skills can be nurtured.

How do books promote the learning and development of children? ›

Books and stories promote learning and development in children by providing them with the building blocks of language. It gives them the tools for forming lifelong social and emotional skills. We all know reading is an essential skill that serves children well in school and in life in general.

The first purpose of a Big Book is enjoyment. But these books can also be powerful motivators for learning. Shared book experiences help to model the reading process for beginning readers, encouraging prediction, providing the necessary confirmation, and ensuring the integration of new knowledge.

Additionally, book reading is an important factor in children's cognitive development and education for sustainable development ⁵. Therefore, fostering a reading culture and providing access to reading materials are crucial for a country's development.

Reading for pleasure has been defined by the National Literacy Trust as “reading that we do of our own free will, anticipating the satisfaction that we will get from the act of reading.

Literacy in education is the foundation for all other academic knowledge and skills. Learning to read with comprehension and write effectively opens the door to shared knowledge, understanding, communication and critical thinking. This broader view influences our perception of our world and how it impacts us.

The National Reading Panel found that certain instructional methods are better than others, and that many of the more effective methods are ready for implementation in the classroom. To become good readers, children must develop: Phonemic awareness. Phonics.