It Might be Cold in June, but Reading is Still Hot!

Dear Parents,
Here’s wishing you a wonderful summer!  Before heading out the door, I thought I’d share these blurbs from a couple of my favorite magazines!--Mrs. Baron

The Sooner, the Better!  “A new study says that every time parents read a child his favorite bedtime book, they’re preparing him (or her!) for a successful future in school.  Bedtime reading stimulates nearly every facet of a child’s development, from language to memory to motor skills, as he or she learns how to turn pages, understand sequences, and follow a narrative. “ You can imagine if someone technologically came up with a widget that would stimulate all aspects of a 2-year old’s development, everyone would want to buy it,” says the author of the study, Professor Barry Zuckerman.  That widget happens to be made out of paper and ink.  Zuckerman’s study shows that the earlier a kid gets into reading books with family, the better his test scores are as he grows up.”   The Week, Vol.8, Issue 363. May 30, 2008

Not Just for Our Kids!  The June issue of the Oprah Magazine has an article about the neuroscience of reading and the  benefits for all ages.  The mental activities involved in reading “keep your memory sharp, your learning capacity nimble, and your mind basically hardier as you age.”  Ken Pugh, PhD, president and director of research of Haskins Laboratories, says

 “ A sentence is shorthand for a lot of information that must be inferred by the brain.”

The article goes on to say that the act of reading calls our various forms of intelligence together in focused concentration.  The Oprah Magazine, June, 2008, p.140.