Chapter 2

By Emily Gray

Introduction

Our world is filled with so many great and glorious types of technology and media, but sometimes does it seem like just a little much. We are bombarded with commercials, YouTube videos, presentations, magazines, poster etc. Amongst all the clutter it is easy to get distracted from one of the first sources of entertainment—books. I recently have been in a Mass Media class this semester and was thinking about education and children at the current time. It seems that children have so many options for toys, games and fun. They are constantly exposed to visually stimulating material. From this I have formed some opinions through observation and from talking with individuals who are exposed to children on a daily basis (see Children, Movies, and Technology video post).

The Problem

There is so much going on. The media and mass media in particular has so many mediums. I think that as a kid it could be confusing. We want to see nice beautiful forms of art that come to us in the media. There are also so many new types of video games. Movies and T.V. shows are continually becoming more real as we learn how to produce visual effects. With all of these visually appealing things in the world, books are sometimes not as interesting. They involve more thinking and have less movement. As a child, I could see how it would be hard to choose a book over other forms of entertainment. Imaginations are being lost. In their place are T.V. screens. I think a portion of this problem is parents not helping their children see the value in reading. To many parents are working late, not spending enough time with their children or pop in a movie every time they need time away from the kids or are trying to get something done. The T.V. and movies has become a babysitter.

A Solution

I think the solution for this is working with children to learn how to read and understand the great value and importance of reading. To do this, I think that parents should understand how their children learn. Some children learn through visual, auditory or musical means. There are a variety of learning styles. I think if parents can tap into how children learn then they will be able to help them understand books and how beneficial they are. For example it would be good for a parent to read with a child. Instead of looking at the pictures the parent could have the child close his or her eyes and imagine what the story looks like as they are hearing it. Parents could also encourage their children to read through incentives or reading together and limit other media time. Parents can ask questions about books like, "What is the moral of the story?" or "Why did this character do this?" Discussing a book can help with comprehension and help the child to learn to think.

Conclusion

To sum it all up, parents have a great impact on if a child likes to read or not. They can think of many ways to incorporate reading into their lives. Even going back to the old fashion bedtime story instead of a movie before bed would be beneficial. There is much offered to youth at this time, but we cannot forget to give them something as important of being able to read and to be able to understand how blest they are to have that skill. Reading can be incorporated into the lives of children. It will take some work and some action, but the effects will be far-reaching.