It all starts with reading …
Empathy, open-mindedness, and critical thinking are all essential skills for today’s world – they’re skills taught in the classroom, but they’re also skills that students can find in books, honing these skills with every page they turn. Reading has so many benefits that can last a lifetime.
So many of the traits that we want to encourage in our young men can be built through reading, and because of this at the Senior School Library we create as many opportunities as we can for the boys to choose books and read without interruption. Experts like Maryanne Wolf (a literary scholar and professor of childhood development) endorse our mission, proving through studies and research that reading fiction nourishes our boys’ capacity for attention, empathy and insight.
They say you can never know a person until you walk a mile in their shoes, but reading allows you to do just that. Reading calls us to consider the perspective of the character on the page. Even when we don’t agree with a character’s opinions, thoughts, or actions, we are still connecting with their beliefs. This act of seeing the world through a different perspective translates to being more empathetic and open-minded in real life.
Librarians often hear things like, “Why do I need to read if I can just Google information?” Yes, the internet contains a wealth of information – some valuable and some not – but discerning the best information requires critical thinking skills … the kind that students can only get from reading. Books ask the reader to problem-solve as they try to predict where the story will take them.
Neuroscientists tell us that reading strengthens our brains. The more we read, the more parts of our brain activate, with lasting effects. Over time, reading can lead to better memory retention, better concentration, and more capacity for in-depth comprehension. Beat that, internet!
That’s not all. Reading also exposes us all to new vocabulary being used in authentic situations. Readers are often better conversationalists because they experience dialogue in stories, observing the art of conversation as they read a story. New words, new phrases and even new languages are present in stories.
In addition, readers are exposed to social interactions, learning what works and what doesn’t work, enabling them to practise being in certain social situations and understand how it might feel, giving them social skills in a safe environment.
With so many excellent benefits resulting from reading, the Senior School Library is proud to be a driving force behind encouraging reading for enjoyment. Throughout May and June we hosted a Month of Reading, creating more opportunities for our school community to engage with books, and with those who create them, in a wide range of events and activities.
This article originally appeared in our June 2024 Edition of Trinity News
which you can view on our online digital bookshelf.
https://fliphtml5.com/bookcase/jxxtk
