Every Parent Matters

Dads are abandoning the essential task of reading to their children. Seven steps to overcome the fear of most Dads in a simple guide to encourage them to read bedtime stories to their children and turn story reading into an educational game. Recognised as a key ingredient to a child’s reading development this enjoyable task has fallen by the wayside with 57 percent of Dads.

Point a video camera at somebody and ask them to say something, the chances are they will clam up. It’s a natural reaction; most of us don’t want to take centre stage. And it is the same with bedtime stories. To help at a child understand the story we should try to use different voices for each character, apply inflection in the narration and worst of all we have to read out aloud!

It’s the end of the day, we’re tired, stressed, and certainly don’t feel the ideal person to read a story. Whereas mums tend to take the lead in early learning with their natural affinity with language, the bedtime educational story is still a vital support role that dad’s should play. Stories develop a child’s imagination, encourages literacy, self expression and an interest in reading – the backbone of all education.

Step 1. Catch your breath, relax and take your time. No point in rushing as you will achieve little apart from disappointing your child and getting frustrated yourself.

Step 2. Reading aloud may be awkward initially, with many of us inhibited by the thought of it. But it becomes a lot easier with practice. Speaking to a video camera involves ad libing or remembering some lines. Reading a story is easier as the script is right there before you.

Step 3. Try and develop a different voice for each character. It helps add drama and your child’s understanding of the story. It makes reading easier for you and listening more fun for the children.

Step 4. Add inflection to your voice to emphasise the action. Make it sound scary if the villain speaks or you are setting a key scene in the story.

Step 5. Try listening to an online story. Many can be found on the web. Narrated by actors they tell the story and also give you a great idea of how you can read a story out loud.

Step 6. Show your feelings as you read the story, and ask questions to get your child to join in “What do you feel about that?”

Step 7. Read support books such as “Dad did it” by Chris Wakefield, and “How to enjoy reading aloud to young children” by Alison Shakespeare.

You have probably presented a report or opinion at work, school or university. You may have loved or loathed the experience. Some people have a natural talent to present; others need a bit of encouragement. Do remember at bedtime you have an intimate audience of one or two delighted children who also enjoy their time with you. It induces some quality time with the kids, gives mum a break and acts as a transition between work and home. With practice you will really get to enjoy it.

The LiteracyTtrust in the UK have shown that story telling has a huge influence in a child’s interest in reading. Their literacy skills leap ahead, and their story telling ability, something that is essential in expression, gets a real boost. And it could all be down to you and a little light reading.

Alistair Owens http://www.keen2learn.co.uk

Paddington bear popped home yesterday, not to Peru but keen2learn. Bet you thought he was born in Peru and resides in Paddington. Well he does, but the bedrooms at Home Farm in Burghwallis, now the base for keen to learn, echo to bedtime stories read many years ago by Shirley and Eddie Clarkson. The kitchen table witnessed Shirley make the very first Paddington bear as a Christmas present for her children, Joanna and Jeremy, and brought the stories to life. Friends upon meeting the character in the flesh wanted one, and the rest is history.

Shirley has just launched her book “Bearely Believable” coinciding with the 50^th anniversary of the Paddington stories by Michael bond. It’s the amusing story of the fun they had living in Home Farm and the trials and tribulations surrounding the development of Paddington bear. The kitchen table was quickly outgrown, and production moved to the spare bedroom, then across the yard to a converted cowshed and finally to a local factory. Shirley revisited Home Farm recently – with the original Paddington – after a 21 year absence to record these events for the BBC.

Bedtime stories turned Paddington into a firm favourite in the Clarkson family. The imagination that bedtime stories trigger in a child’s mind develops their learning process. Parents reading stories and playing other educational games with their children throughout the schooling process helps stimulate learning. And the interaction between child and parent becomes mutually rewarding with obvious benefits back at school.

Our modern lifestyle leads to many parents being time poor. Coupled with a frequent reluctance to read aloud the essential bedtime story has taken a back seat with 54% of Dad’s. But modern technology has come to the aid of the busy parent. Subscriptions to on-line stories narrated by actors and including animation and highlighted script turn a PC or laptop into a world of imagination. An educational game, the service enhances reading and literacy skills in children, is easy for tired Dads to join in and learn how to read a story aloud.

In a world of TV, Internet, Wii, Nintendo and computers it is all too easy to assume children can amuse themselves. Encouraging developments in the Electronic Media to include educational games is a positive move. However, parents and grandparents still have a vital role to play. Help, encouragement, mutual involvement and interactive feedback can all inspire a child to learn more. They love to share their experience and show how they are doing.

Electronic Media has the advantage that it never tires of repetition, something the tired parent can be grateful of when the same story or game is played yet again! Predicting what happens next is an essential part of the learning curve, children love to be able to foretell and repetitive feedback is part of this process.

So how is Paddington doing after all these years? The stories are still popular and the Paddington bear figures are still in shops. Production has moved from the bedroom at Home Farm to China. Marmalade sandwiches are probably deep fried. If you want the full story read Shirley’s great book. And did those bedtime stories read by Shirley and Eddie Clarkson help the children? One of them is Jeremy Clarkson; author, journalist and broadcaster – with an innate ability to tell a great story.

Bio:

Home Farm is once again involved in story telling to children. On the kitchen table two years ago an award winning website www.keen2learn.co.uk was developed to promote educational games, toys and puzzles to schools, parents and grandparents. The central theme is fun because this is what turns learning into a game – “ learning in disguise”. To see an example of reading support games visit http://www.keen2learn.co.uk/c/355/Reading_Games.php and you can see an online reading game at http://www.keen2learn.co.uk/product/MightyBook.php