Readers are Leaders

During this term I have been working with the students to develop some healthy reading habits. I have been a little surprised at how resistant some students have been to commit to a regular reading schedule. We have spoken may times about the importance of reading with regard to the exercise and stimulation it provides for the brain and thinking processes, and we have set goals of independently reading for at least 15-20 minutes each day. This should then easily translate into at least one book each month.

I wonder how the students would feel if England's Education Secretary, Michael Gove, could make his suggestion that high school students should read 50 books each year come true.

Read the article here.

Part of the joy of reading a book is taking time to immerse yourself in the story, as well as spending time reflecting on the story, the characters, the plot and the messages being communicated by the author. I am not sure that I agree that reading a book each week will allow you the time to do this. So while I may not agree with putting strict numbers on how many books need to be read, I certainly do subscribe to the notion of regular reading as a way to exercise the brain, and as a great way to relax and slow down our busy lives for a while. 15-20 minutes each day is all it takes.