Building
brains and
bonds
Module 7 of 7
Reading with children can give them a head start in life and develop a foundation for critical skills that are necessary for adulthood. Many kids don’t have a reading role model in their life and a mentor can be that for them. Be the someone who shows a young person the magic that comes from books!
Kids who read lead, kids who read graduate, kids who read get a job, kids who read vote and volunteer more than anyone else.
Express care
- By reading together, mentors express care by creating a calm, safe space and providing opportunities to express difficult feelings.
- Engaging with books increases meaningful conversations and connectedness between a Mentor and child.
Mentors can express care by: congratulating the young person when they read a challenging word/sentence.
Challenge growth
- Reading books with a young person or in a book club is known to improve social-emotional development and increase school engagement.
- Raising literacy competencies expands cultural awareness and a young person’s understanding of themselves and others.
Mentors can challenge growth by: introducing a more challenging book to read when the young person is ready.
Provide support
- Mentors can provide emotional support while reading stories and increase positive adjustment for adolescents and emerging adults.
- Increased mental health literacy can significantly improve positive emotions and improve emotional regulation.
Mentors can provide support by: using the book as a tool to ask questions and have deeper conversations about situations and people in the stories.
Share power
- Through relatable story characters and challenges, young people feel supported and will grow in problem solving capacities.
- An increase in enjoyment of reading provides a safe haven to learn and grow together in a mentoring relationship.
Mentors can share power by: encouraging the young person to select the book they want to read.
Expand possibilities
- Reading positive stories increases optimism and a positive vision for the future.
- Literacy accesses the limitless imagination of youth and opens doors to new interpretations and meanings in their lives.
Mentors can expand possibilities by: selecting a new genre of book so they can learn new things together.
Congratulations,
you have finished wee read!
We hope that by taking this course, you have become confident in your ability to read to children. Click here for a downloadable and printable resource that summarizes all that you have learned and allow you to reference in the future.
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