In recent years, print books have been making a comeback, and for good reason—they can be better for your brain and health, according to science. Today, I want to talk about one aspect of this phenomenon:
1 – Print Books Help Children Become Better Readers
Studies on the development of young children between the ages of three and five reveal that kids have lower comprehension of the story when their parents read to them from an e-book as opposed to a print book. Researchers theorize this arises because children get distracted by the electronic device and have a harder time focusing on the story itself. In another study, students who had read a short story on an e-reader were less engaged and had a harder time remembering the exact order of events.
When I was in 2nd grade, I remember our teacher would have the students go around the room reading aloud. I was so nervous. All the other kids seemed to read so smoothly and I knew my words were going to get stuck. “Sheila, you take the next paragraph,” she said. I’ll spare you the details of what happened next, but I’ll cut to the part where everybody is laughing at me and the teacher’s hand is on my shoulder. Humiliation can lead to destruction or motivation. Mine was the latter.
I decided I was going to become a better reader. Every spare moment I had – with my mom, in the car, on the step, or in my room – I had a book in my hand. My mom was curious, but I didn’t tell her what happened in class. I just said I wanted to start reading more. And I did – and I improved significantly. Within that same year, my attitude moved from fear to fun and my report card reflected it too. In class my hand shot up!! Hoping she would give me another chance! “Oooh me, me…please pick me!!” I can still see the looks on those kids’ faces. Their mouths dropped and my shoulders popped! I had become one of the top readers in the 2nd grade!
Read more printed books with your children! Here’s one I recommend. Lovely Can; a lovely story about loving your neighbor.
Source https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/554845/7-scientific-benefits-reading-printed-books