Wait For It…
Read a good book for pleasure lately? If so, Im thinking youre not a young adult. I just dont seem to see as many teens immersed in books. This doesn’t surprise me. When reading a story, a person often has to make it through some dry sections in order to get to the good” parts. [Have you ever realized you had stopped reading a book several pages back and had to reread? Yes, those would be the sections to which Im referring.] Good stories have a rise and fall. Some parts coast and other parts move more quickly. The sections of the book that seem to read more quickly are the parts that grab our attention and have a high novelty factor. This explains why young people may be reading less.
In our ever-changing world filled with high-impact video games, reality TV shows, and action-filled movies, kids have been programed to expect continuous novelty. This has created a problem for both teachers and parents, alike. Is it any wonder why our kids have difficulty sustaining attention to every day tasks and often complain of being bored? The reality is that in school, work, and life, we have times when we coast. We have times in our day that are a bit more ritualized, mundane and ordinary, and we have to be okay with this.
I was not an avid reader, but I do remember getting lost in several Encyclopedia Brown books when I was young. My sister loved the Little House on the Prairie series and Nancy Drew. Luckily, my boys had Harry Potter and The Lightening Thief. So, the next time a child tells you he or she is bored, suggest he or she put down the video game, turn off the TV, and pick up a good book. Wait for it Im thinking it will be a real page-turner.