A book does a mind good

By Kelly Liss and Sarah Renner

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We read our cellphones, advertisements and even the endless feed of statuses on Facebook every day, but when was the last time you read a book?

According to a Web article on Creative Market, “Why Reading Makes You More Creative,” in 2011, about 80 percent of American families didn't purchase a single book.

Teachers interviewed within the Linn-Mar Community School District credited this to people feeling too busy to sit down and read. However, a disturbing statistic from Vance Jacobs in his research article for the National Endowment for the Arts, “To read or not to read,” says that young adults spend an average of seven to 10 minutes reading daily but two to 2.5 hours watching television.

Individuals 15- to 34-years-old are least likely to read. At Linn-Mar, 64 percent of 187 students questioned in a survey said that they had used online summaries as an alternative to reading assigned books. Effectively getting children to read on their own has been an issue for many parents and teachers in today's world.

Our survey also showed that almost 78 percent of freshmen read books frequently outside of class-assigned books. This percentage drops to about 53 percent by the time students are seniors. This seems to show that students enter high school with better book-reading habits than they do after they graduate; it should be the opposite.

Facts reviewed in “To read or not to read” support the benefits of reading and the indication that reading can influence children's school life and future careers as adults.

Students who read in their free time typically are better readers and writers, according to teachers in the Linn-Mar district.

Sara Gostonczik, a reading support teacher at Wilkins Elementary School, told us that “students that don't read at home or during their free time don't make the same growth as those who read a lot.”

Another research article, “Why reading is good for your brain,” by Madeleine Crum on the Huffington Post, found that as little as 30 minutes of daily reading has been proven to help concentration, reduce stress, improve ability to sleep, widen vocabulary and even improve self-confidence.

Reading has many psychological benefits, too, including better communication and encouragement of curiosity. Picking up a novel for enjoyment can help people escape from stressful situations.

Dee Wesbrook and Jill Brockschink, teachers in the Linn-Mar district, emphasized the ability of a book to help people to take a break from difficult circumstances that life might throw one's way. Books “provide an escape - it's an overlooked reason (to read),” Wesbrook said.

Teaching children the value of reading at a young age can help to create a lifelong hobby. Linn-Mar teachers suggest setting an example by letting them see a role model read (such as a parent), engage them in conversation about what they're reading, provide incentives for them and put aside time to read aloud with them while they are young.

There's more time in everyone's schedule than we think, so pick up a book this summer - you'll be glad you did. Wesbrook assures us, “If (someone) says they don't like to read, they just haven't been given the right book yet.”

Kelly Liss and Sarah Renner will be juniors at Linn-Mar High School this fall. Their research on reading for an English project in Mr. Kibbie's class influenced them to spread the word on this issue. Comments: keliss@student.linnmar.org or sarahrnnr@gmail.com