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Inanna, you brought up a great point, reading is not all about reading a "reader". Our children are encouraged to read the school newsletter, newspaper, magazines etc and they are allowed to also write them in for their award. We also in the car read out street names or products in the supermarket.
Regards,
Dianne
Sorry, don't have time for a big post, but just wanted to say that you summed it up quite well here Inanna. I don't pass judgement on those who can't for family reasons, or those who don't do it every night - we don't do it every night either.:
My post was just dismay directed at someone who acted like it was too much trouble to read to their child at all. Mayaness, and it wasn't judgement directed at my child, but at someone elses, sorry if that wasn't clear in my OP.
Gosh I hope I'm not getting myself in any more trouble here :hide: just wanted to clarify.
I'm a little late posting here, but I just wanted to thank Megsmum for opening up a very interesting (if not lively) discussion about homework for littlies, in general.
From what I can gather from reading the posts, reading is homework for some parents and for others it creates bonding time with their child. Either way I think it is a win-win situation. It is also interesting to read about differences between States. When I was at school I don't think we had any kind of homework until I was in 3rd Grade, but my family moved around a lot. I do remember when my Dad read to me it was quite a treat ;)
IMO one of the good things about these set reading tasks is it encourages one-on-one time between parents and their children that is so hard to find when in so many families both parents are working.
Megsmum - I know first-hand the absolute hell you went through to have No.2 and how passionate/enthusiastic you feel about things. I don't think you set out to sound harsh and it is important that we can all have a vent with our sisters xx
The way I read the OP was that the overheard comment was done in a dismissive way to those that DO read and who value reading. The comment wasn't saying, "I wish I could read but other things get in the way," - it' was perceived to be more of a "why would you do it at all" sort of comment.
While I think it's good to always try to see the other side of a story and acknowledge that every family's situation is different, I don't think there's anything wrong in questioning why people wouldn't value reading regardless of whether they actually get time to do it with their child or not.
I would think that most parents would have to have been living under a rock to NOT know the importance of reading to/with their child.
My parents were not educated people (both left school at 14), didn't have a single book in the house for them so were not readers at all - yet somehow they knew (even before every researcher and his cat came out with a study every second day confirming it) that reading was very important and read to me and my sister every single night and during the day until we were old enough to want to read on our own.
I'd be interested in finding out whether people think that parents DO know that reading is important (regardless of whether they actually do it) or whether they think it should be left to the school etc. etc.?