23 THINGS - BLOG 1:

Kids more likely to own a phone than a book

A scary thought I know! I found this blog very interesting and you may like to read it yourself. The blog, written by Chris Cameron, investigates that idea that technology is becoming a huge part of our lives, so much so that it is causing our children to stop participating in a lot of activities, in particular reading. One survey conducted by the National Literacy Trust suggested that the children in the U.K. are more likely to own a mobile phone than a book.

A survey of 17,000 U.K. children between the ages of 7 and 16 found that while 86% owned a cell phone, only 73% said they owned a book. The NLT believes a child's access to books has a direct effect on their reading ability, finding that 80% of children reading at their expect levels have their own books. Conversely, the same can only be said for just 58% of children not reading up to par with their age group.

The blog continues on addressing questions like:
- have children’s reading skills deteriorated due to mobile phones, texting, blogging
- are parents to blame
- is it better for a child to have an e- book in their pocket if they will read it than having a book which they may not read
- if we don’t allow our children to move with technology we would still be in the dark ages and painting on walls
- does the mobile phone give the children more availability to access books
-

These are all very interesting questions and I must admit as I was reading through the information my opinion changed back and forth a little on some points. However, I still think that there is no better feeling than sitting down with a good book in your HANDS, in a comfortable chair or relaxing spot, and being consumed by every word on the page. Turning the pages one by one, building up the suspense, and being taken away to a completely different world. That is by far the BEST way to READ, in my opinion,. Yes you can use e-books and I feel there is a place for them, but children need to learn to feel and touch books and ponder the illustrations and not stare at tiny screens on a computer or phone for hours on end, which will only end up with poor eyesight and back and neck strain.

I have always read to my children from the moment they were born and they have continued their love of reading, one even wanting a career as an editor.


References:

Godwin, P., (2010, June 7). Kids more likely to own a phone than a book [Web log post]. Retrieved from http://infolitlib20.blogspot.com/ on 2010, June 12.

Cameron, C. (2010, May 26). Kids More Likely to Own a Cellphone Than a Book, Study Finds [Web log post ReadWriteWeb]. Retrieved from http://networkedblogs.com/4eFmq?a=share&ref=nf on 2010, June 12.