“He doesn’t want to read,” sighs the mother. “The generation is deteriorating,” the teachers frown. “Until you read five pages, I won’t give you the phone,” the father gets angry. Teaching a child to read is perhaps the main concern of parents. Is this even possible? And why do you need to love books? Let's talk about this with a psychologist. Everyone decides for themselves the question “should you love books?” There are many people who do not like to read and do not suffer from it. But as a person who has been reading avidly since childhood, I can say: life with books is definitely happier. It is impossible to force them to love. But helping to fall in love is quite possible. What do books give? Development of vocabulary. And this is an advantage in any area of ​​life - both in important negotiations and in friendly relationships. The ability to accurately formulate what you need, to do it competently and delicately - is everyone capable of this now? But social contacts are primarily about observation and speech. In any case, a good vocabulary has never hurt anyone. Understanding yourself and others. Awareness of your own and other people's emotions, understanding of what is happening to you personally and with others and what to do about it. Development of imagination, fantasy. While reading, a child often imagines himself in the place of his favorite characters, ponders different options for the development of events, fantasizes, and composes. And it happens that a profession then grows out of this. And since these processes are most active in preschool and primary school age, the sooner a child makes friends with books, the better. Help in resolving conflicts. When dealing with a difficult situation with a child that happened to him at school or on the street, you can cite your favorite characters as examples. After reading a story you like, ask: “Do you remember your quarrel? What would this hero do in your place?” The more mentally played out examples are fixed in the child’s memory, the greater the choice of behavior patterns he will have in reality. Books bring people closer together. By reading with your child and then discussing the works you like, you become closer to each other. Common themes, interests, and joint ventures emerge. How often do we talk to our children about anything other than the school problems that are boring everyone? This is especially important for teenagers: to feel that your parents care not only about your grades, but also about you – and what would be better for this than reading books together? But improving your performance in school because of your love for books is a controversial issue. It’s not a fact that reading Harry Potter under your desk in class will improve your grades in math. But the ability to think, understand what you read, accurately and quickly formulate your thoughts, analyze information, and a broad outlook will come in handy in any lesson. Therefore, before you rush to buy books and sit your children down with them, ask yourself: what do you need this for? If your goal is the child’s assessments in literature, this may be easier. How many of us loved the works that we “taught” in school? We come to understand them much later, when we become adults. If you only need good grades, then modern technologies can help you and your children: audio books, summaries, film adaptations. You can sympathize with the child: “It’s hard, honey, I understand, but it’s necessary. Let's think about how to help you." Today's schoolchildren excel in class after reading only a brief summary of program texts. By the way, while listening to an audiobook, a child may become interested in it, and interest is the first step to love; The school curriculum also includes stories and stories that are truly interesting for children. If your goal is a love of reading, you will have to work hard. There are different ways to instill a desire to read, but no one knows which one will work for you and your child. And will it work at all? Try, experiment. Love cannot be forced. Read with your children, regularly and constantly. The sooner you start, the better: even very young children understand intonation well; as they grow up, they perceive individual words and phrases, and from the age of three they become full-fledged interlocutors. But remember that babies cannot hold attention for long; if you see that the child is distracted or tired– stop. Make reading a mandatory daily activity, or better yet, a ritual - for example, before bed, and try not to miss a day. Provide freedom of choice. Let your child choose what you read today. And don’t be afraid of repetition - children under 7-8 years old tend to listen to the same story many times. Offer your favorite childhood works, but don’t force it. Forcing him to read an unloved or boring book will quickly discourage him (the school curriculum is an example of this). And, of course, choose texts based on the child’s age and interests. Discuss what you read. For preschoolers, questions like “Why do you think Baba Yaga did this?”, “What would you have done in his place?”, “And if Ivanushka had chosen not ..., but ...., what would have happened?” are suitable for preschoolers. They encourage not only listening and remembering, but also thinking about what they read, forming an active vocabulary and retelling skills, developing empathy, that is, the ability to understand another person, and strengthening interest in books. And when the child grows up, you will be able to seriously discuss things that you both really like, and this will bring you closer together in the best possible way. Make the right arguments, especially with schoolchildren. Unconvincing - “you need this for school”, “you must read this book”, “you need this for the Unified State Exam” and even “Vasya / Masha has already read this”. Comparison with others is painful and unnecessary; the Unified State Exam argument will not work until at least the ninth grade; “should” will cause protest. Convincing - “I really liked this story” (for younger children, with teenagers it can be the opposite), “This book is by the author who wrote ... (something I read before and liked)”, “This is your idol’s favorite book "Keep it intriguing. If your child already knows how to read, you can stop reading at the most interesting point (“it’s late, it’s time to sleep,” “I have a lot to do,” etc.). Sooner or later he will not be able to stand it and will take the book himself to find out what will happen next. But try to ensure that the complexity of the text does not exceed skill - it is unlikely that a child who has barely learned to add syllables will be able to read “The Headless Horseman.” And this method does not work with everyone - some children will stubbornly wait until their mother is free again, but will not pick up the book themselves. Share what you love. Remember what you once read yourself, your favorite fairy tales, poems and prose. Tell us about them. If you remember the content well, try to retell it; if not, just say that there was something like this, and suddenly you can find it in the library, and let’s ask next time together. By the way, it is not at all necessary to buy new books. A trip to the library will be both an opportunity to find something interesting for free, and an exciting family activity, especially if you take your time, set aside an hour and a half to two hours for it, and walk along the bookshelves for your own pleasure. Moreover, there are family reading libraries in our city. Respect the choice. Give children the right to read whatever, wherever and however they want. Do not finish reading, re-read again, jump from one place to another, read several books at the same time. It's their business. Respect the right to silence. The child doesn’t want to talk about why he likes this or that book, why he reads what he reads. Asking - yes, sharing something of your own in response, reading what your son or daughter likes. But persistence in the spirit of “I am your mother, I must know” can achieve the opposite effect. Do not devalue children’s favorite books, especially in the case of teenagers, do not make fun of “those mangas of yours” or “your bad horror films.” It’s better to ask what and why attracted your child to this author, try reading it yourself - maybe you’ll like it? Through it, you can better understand and get to know your son or daughter. Limit gadgets. Several teenagers to whom I asked a question about their love of books chuckled and advised: “Take the child’s phone away.” In part, it’s worth listening to their words: constant distractions from messages on social networks and large quantities of entertainment content reduce the ability to concentrate and form.