Reading together: creating a space for my son to be what he will be
One of my favourite songs growing up was 'Que Sera, Sera'. To remind people the first two verses go like this:
When I was just a little girl,
I asked my mother, "What will I be?
Will I be pretty? Will I be rich?"
Here's what she said to me
"Que sera, sera
Whatever will be, will be
The future's not ours to see
Que sera, sera
What will be, will be"
As part of this, I think reading together is one of the key ways I can help create a space for my son to dream and imagine. Reading allows us to be whisked away to foreign lands and different times. It’s one of the best ways to help build out our imaginations – which is such an important skill for our little ones.
Reading is especially important as it’s a great activity that both teaches our children skills for their ongoing development as well enables us to share in something together as parent and child. Reading is such an awesome experience with our little ones.
I love to read myself – and have since I was tiny – so imparting a love of reading isn’t a hard thing for me! I just hope I’m not overkeen and scare him away from reading!!
While my little one is only now becoming verbal we are able to literally read together. Books like ‘Old MacDonald had a Farm’ are great at this as we do our chorus of ‘mooos’. “Here a moo, there a moo, everywhere a moo moo.” It’s simple but it’s a beginning…
Things are complicated for us somewhat as I am working to ensure that my son is raised bilingual in my other language – New Zealand Maori – and here in the Pacific Northwest my supply of reading materials in our language is…*ahem* limited to say the least. But, with the use of an iPad I’m able to download docs etc that help provide materials for us to read together.
In fact digital access to libraries is such a boon to those of us parenting now. It enables us to easily access material for our children (and without the fear of fines for returning things late!!). And, that is a real blessing! That said, I can get all the same effects with an old-fashioned library card and that's one of the fun things we do every week - go to the library together!
Returning to the idea of imagination though, the act of reading is invaluable as it enables all of us – those with lots in the way of resources and those with less – to learn to imagine. Stories have, for all of human existence, enabled us to learn about one another and the world around us. Books – as the natural extension of our natural story telling – enable us to carry on this tradition. And, what a wonderful tradition it is!
The gift of imagination is one of the greatest gifts we can give our children.
For, to imagine, is to open up the world for our children and all the possibilities that it entails. And what greater gift for our children is there than that?
For while we may not be able to see the future we can, at least, imagine it, and what a wonderful thing that is for our children!
“Que sera, sera” – indeed, “What will be will be” – but if we imagine it, maybe we can make it come true…