The Power of Free Voluntary Reading

Bedhead, pj's, a comfortable couch and a good book.

Homeschooling frees up more time for reading. Hours spent immersed in a book that you chose yourself, that you're reading purely for pleasure. No book report or quiz at the end. Reading, and enjoying reading, is the end in itself. A reader picks up grammar and vocabulary without knowing it. A child who reads a lot learns to structure sentences, and take pleasure in the rhythm of language.

Recently I started reading Stephen Krashen and watching his presentations. This site links to great resources about the benefits of free voluntary reading, from Dr. Krashen and others. There are studies that prove that reading for pleasure physically changes your brain, and makes it grow (increased cortical thickness). Common sense observation shows that free reading improves general knowledge, vocabulary, independence, language competence, writing, and motivation to learn. The research backs up and confirms common sense conclusions.

We have books stashed everywhere, and cozy corners that are good for reading. 

A whole row of Great Illustrated Classics. R got involved in the process of collecting them, hunting at thrift stores and looking online for used ones. This September she finished reading all of the 50+ ones we own. 

At age 11, she can read lots of classics in their unabridged versions. But the feeling of accomplishment, of collecting these books, setting a goal to read all of them and then reaching that goal, was a great motivator. I hope our house has a culture of books, an environment where they are valued and appreciated, and always available. We try to protect free time, so R has the time to choose books and to read as much as she wants.

We like to make a special event of listening to audio books together. Dickens is the best, especially with a good, expressive reader.

We're starting a collection of the lives of the saints. She has several saints' anthologies too. 

A treasured Christmas gift from my Dad this year. The Access to Shakespeare editions with facing-page translations in contemporary English. 

"A great book should leave you with many experiences, and slightly exhausted at the end.You live several lives while reading." --William Styron.

This is a great shelf. Narnia, Lemony Snickett, Harry Potter, and Tolkien's books. My old copy of my favorite book as a kid, Harriet the Spy. 

I love this quote from Paul Auster: "Reading was my escape and my comfort, my consolation, my stimulant of choice: reading for the pure pleasure of it, for the beautiful stillness that surrounds you when you hear an author's words reverberating in your head." I think it's a mistake for schools to fill students' days with "reading skills" instruction, vocabulary quizzes, and assigned books with a dreaded report as the reward for finishing. The free time so necessary for voluntary reading is eaten up by schools assigning hours of homework a night, and by parents overscheduling extracurriculars and lessons. The books we pick up for "pure pleasure," with the anticipation of escaping and going somewhere else for awhile, are where we learn to be literate. "To acquire the habit of reading is to construct for yourself a refuge from almost all the miseries of life."  --- W. Somerset Maugham.