How can schools encourage children to read for pleasure" Introduce the author, says Sue Woodroofe, Principal of The Grammar School at Leeds
When I stopped to chat to a Year Five student recently, who had her head buried in a book, it was a joy to hear her talk so fluently about the story she was reading.
So, imagine how thrilled I was when, two days later, I found the book with an attached (handwritten!) letter in my pigeon hole, urging me to read it for myself. Before long, I had found myself immersed in the world of David Walliams, then writing back to this pupil my own reflections on the storyline. As a Head, I thought, it doesn?t get much better than this.
With the attraction of so many gadgets competing for children?s attention, there is a fear that young people are no longer reading for pleasure. So it was encouraging to see the results of the recent National Literacy Trust survey, reporting that reading enjoyment has been rising steadily since 2013. In fact, in 2016 figures showed an increase of 14 per cent over 10 years ? and it was Prep School-age children who topped the class. According to the report, Celebrating Reading for Enjoyment, an impressive 77.6%of eight to 11-year-olds said they enjoyed reading. However,  it was also revealed four in 10 admitted to only enjoy reading a bit or not at all.
As educators, it is our responsibility to find ways to encourage more young people to enjoy a good book. But how" Easy… introduce them to the author!
...