@cnsmithauthor Reading books is a necessity in life like air, water, shelter, clothing and food. Is that statement a bit, “over the top”? No, not in the slightest bit and I’ll tell you why. If you stop and think about it, in all areas of life, where is reading not required? You have to read when you go shopping for food, when you go to the doctor, when you drive in your car, when you fill out a job application, when you buy a home or rent an apartment and the list goes on. “Life” goes on during the summer months so, why should there be a “break” from reading? Cultivate a love for reading in your child and you will help them cultivate their imaginations, thereby sparking their creativity, which is life-giving.
Reading has the ability to let a child’s imagination flourish, which in turn can help them find their purpose in life. Humans think in pictures, images in the mind. So when you read words on a page, you can create your own image. This is important. For example, if a child is reading a chapter book about a scientist, he can imagine him or herself doing the things that the character is doing in the book. However, if the child is watching television, and they are being fed images of people that don’t look like him or her, they may have a difficult time being able to imagine him or herself in the position of that TV character as a real possibility. A good example of a child that was inspired to read was a self-taught scholar who grew up to inspire tens of thousands of people (if not more). His name was Dr. John Henrik Clarke. As a child, he went to his school’s library and asked the librarian where the books on Black people before slavery were and he was told that his people “had no history before European Colonization.” However, he knew in his heart that this couldn’t be true and so as a child, despite not being able to check books out of the library in segregated Georgia, he found a way to access and read books which led him to confirm that his “inner knowing” was correct. Africa had a rich history before European colonization. He went on to write so many notable books that were backed up by sound research and fact regarding African History before slavery. He was a Professor Emeritus at Hunter college even though he lacked a high-school diploma and college credentials who was largely self-taught. Now that’s what I call drive and inspiration from acquiring knowledge through the reading of books.
Books are a free resource through your local library. If we take a page out of Dr. Henrik Clarke’s “book” then we can see that one can be self-taught and earn a living. All great civilizations had libraries where knowledge of the ancestors’ wisdom was written down. America is no different. Access to anything your child wishes to learn can be found in a library for FREE. Why does your child have to wait to be taught anything at school or wait until college to learn a trade of some sort? As an example, he or she could read a book and learn how to fix cars, step-by-step. He or she could then start fixing or repairing your car, which could lead to them fixing neighbors’ cars for extra money during the summer. Wouldn’t that be nice? If there is a free resource that your child has access to that could help them to earn a living right now, why not utilize it? If it were encouraged, by you, that reading a book was a real option towards creating their own source of income, is it not something that they could get excited about?
There will always be plenty of books on hundreds of thousands of different subjects so it is highly likely that your child will find something that interests him or her. Just because your child may complain about the books for required reading at school, it doesn’t mean that they won’t find a book that will inspire their creativity. Have you ever asked them what really interests them? My mother did that for us and then got us a book on the subject to enhance our learning and creativity. It’s interesting the things you find out from your child when you take the time to ask. They may surprise you!
Some folks may say that kids do all the reading that is necessary during the school year and the summer is for having fun and letting them take a break. Well, it depends on how you look at things. This is why I suggest asking a child what interests them and supporting them in those interests with books. When a child is being supported in their interests then that is a fun experience for them. As opposed to during the school year, when it is not asked if they are interested in reading certain texts, it is just required. There’s no choice in that. Also if children knew that their interests could turn into a potential source of income, then this would be a fun aspect for them to explore as well.
Unquestionably, reading has the ability to let a child’s imagination flourish, which in turn can help them find their purpose in life. Books are a free resource through your local library so everyone has access. There will always be plenty of books on hundreds of thousands of different subjects so it is highly likely that your child will find something that interests him or her. The definition of imagination is, “the faculty or action of forming new ideas, or images or concepts of external objects not present to the senses.” The definition of creativity is, “the ability to make new things or think of new ideas.” There is power in creativity because it is life-giving. It is the ability to make NEW things. Isn’t the creation of anything, whether it be an idea or a new “thing” the very act of giving life thereby adding to the prosperity of one’s family, community etc.? Parents, I encourage you to cultivate a love for reading in your child, for you will help them develop their imaginations. In turn, they will be inspired, thereby sparking their creativity, which will add to the life of the world.
To read more of Christina Smith's work visit her blog by clicking here!
Christina Smith is an entrepreneur, consultant, mother, and published author. She was born and raised in the Bay Area. In 2014 she was able to cross ONE ITEM off of her bucket list and perform stand-up comedy in front of a live audience. When she's not homeschooling her son or driving him all around town to his various activities, some ofChristina's favorite things to enjoy are: the local library, a throw-your headback, "that brought tears to my eyes" kind of laugh and good music.
Christina is a certified graduate/alumnus of, certified professional speaker/author, George Ramirez' "Present with Purpose" (2008) & two-time student of his "The Miracle in the Mirror" programs. She has received a Certificate of Recognition from California State Assembly in Honor of Graduating from the Women's Initiative for Self Employment and dedication to empowering the quality of her life and her community (2007).
Additionally, she is a student of Certified Rebirthing-Breathwork Practitioner, Iris Watson (Nelson). She holds an Associates degree in Legal Administration/Paralegal Studies from Heald Business College.
Reading has the ability to let a child’s imagination flourish, which in turn can help them find their purpose in life. Humans think in pictures, images in the mind. So when you read words on a page, you can create your own image. This is important. For example, if a child is reading a chapter book about a scientist, he can imagine him or herself doing the things that the character is doing in the book. However, if the child is watching television, and they are being fed images of people that don’t look like him or her, they may have a difficult time being able to imagine him or herself in the position of that TV character as a real possibility. A good example of a child that was inspired to read was a self-taught scholar who grew up to inspire tens of thousands of people (if not more). His name was Dr. John Henrik Clarke. As a child, he went to his school’s library and asked the librarian where the books on Black people before slavery were and he was told that his people “had no history before European Colonization.” However, he knew in his heart that this couldn’t be true and so as a child, despite not being able to check books out of the library in segregated Georgia, he found a way to access and read books which led him to confirm that his “inner knowing” was correct. Africa had a rich history before European colonization. He went on to write so many notable books that were backed up by sound research and fact regarding African History before slavery. He was a Professor Emeritus at Hunter college even though he lacked a high-school diploma and college credentials who was largely self-taught. Now that’s what I call drive and inspiration from acquiring knowledge through the reading of books.
Books are a free resource through your local library. If we take a page out of Dr. Henrik Clarke’s “book” then we can see that one can be self-taught and earn a living. All great civilizations had libraries where knowledge of the ancestors’ wisdom was written down. America is no different. Access to anything your child wishes to learn can be found in a library for FREE. Why does your child have to wait to be taught anything at school or wait until college to learn a trade of some sort? As an example, he or she could read a book and learn how to fix cars, step-by-step. He or she could then start fixing or repairing your car, which could lead to them fixing neighbors’ cars for extra money during the summer. Wouldn’t that be nice? If there is a free resource that your child has access to that could help them to earn a living right now, why not utilize it? If it were encouraged, by you, that reading a book was a real option towards creating their own source of income, is it not something that they could get excited about?
There will always be plenty of books on hundreds of thousands of different subjects so it is highly likely that your child will find something that interests him or her. Just because your child may complain about the books for required reading at school, it doesn’t mean that they won’t find a book that will inspire their creativity. Have you ever asked them what really interests them? My mother did that for us and then got us a book on the subject to enhance our learning and creativity. It’s interesting the things you find out from your child when you take the time to ask. They may surprise you!
Some folks may say that kids do all the reading that is necessary during the school year and the summer is for having fun and letting them take a break. Well, it depends on how you look at things. This is why I suggest asking a child what interests them and supporting them in those interests with books. When a child is being supported in their interests then that is a fun experience for them. As opposed to during the school year, when it is not asked if they are interested in reading certain texts, it is just required. There’s no choice in that. Also if children knew that their interests could turn into a potential source of income, then this would be a fun aspect for them to explore as well.
Unquestionably, reading has the ability to let a child’s imagination flourish, which in turn can help them find their purpose in life. Books are a free resource through your local library so everyone has access. There will always be plenty of books on hundreds of thousands of different subjects so it is highly likely that your child will find something that interests him or her. The definition of imagination is, “the faculty or action of forming new ideas, or images or concepts of external objects not present to the senses.” The definition of creativity is, “the ability to make new things or think of new ideas.” There is power in creativity because it is life-giving. It is the ability to make NEW things. Isn’t the creation of anything, whether it be an idea or a new “thing” the very act of giving life thereby adding to the prosperity of one’s family, community etc.? Parents, I encourage you to cultivate a love for reading in your child, for you will help them develop their imaginations. In turn, they will be inspired, thereby sparking their creativity, which will add to the life of the world.
To read more of Christina Smith's work visit her blog by clicking here!
Christina Smith is an entrepreneur, consultant, mother, and published author. She was born and raised in the Bay Area. In 2014 she was able to cross ONE ITEM off of her bucket list and perform stand-up comedy in front of a live audience. When she's not homeschooling her son or driving him all around town to his various activities, some ofChristina's favorite things to enjoy are: the local library, a throw-your headback, "that brought tears to my eyes" kind of laugh and good music.
Christina is a certified graduate/alumnus of, certified professional speaker/author, George Ramirez' "Present with Purpose" (2008) & two-time student of his "The Miracle in the Mirror" programs. She has received a Certificate of Recognition from California State Assembly in Honor of Graduating from the Women's Initiative for Self Employment and dedication to empowering the quality of her life and her community (2007).
Additionally, she is a student of Certified Rebirthing-Breathwork Practitioner, Iris Watson (Nelson). She holds an Associates degree in Legal Administration/Paralegal Studies from Heald Business College.