We have been thinking that children have been reading less in the 21st century, and we think this is because they are more engaged in computers and television. Valuable time left over from school and homework is now wasted on these sources of entertainment. These are things that interfere with reading books.
We think this is a shame because reading can help young people in later years. If children spend more time reading we think they can achieve more. For example better vocabulary, a broader imagination and reading skills for their future career.
If children don’t read it will have a big impact on their level at school and their confidence might wear away. This in turn might cause them to join gangs so they can release their anger. Also if they read more they will be occupied and won’t have time to hang about on the streets.
In conclusion we think that reading should be encouraged by parents, peers and schools. One project we know about is ‘Booked Up’ which helps young people read more by giving Year 7 free access to a book of their choice. Some schools have a swapbox where you can swap a book if you do not like it or have finished it. This gives children a greater variety of books. Also in the borough where we live - Hackney - the council has launched a campaign to 'get Hackney reading' called Words Unite.
But children need to do something too, and if children made more time for reading we think they could open their minds to something brand new. Here are some of our recommendations for books you might like to try...
Ola suggests Thief by Malorie Blackman
I enjoyed reading this book because it is extremely interesting. It is about a twelve year old girl who is whirled into a computer dominated future and has to face a terrible confrontation. Darkness closes over her : will it ever let her go? I would recommend it to 13 to 16 year olds who have a thirst for reading.
Kamil suggests Warrior Cats (Rising Storm) by Erin Hunter
I like these books because they are unique and are told from an animal’s point of view. It was a great pleasure reading the different scenes. I would recommend it to children who like animals.
Neylissa suggests Driftwood by Cathy Cassidy
I enjoyed reacing this book because it has a lot of description and it is about an ordinary teenage girl with problems in her friendships and social life. I recomment it to 9 to 10 year old girls (or boys who want to know more about how girls think!)
About this story
This story was written by Kamil Boriel, 12, Ola Adeniran, 12, and Neylissa Neto da Silva, 11, from Hackney.
