by B. B. James

Created on: May 27, 2009   Last Updated: May 28, 2009

Reading is fundamental to achievement in our modern world. It's also a source of enjoyment, entertainment, consolation, inspiration, and much more. Yet, sadly, many people are not regular readers. The statistics show that youngsters and young adults read far less than older generations, especially challenging newspapers, magazines, or books. Reading has truly degenerated for many youngsters to the 140-character limit of a "tweet."

What can a parent do? Here are some ideas.

1. Model the behavior you want to see your child do. If you want your child to be a reader, you must be a reader. Your child sees whatever you do as normal, common, and typical. So if you read the paper in the morning or a book at night, you child will assume that's what he or she is supposed to do. There's nothing more important than modeling behavior - and there's nothing more hypocritical than telling a child something is important, but not doing it yourself.

2. Libraries. Ever heard of the library? It's a building that has books that you can take home for free. It has books on lots of topics, and they are organized on the shelves. And there are these people who work at the library, called "librarians," who can actually help you find specific books or suggest books your child might enjoy. Amazing. One of the best things you can do is to designate a night every week or two that is "Library Night," when you take your child to the library and let him select books - using his or her library card, of course.

3. Have varied reading material available at all times. The more types of things are available to read, the more likely your child will pick one of them up. Maybe it will be a magazine, or a book, or a graphic novel. Maybe it will be a book about sports or a book of puns and riddles. Maybe it will be part of a series that gets your child hooked for a dozen books. The point is to have a lot of choices, and at different lengths and levels of complexity.

4. Show interest in whatever your child is reading. Kids want to talk about what they have learned and what they have experienced. When your child wants to read you a joke from a book or tell you the plot of a novel, pay attention. Don't say, "I don't have time for it now," or "That's not a very funny joke," Let your kid be in charge. It will show your kid what reading can do.

5. Create pleasant places to read in your home. Comfortable chairs with good lighting are enticements to reading. These spaces need to be quiet and far away from

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