READING: The More You Know, The Smarter You Grow

                The month of November is regarded as the English Month accordingly to the DepEd Monthly Celebrations. The celebration of the English Festival will be conducted at Ilocos Sur National High School for the month of November 2018 with the theme: “Pagbasa: Susi sa Magandang Kinabukasan.” What does the theme says? We all know that it is not a secret that reading is the key to success; we have been told and taught this from a very early age. Reading is an important part of our society. It is key to learning an understanding. According to my research It has been proven that children who read better, perform better in school and have a more active imagination, leading to a larger world and more possibilities for success. I have been reading well for a long time, my mother taught me to read before, when I was elementary back then my teacher used to remind me to read our lesson everyday. And I can say that having that knowledge early made my school days a breeze. My research told me that  26% of children who were read to three or four times a week by a family member recognized all of the alphabet; compared to 14% of children who were read to less often.

              But why is reading so important? Reading imparts on students a much richer vocabulary than just hearing spoken words can possibly provide. Rarely does a spoken conversation include a description of an angry individual becoming inflamed at a remark, rather than getting mad at what someone said. We as a society tend to ask questions, but reading helps us to inquire or compile a query instead. The ability to read not only helps a student to do well in language arts classes, but all subjects, as well as allowing common tasks to become easier. Reading even helps us communicate in writing better by allowing us to know how words are spelled and how grammar works. So why, then, are less and less people reading everyday? Less young people are reading because of all of the distractions in today's society. TVs, iPods, computers, video games. With technology advancing so quickly, people just aren't interested in the old-fashioned books of yesterday.

            Educators have said for years how important reading is for student success – which is quite true. However, it is more than that. Reading is important for Life success.  The more you know, the smarter you grow.