Photo by daniyal ghanavati
Picture books like Where The Wild Things Are or The Song Of Solomon The Snail might seem like simple reads for children, but they possess themes and ideas everyone should think about and learn!
Although children’s books are made simple, they sometimes hold nuggets of helpful information and essential themes for living positively—like the lessons books like The Song of Solomon The Snail and The Lorax offer.
These books teach children invaluable life lessons and allow adults and children to bond with each other through reading together.
How Reading Early Helps Kids
Reading is a crucial factor in childhood development, but unfortunately, not everyone grows up reading children’s books—despite the evidence that early literacy predicts better futures.
Some parents wrongfully underestimate the potential benefits that reading can have for children. Some might even go so far as to declare that it should only be for school, but reading for pleasure enhances a child’s social and cognitive development, well-being, and mental health.
Reading is often the first place where people find new words and phrases, exercise their minds, and be calm and relaxed. Because of these upsides, reading has a high degree of potentiality for learning, and how reading affects the developing mind can be very extensive and highly beneficial.
Reading allows people to learn about fresh perspectives, immerse themselves in fictional worlds and find cultures and ideas they would never have discovered.
Case studies and surveys have been performed and conducted, discovering early literacy’s advantages on a child’s development—from increased cognition, higher self-esteem when engaging with peers, and better judgment when dealing with social interaction. Early readers are more likely to attain higher academic achievement in multiple subjects besides English.
Outside of academic and social development, reading can also help with personal development.
Three Lessons to Learn from These Three Children’s Books
By reading children’s books and engaging with them, children learn more about the world and themselves, unearthing hidden lessons they will remember throughout their lives.
Here are children’s books that are fun reads for kids and have profound, incredible lessons for them:
The Berenstain Bears and the Truth by Stan Berenstain
This adorable book is set in the Bear Country, a place where talking and walking bears exist and live joyful lives. When Mama Bear returns from the market, she finds the living room lamp broken! So, she asks Brother Bear and Sister Bear what happened, and they answer with lies that get bigger and bigger, becoming more exaggerated as they go on.
Because the bear siblings are afraid of telling the truth—that they broke the lamp while playing soccer—they continue to lie to their mother until their lies become so unbelievable.
Children learn from The Berenstain Bears and the Truth that little lies may seem harmless, but the more someone tries to keep up with them, the more ridiculous the lies become.
The Song of Solomon The Snail by Caroleann Rice
Solomon, the Snail, was a pretty intelligent and friendly snail, and though he brought his house on his back, he had a friend inside him that he talked with all the time, who gave him advice and supported him throughout his adventures.
So, when Solomon finds himself having to help Dot the Ladybug with her many children, he has to learn how to teach them and accept help.
Children learn from The Song of Solomon The Snail the value of open-mindedness and asking for help. Sometimes it is good to do things alone because it boosts self-confidence, but there are times when we need the help of others, and in those moments, it is good to accept that help with open arms.
Where The Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak
This popular book is about Max, a young boy who wears a wolf costume, and when he makes a mess at home, his mother sends him to his room without dinner. There, Max finds his bedroom transformed and himself in a jungle where the Wild Things, a group of monsters, live.
Children can experience a wide variety of feelings from reading this book, and the lesson they can learn is the merit of simply feeling your emotions. Sometimes, children are taught to keep their feelings in, but this keeps them from learning more about how to engage emotionally.