Monday, 2 September 2013

Benefits of bedtime stories





Actually, apart from just being good fun, telling stories to your children stimulates the areas of the brain that control imagination, development, creativity and problem solving. What we know from brain development research is that if you don't use it, you lose it, so when we stimulate this area with things like reading or storytelling we're triggering those neurons in the brain.

Your child has 100 billion brain cells and a trillion connections, but at five they're not all wired up. What we do know is that the neurons that fire together early wire together, so what you are doing is creating this capacity.

One of the key things storytelling or reading aloud does is show your kids that they are important to you and open up clear lines of communication in the future. When they're teenagers this will be the most valuable thing you've ever done, because what you're doing is putting a deposit in the bank of resilience for later on. It creates this view that is hardwired into their minds that you are a charismatic adult who makes them feel safe and valued and listened to.

Stories about real-life issues such as divorce and illness can be used as a safe way of showcasing difficult issues, particularly if the child is avoiding speaking about such issues in their own life.





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