The skill, the will and the thrill of reading...

This week's Literacy news reflects some inspiring inisights from the recent Primary English Teachers Association Australia (PETAA) annual national conference that we were fortunate to attend.

The conference covered two days, and the focus for this year’s conference was READING. 

One of the most engaging speakers was Megan Daley (www.megandaley.com.au), a teacher librarian, children’s book council judge, author and parent, who spoke about the vital role of children’s libraries in children's reading development. 

Megan reflected on the decline in time spent reading for pleasure amongst our children over the last decade, as books compete with busy lifestyles and the advance of technologies. She explained the advantage young readers have over those that are less inclined to read, including richer vocabularies and, interestingly, deeper empathy and connection to the world around them.

We loved the title of her presentation… first learning the skills of reading, then developing a will to read, and finally becoming a reader for life, and experiencing the thrilling worlds authors create for us to explore. 

We would encourage anyone with an interest in books to explore Megan’s website for book suggestions grouped by age and reviews of new releases. Megan has a blog and a podcast linked to this site as well. Perhaps also consider a visit to your local library over the summer holidays, too!

Happy reading!

Tracey and Marnie