JEDDAH — What is the best way to light up your powers of imagination, besides daydreaming of course? Reading can do something that no cartoon or TV show can— it can help you use your imagination to create a world that is completely your own, with the help of the writer of course. Also, think of the following benefits: Reading improves your language Having problems with remembering spelling at school? While you read, your mind automatically records the spellings of the different words you come across, which means better writing for you, and more happy teachers! What's more? You'll get to learn many new words to use when speaking and writing. Makes the mind sharper ‘Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body,' is something you might have heard many times at school. What this means is that reading keeps the mind active. So, if you are an active reader, homework and learning would take less time than it used to, leaving more free time for you to play your favorite games, try out that new app, or simply enjoy with friends! If starting a whole book seems like a difficult idea, then start small. Read enchanting poems, and maybe even short stories. The important idea is to read, so that you can reap from its many benefits. While there is a great deal to choose from, here are a couple of suggestions to look at: Poetry “Faster than fairies, faster than witches, Bridges and houses, hedges and ditches;” These were the first two lines of the poem ‘From a Railway Carriage' by Robert Louis Stevenson, which describe the movement of a train from the eyes of a child. What's cool is that if you read the poem quickly, it sounds like the actual sound of a train moving quickly! Other great poems to read are ‘Jabberwocky' by Lewis Carroll, ‘Have a nice day' by Spike Milligan, and ‘The Story of Fidgety Philip' by Heinrich Hoffman. The Velveteen Rabbit ‘The Velveteen Rabbit' by Margery Williams, is the touching story of a toy rabbit owned by a little boy. The rabbit is told by another toy in the boy's nursery: “Real isn't how you are made. . . It's a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real.” There starts the velveteen rabbit's journey to becoming a ‘real' rabbit, and what he has to give away for this. With colorful illustrations and lush descriptions, this book is short and wonderfully sweet. Definitely recommended!
