Key points:
- Books featuring characters under license can instill the love of reading
- We just start climbing up to improve students' reading scores
- NAEP scores show discouraging trends for the least powerful students
- For more news on literacy, visit the ESNs Innovative education hub
Holden, my 21 -month -old child, fell in love. His snack early in the morning and the “sofa time” include a dose of “Tiger!” It is a toddler for “mom, lights the Daniel Tiger district”. It inevitably lets me sing everything that the jingle is repeated throughout the episode – all day … “Will you not ride with me … Ride long …”
We are also trying to training in the small pot, and Holden's favorite “Potty Book” (yes, we have a basket of pot books) is that Daniel Tiger had to run the cart to go home to go to the pot. Is it a literary genius? Barely. But the jingle is just as sticky: “Do you have to go to the pot? Maybe yes. Maybe no. Why don't you sit down and try.”
Children's books based on toys, television or film characters rarely gain official medals or literary prizes. And often, librarians and teachers avoid them because there is a perceived lack of literary quality and the feeling that they simply push parents to buy more toys.
In some cases, they lack significant scenarios. And most certainly, brands are books of books to market their characters and strengthen their brand affinity in children. But Robin Pearson, the former publishing chief at the Lego group, made excellent points in this blog: “If you give children the choice of what they want to read, many will choose books or magazines on their favorite programs, games, toys or characters. License publication – books and magazines – can prove to be powerful incentives for children who don't really like to read.”
I would make Pearson's thoughts further. I can certainly say why a child who does not like to read may be more forced to take a book featuring one of their favorite characters. But books are part of Holden's life every day since he returned from the hospital. If five pot pounds are available, he chooses Tiger almost each time. And I say, as long as he picks up a book, it's a victory!
Amy Pihl, a school librarian in Salina, Kansas, agrees: “As a librarian that has gone from public libraries to a school library, I believe in the inherent value of books that featured more and more characters under license. Available.
Reading books on favorite characters can also be an easier introduction to independent reading for the little ones. To start, they already have a context on the scenario and the support characters. Some licensed content books repeat scenarios of television program episodes; Others develop them or tell new stories. The approved non-fiction books explain more complicated subjects such as science or history through the voice of a known and loved character.
The simple fact of engaging in the practice of reading is fundamental. And we know that if a kid selects his own book, he is much more likely to remain engaged when read to read or read. Ashley Healey says that students who visit his library of the Stratham Memorial school in New Hampshire have turned to books like these: “Our books with license characters are by far some of our most verified resources. Even the most reluctant patrol. Easily identify the key vocabulary and easily tell the story.
You may have landed on the same popular authorized character, but there are hundreds by a variety of publishers, including:
- The Daniel Tiger (PBS Kids) district, PJ Masks (Disney Junior); Cocomelon (Netflix) by Simon Spotlight, Simon & Schuster imprint
- Molly de Denali (PBS Kids), Roblox (online game), Baby Shark (Pinkfong), My Little Pony (Hasbro), Fgteev (Youtube); Popularmmos (YouTube) of HarperCollins
- Peppa Pig (various platforms), Clifford the Big Red Dog (PBS Kids); Julie and the Phantoms (Netflix) by Scholastic
- Sesame Street (various platforms), Crayola; Garfield (various platforms) of the Lerner Publishing Group
Dr Katie HovingA teacher of reading and English in Hampshire High School in Illinois, notes that, similar to the characters under license, students of all ages also connect with the bonds of films: “My daughter crossed a phase Stranger Things and was obsessed with the show. So, of course, we found Stranger Things books for her to read. Now these are location banks, so we are on the hunt for students. Books, I think it is because there is something comforting in a character and a familiar scenario.
Honestly, I don't know if Daniel Tiger's Book is based on an episode of the series or just something that producers thought would do a good subject for a book. Anyway, there is a lot of love. And this lover of book and librarians from around the world love it.
The librarian Amanda Chacon shares her enthusiasm when a license character helps a reading breakthrough: “I even saw the most reluctant readers if they discover a book with a familiar and licensed character. to a permanent love of literacy. »»
This is why you will see many of these books available in online books fairs, through sellers and bookstores, and in a basket next to the pot. Because if these characters can facilitate that Kiddos picks up in a book at a time when the bulletin of our country always reports that the average reading scores decrease, then I am absolutely.
