Divorce_Impact_on_Children

Alliteracy These days we get and have a lot of information, some of us about many things can talk as the experts, but where did this information come from' Most of us would say it came from the Internet, TV, or movie. Are we becoming alliterate society' Alliterate - a person who is able to read but rarely chooses to do so ("Alliteracy"). I agree with Linton Weeks that "More and More Americans Who Can Read Are Choosing not to" (Weeks). A large number of population simply does not read. According to NDP Group "In 1991, more than half of all Americans read a half-hour or more every day. By 1999, that had dropped to 45 percent"(Weeks). By this statement we can see that almost half of American readers read much less these days. According to USA Today "reading researcher Kylene Beers of Yale University says something happens to U.S. kids as they make their way through school. Almost 100 percent first-graders are interested in reading, but later on, when they graduate, 80 percent of students say, they won't voluntarily read another book". This great percentage of students who do not want to read shows that problem of alliterate society exists and grows. There are many factors which people use as excuses for not reading. As a major listed cause is time, but is it true' "According to time studies, we have more leisure time than ever"(Weeks). I strongly agree with Jim Trelease's statement that "if people didn't have time, the malls would be empty, cable companies would be broke, video stores would go out of business" etc. (Weeks). It is definitely true, people these days rather would go to the movies or shopping than to the libraries or book stores. Maybe it is priority problem' Another cause why people choose not to read is our family, especially parents. Nowadays, everyone is busy; so many fathers and mothers prefer sit and watch TV after long workday rather than read a book for their kids; moreover, some children probably have never seen their parents reading. So how they can be interested in it' They see friends, cousins, and relatives playing computer games and that's why kids are more interested in games than in books. The third cause of alliteracy is schools. Most of the teachers just gives a list of required books and questions students have to answer after they read. What kids do' They just skim the book, answer the questions, and they're done. Is it good method to encourage students to read' According to Beers, some teachers requires to read a book which nobody reads than they divides students into groups. Every group should discuss, but what they can discuss about if no one reads' So, they find more interesting themes to talk about. Do schools make ready students to be good readers' After we know that alliteracy is spreading out, we have to find the best ways to solve or at least reduce it. Because environment plays crucial role in the way we live, it also can change our lives in better or worse. We have to start from ourselves and to show our kids that books are essential. We must read for them and with them. After we read, find the main ideas, discuss them, and try to do all this in interesting for kids way. People nowadays read less and less. Alliteracy is on the rise and is a danger to our country. I agree with Jim Trelease in that, "If you don't read much, you really don't know much," and "You are dangerous"(Weeks). Furthermore, I have experienced that. It is really more interesting to talk with friends, or it is easier to have conversation with people who read a lot. I encourage you to slow down, reassess your values, spend more time with family, especially educating your kids. If we want to be literate, we have to work on it! Works Cited "Alliteracy." Wikipedia, The free encyclopedia. 10 March 2009.12 March 2009. < http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alliteracy Beers, G. Kylene. "No time, no interest, no way! The 3 voices of aliteracy." School Library Journal 42.n3 (March 1996): 110(4). Academic OneFile. Gale. Baltimore City Community College. 24 March 2009.  . Toppo, Greg. "Why won't Johnny read'." USA Today (n.d.). Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. 2003. 24 March 2009. . Weeks, Linton. "The No - Book Report: Skim it and Weep." Washington post Staff Writer. 14 May 2001. 24 march 2009.