E-Books vs. Print Books: What Parents Need to Know

E-books are becoming a more popular choice among children and parents are encouraging it, but is this option good for young readers?

Your child is ready to go to bed. As a good parent you will reach out to your Kindle or Tab (which has so many stories loaded into it) and read out one nice story from it. You could be packing your bag for travel. Diligently you will keep inside the Kindle or Tab so that your child can read books on the way. Wait a moment. You would be in for surprise to learn that e Books are not as good as print Books. It’s not me that says so, but Scientists. According to Julia Parish-Morris, a post-doctoral fellow at the University of Pennsylvania who studies how young children interact with e-books ,Cuddling with a parent over a book or gathering around the teacher for storytime helps kids associate reading with nurturing. “These reading experiences can set the stage for later reading success”.

Key findings from studies carried out:

1. Parents expressed more engagement with kids when they read print books

2. Devices can distance little kids from the real world. If children are only exposed to e-books, then kids will lose the pleasure of handling a traditional book, like turning its pages, drawing over it or even sharing with friends

3. The music, animation, and games that are loaded into these e-books can end up being more distracting than useful

4. Less information absorption as there is a tendency to move faster, swiping through the story without taking the time to understand it fully. A 2014 study, presented in Italy at a conference, found adult Kindle users absorbed a significant amount less of what they read when compared to their physical book reading counterparts.

5. According to researchers, the haptic and tactile feedback of a Kindle or tab does not provide the same support for mental reconstruction of a story as a print-based book does

6. Reading a print book is not about just reading, but it gives more room for parents to interact and bond with kids

These studies do not suggest that you ditch Kindle, but then be aware of the significance of print books and use them often and on to make your children get the benefit of reading from print books too.