Two Good New Year's Resolutions for Young Souls

It's "later than you think!" and that time again!  The New Year brings new-found resolutions.

"A new heart for a New Year, always."  - Charles Dickens.

Your resolutions may number 70 (like Jonathan Edwards'), you may try to follow Fr. Thomas Hopko's 55 Maxims of the Christian Life, or maybe you'll just focus on these basic 14.  

But how about these two, simple enough for even the youngest child to remember (Matt. 22:37-39 ; Mark 12:30-31; Luke 10:27; Deut. 6; Lev. 19:18):

"Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind." 

and

"Love your neighbor as yourself."

Good Books for the New Year?  I love St. Theophan Academy's list "Reading Through the Year of Grace"...which has book recommendations for many of the Saints' days from January through December.  

Happy New Year!

Thank you, dear readers for stopping by.  

Stay tuned for more Good Books For Young Souls in 2015!

"READING FOR JOY" - A GREAT RESOLUTION FOR THE NEW YEAR

A recent report from Ontario, Canada, published by the research group People for Education, found that fewer school age children actually enjoy reading.  Below are some of their findings...

     "Literacy – alongside writing and math – has been at the centre of Ontario’s educational agenda for more than a decade. And while Ontario students’ literacy scores have improved during that time, something unexpected has also happened: There has been a dramatic decline in the percentage of Ontario students who report that they “like to read.”
     While the increase in Ontario’s students’ reading scores is to be applauded, the decrease in their love of reading is worrying. It is possible that our focus on targets for test scores and on the “mechanics” of literacy have had an impact on students’ attitudes.
     Regardless of form, reading for the joy of it, for its capacity to broaden our horizons, use our imaginations, think creatively, understand ourselves and others better, and feel engaged as citizens in the world – reading for all those reasons must be a vital component of what we encourage in our schools." [You can read the whole report, with statistics, HERE]

What can help stop this worrying decline?  According to the study, educators need to
1- give kids access to school libraries and librarians, and
2- encourage parents to "read with their children for pleasure" at home.

This is where I insert one of my favorite resources - for read aloud books that kids will ENJOY:

You can also visit Jim Trelease's website: Jim Trelease on Reading. It's a helpful resource for parents,  teachers, and librarians.