Interview with teacher Janice Houareau on the International Children’s Book Day |02 April 2022

Ms Janice Houareau

‘Reading allows us to be transported from our own world to another’

International Children's Book Day, created by the International Board On Books For Young People, is celebrated annually on April 2 to inspire a love of reading and to call attention to children’s books.

In honour of this occasion, Seychelles NATION contacted Janice Houareau, commonly known as Miss Janice to many children and teenagers, to talk about the benefits of children’s books, and to share her advice to parents/caregivers for creating a reading culture where children learn to love books and reading.

Ms Houareau, a teacher for more than 20 years, has specialised in early childhood and childcare. She is the founder of Miss Janice Out of School Care ‒ a programme based at Paradis des Enfants in Victoria. Her programme looks after children between the ages of 20 months and 11 years through preschool and afterschool care.

Seychelles NATION: What are the benefits of books and reading for children?

Janice Houareau: Reading allows us to be transported from our own world to another. Between the pages of a book, we can become immersed in the lives of fictional characters and learn about a culture entirely different from our own. We can also learn new words and phrases, experience a range of emotions, and acquire skills and knowledge.

Seychelles NATION: Do you feel there is a difference between reading books and listening to audiobooks?

Janice Houareau: While listening to an audiobook may help more with empathy and making the story come alive, reading is a better bet for retaining the information. Reading is better than listening for actually holding someone's attention and remembering the information.

The critical difference, for me, between reading and listening is that reading is something you do, whereas listening is something that happens to you. Reading is an act of engagement. The words on the page aren’t going to read themselves, which is something they literally do in an audiobook. If you’re not actively taking in written information, then you’re not going to make progress on the book.

Audiobooks, on the other hand, make progress with or without your participation. You can tune out, your mind wandering around the subject at hand, and there will still be forward motion in the story.

Seychelles NATION: How can parents/caregivers create a reading culture for children?

Janice Houareau: A reading culture is an environment where reading is championed, valued, respected, and encouraged. Reading lies at the heart of the curriculum, and it’s of the upmost importance to a child’s personal, social, and academic success, as well as their general wellbeing.

Creating a reading culture should not be the responsibility of an individual. It takes dedication, perseverance, and effort. It’s led by an enthusiastic and dedicated senior leadership team, and advocated by every pupil, parent, carer, and staff member in the school community.

A reading culture takes more than quality-first teaching. Where a reading culture exists, children read of their own free will, on a regular basis. Students select their own reading material, at a time and place of their choosing. They are willing and active participants, who anticipate the satisfaction they’ll get from picking up a book.

To make sure children don’t experience reading difficulty and demotivation, we should ensure students become fluent and engaged readers from an early age. Creating a reading culture where students are disaffected, hold negative attitudes, and whose reading ages are well below chronological, can be challenging, but not impossible.

Seychelles NATION: Can you recommend some ways in which parents/caregivers can promote books and reading with children?

Janice Houareau:

Birth to 2 years old:

-           Begin reading to your child immediately. It may seem silly to read to very young children, but it will help you bond with your child and establish an important foundation for future learning. The earlier you start, the better the results!

-           Read to your child every day. Children who are avid readers were read to every day from a very young age. Make reading a regular event in your home.

-           Read books multiple times. Reading the same book over (and over) reinforces language development and encourages children to participate in the reading activity.

-           READING = SNUGGLING! Read for short periods with your child on your lap or next to you. Being close to you is likely as important as the reading.

-           KEEP BOOKS HANDY! Set up a space to keep your child’s books where they will be accessible.

-           BE FLEXIBLE! Take a break if your child is unhappy or fussy. Read multiple times per day for short periods rather than one longer period if that works better.

2 to 3 years old:

-           ASK QUESTIONS! Ask your child simple questions about the book. Examples: What was your favourite part of the book? Where did Corduroy go when he explored the store?

-           NOTICE LETTERS! Point out letters in the text. Example: Let’s find the m’s on this page.

-           FLIP IT! Have your child open the cover and turn the pages of the book while you read.

-           THINK ABOUT IT! Ask your child questions about the characters or the story that require predicting, imagining, or making inferences.

-           MAKE IT RELEVANT! Relate books to your child’s life. Example: Can you think of a time you were reluctant to try something new like Little Burro?

-           BEGIN WITH SOUNDS! Point out beginning sounds. Example: Did you hear a word that started with the same MMMMM sound as your name?

-           NAME IT! Practice letter names. Example: Name the letters you recognise on the cover of the book.

-           READ IT! Encourage your child to read common words. Example: This word, t-h-e, is the. Help me read “the” when you see it in the book

-           ENCOURAGE CURIOSITY! Respond to your child’s questions about letters, numbers, and reading.

Seychelles NATION: Can you also recommend some children's books that parents/caregivers can read together with children ‒ books which you feel children will love and will help them to learn to enjoy reading?

Janice Houareau:

-           The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle

-           The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

-           Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White

-           Love You Forever by Robert Munsch

-           I Love You to the Moon and Back by Amelia Hepworth

-           The Wonderful Things You Will Be by Emily Winfield Martin

-           Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? by Bill Martin Jr.

-           See, Touch, Feel: A First Sensory Book by Roger Priddy

-           The Going-To-Bed Book by Sandra Boynton

Seychelles NATION: Did you have a favourite book as a child? Tell us about it and tell us how you feel reading has helped you.

Janice Houareau: My favorite childhood books were the Sweet Valley High series. I really enjoyed the discovery aspect of the book where I was very excited to see what would happen to the twin sisters at high school. I also really enjoyed the ‘Martine’ series that were in French. Reading at home as a young child was always present and my parents, especially my mother, always stressed the importance of reading. I do realise now how much this has helped me immensely in my spelling and reading.

F. P.