One’s fears for today’s ebook kids
IF you’re worried that your children or grandchildren will grow up more interested in iPads than fairytales, you’re not alone.
In fact, you have an unlikely new champion – the Queen.
She has shared her fears that children are more likely to play with computer games or read e-books than settle down with a traditional story.
It is highly unusual for the Queen to openly express an opinion on such issues.
She made the comments as she presented author Joanne Harris with an MBE for services to literature at Buckingham Palace yesterday.
Miss Harris is perhaps best known for her bestselling novel Chocolat.
Asked about her chat with the Queen yesterday, Miss Harris said: ‘She asked me what I thought about e-books and computer games and said that she feared children were playing with those more than they were reading books.
‘So I told her that we start them on e-books and computer games and TV and then try to get them on to books later.’
She added of her MBE: ‘It’s wonderful to be recognised and it’s wonderful to see the world of literature be recognised every time this happens to one of us.’
Earlier this year, the National Literacy Trust revealed that most children preferred to read on screens rather than from books, but those who used the new technology had weaker literacy skills.
And research published this week shows tablets have become a ‘musthave accessory’ for toddlers. Half of Britain’s two and three year olds use one, the OnePoll survey revealed.