VOLUNTEER storytellers from Duli Pg Muda Al-Muhtadee Billah College yesterday captivated theiryoung audience as they brought their Reading Outreach Programme to pupils of Kiarong Primary School.
Actively gesturing and mimicking animal sounds, the 10 Lower Six students packed their love for reading to share, in the hopes of promoting a better reading culture in the younger generation.
Observing that children nowadays do not read enough, 17-year-old Heng Huat shared that most of them spend most of their time on computers and playing video games that "there is not much love left for reading".
He pointed out that it is important that books are introduced to them from a young age. However, he noted that the price of books and the image of thick volumes may be contributing factors that discourage parents from buying books for their children.
Shirley Lim, 18, understood clearly the dilemma children have when it comes to reading books.
She admitted that she reads to study and improve her English but finds reading for pleasure a difficult concept to grasp.
She told The Brunei Times that personally, she does not like words and prefers colours and pictures.
Quite accustomed to reading to her younger cousins, 17-year-old Anisah Sakinah Hj Mohd Don was a hit with the Primary 2 children who roared like lions at her request as she read out a story of how an alley cat made friends with a zoo lion.
She said that she has always wanted to be a primary school teacher so the experience would help her learn to communicate with children.
A firm advocate of the programme, she said that parents should make reading to their children a habit so that they will improve their language skills and grow to learn reading. They should also push and encourage the activity, buying them books rather than toys.
It was Anisah Sakinah's second time reading to primary school pupils. The first was at Mabohai Primary School.
She admitted that it was nerve-wrecking but the thought of being a future parent handling her own children made the experience exciting for her.
Their General Paper teacher, Breda O'Hara-Davies pointed out that the primary school children would not just benefit from the reading alone but they would also be able to look up to the volunteers as role models.
She said that since the programme began in 2006, response from the students involved have been very positive.
She added that the programme would also help with their holistic development as communication skills and personality are now growing assets in a job-seeker
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