If I told you that there was one sure-fire way to keep your baby out of prison, would you believe me? If I told you that there was one thing that any parent could do regardless of class, race, religion, sexual orientation, national origin, gender or socio-economic standing to give your child a better chance than most children to avoid jail, would you take heed to my advice?
All you have to do is just keep reading. When I say “keep reading”, I don’t mean keep reading this post. I mean keep reading period. Regrettably, in the case, of far too many children and families, I suspect that I might also need to say “start reading”.
Reading Is Fundamental to Staying Out of Prison
When I was a child, you know long ago when dinosaurs roamed the earth – there was a commercial that proclaimed reading to be fundamental. What I was unaware of at that time – while my family was trying to start a fire and create a wheel – was that if I learned to read I would have a better chance of staying out of prison.
According to the Department of Justice, there is an undeniable correlation between reading proficiency and the prison population. In America, over 2/3 of inmates have failed academically and are unable to read above a fourth grade level.
Literacy is a Learned Skill
According to the 2009 PISA rankings America ranks 17th in the world in reading. Yes, you read that correctly. The most powerful nation in the world ranks 17th in reading. Even worse, the most powerful nation in the world seems satisfied being in 17th place.
As appalling as our international reading ranking is the realization that 85 percent of all juveniles who are cataloged in the justice system are functionally illiterate. Despite this abysmal international reading standing, the outrageous number of illiterate US citizens and a growing prison population, U.S. national educational experts seem oblivious about how to respond to this national emergency.
Parents, if you want to keep your children out of prison, it’s all up to you!
Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up In Prison
In 1978, Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings recorded a song called “Mammas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up to be Cowboys”. Today, we need Kanye West and Jay-Z to cover the song and to replace the word “cowboys” with “convicts”.
Mammas and Pappas, Mothers and Fathers, Baby Mommas and Baby Daddies alike – all need to do the following three things to keep your children out of prison:
- Read Yourself – Literacy is a learned skill. The more literate the parents, the more literate the child. Do yourself and your child a favor. Turn off those unenlightened reality TV shows, skip a sporting event or two and open up a book. Try reading something that challenges your mind and expands your vocabulary. And it’s perfectly okay to read something more advanced than People, Ebony, Seventeen and “see spot run”. You will not only be doing yourself a favor, you just might save yourself the agony of having to visit your child behind a Plexiglas window.
- Let Your Child Read What They Like – Don’t stress about what your child reads – at least not at first. Be happy that your child is reading. My son was introduced to reading not by reading the “Classics” but by reading the “Marvels” – as in Marvel Comics. He still enjoys Marvel Comics but he also has a real love and appreciation for the classics. Teach your child how to read first and then they’ll be happy to have you share all the written masterpieces with them.
- Read Together – Reading with your child doesn’t have to nor should it be limited to teaching them how to read. Reading with your child can be a precursor to establishing a family book club. If you choose the right book for yourself – a book that will challenge your mind and expand your vocabulary – it is only fair that you introduce your child to that very book that made you better. I have been sharing books with my son for years. There are very few things better than being able to have an intellectual conversation with your child and recognizing that they know, understand and can discuss competently whatever subject matter is being shared.
So now that you know how to keep your child out of prison, will you make sure that you child is literate? Will you make sure that your child is proficient in reading unlike their nation that appears satisfied with its 17th PISA ranking? Will you call Kanye and Jay-Z so that they can get started on the musical hit of 2014, “Baby Mommas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up to be Convicts”?