*** Juvenile literature offers unending source of pleasure to the young readers. Writers should be aware of the interest and the needs of the children while writing books for them. ***

ABOUT children and play It Is said that play is their existence. They play as they grow. Play contributes to their growth and makes them healthy. So also do books. Books contribute Immensely towards the healthy growth of the children. This growth is ofcoursc mental, emotional and social, along with intellectual. Nobody can deny the fact that children need variety of books to satisfy their hunger for information, fancy or Imagination, adventure and experimentation. They need books to Improve and enrich their reading skill, and power of assimilation.

Love of reading is a precious gift. Infantile literature offers unending source of pleasure to the young readers. The power of imagination is shaped, built and nourished by profuse reading on a variety of subjects. Children should be exposed to the world of books as they learn to read. Selection of books for children should be made in consideration with their age ability and interest. Through reading children can find the answers of many of their quarries about places and things and peoples if not the whole world or beyond it.

Teachers arc the best of guides in this respect. They can very easily allure and Invite Ihc children to the land of fantasy and Imagination, information and experimentation. From the very beginning the children should be given plenty of colourful and easy to read books. The class teacher can read about some section or portion to them, then ask them to read the rest. Book covers may be displayed on the display board to attact the attention of the young readers. Some stories can be dramatized and acted by the students. All these activities can make the children Interested tn reading books.

Teachers should also realize Ihal just like adults children change their purpose for reading according to changing needs. Teachers should be ready to cope with the situa-

tion by arranging reading programmes accordingly. Very often teachers try to impose their own interest upon their young wards by inducing them to read books which they may not like. This may cause serious affects on some. Others may easily digest the bait and proceed an their journey to the book land emotionally unhurt.

Writers should be aware of the interest, ability and needs of the children while writing books for them. This Is because children seek the truth about the world and its people, they want to know themselves and where they belong. To see their own lives clearly children need to look Into the contrasting experiences of others. Even before they learn to read, the children want to know whal is just and right. Because he is always for the right and good the story of film communicates a sense of values to the readers. For this reason the writers should handle the subject wllh care as II affects the tender mind of the young freshers who is not yet acquainted with unanted and crooked ways around. The teachers of juvenile literature should be conscious and vigilant about the unwanted elements in the pages to be supplied to the young. The literature produced for children may at first pass through the censorship of able teachers and parents. This consciousness In handling juvenile writings Is necessary for better nourishment of the young students.

Children arc explorers. Their mind is filled with Inquisitiveness about the world and Its people. They try to discover the common elements in the lives of men and children is other parts of the world. Books for children should give careful attention to this seed. The successful writers of juveniles should also be explorers and In a sense world tourists. They invite children from all over the world with their everyday activities and games. Through the colourful and

lively illustration children can associate themselves with the friends living In far away countries. This type of writing Is sure to fill the mipds of the children with a sense of unity of mankind and universal brotherhood. Favourite writers of children know the likes and dislikes, of the age group they take care to eater. Teachers ad guardians should Join hands to make to best use of printed materials for their wards.

Children's Interest is an important factor regarding juvenile literature. There have been many research investigations on children's interests in western countries. Unfortunately research in this area is almost non cxistct in our country. Factors In literature which appeal to children have been carefully identified in those studies. It was found that surprise, rcpctilian. animals, and narratives appeal to primary school children most.

Another study revealed that girls enjoy books in which boys or men arc main characters, but boys do not enjoy books in which girls or women arc predominant.

Rhymes play a very prominent part In books for chil-

dren. The rhythmic sound of poems make the young readers. spellbound. The subject matter may lack consistency but the beat to the rhymes attract children immcscly. Many studies show that children prefer poetry with humour and comic element. Poems about anlmacs arc also liked by children Irrespective of language and place of residence. Universal truths make children’s literature acceptable all over the world.

Another study reports that adventure, action, myscy, childllfc, animal life and sports appeal to children. Gradually wllh advancing age, boys turn to realistic narratives or adventure, while girls continue to favour themes of home life and begin to read romantic stories.

Parents and teachers who arc responsible for children’s reading need to be aware of the guide from studies about child development, learning theory and children’s interest. They should recognize characteristic needs of children at

. different ages and stages of development. We all know that

children live in two worlds-the real, and the one that exists in their imagination. So an understanding of the inner world of childhood is essential for the teachers and parents.

It is also known that literature makes the reader see, feel, and understand and take delight In the world around. Through literature children could be expo'sed to the basic facts relating to anything. This is because the field of literature is inter related to the fabric of all subject matter such as science and social science even mathematics and of course language arts. From the very beginning the children should be shown the easy way to reading which should contain easy meanings for the children to grasp. Comprehensive meaning from the reading motivate children to read more.

Dr. Halima Khatun is Director. Institute oj Education & Research. Dhaka University.