Ways to engage with words, written and spoken

Happy Thursday, dear friends,

Like many parents these days, I struggle to manage how much time my children spend with electronic media and, with varying degrees of success, encourage them to engage with books, musical instruments, artistic media or even taking long walks with friends.

An interesting article on Slate explores, with several experts, intersecting reasons for a recent decline in “middle grade” reading. That addresses readers between the ages of 8 and 12, a critical time for adopting reading as a lifelong habit; and no, it’s not all because of screen time.

While the ubiquity of devices is a factor, interviews for the article also explored changes in social interaction since the Covid-19 pandemic, how reading is taught in mass education (with a trend toward reading excerpts rather than whole books, and teaching for tests) and shifts in how books for youth are produced and marketed.

When I was editing the Deming Headlight, I adopted a household practice of asking my children to look through the newspaper and select one story to read through and discuss with me. Their enthusiasm waxed and waned from one week to the next, but they did it. The results were no dry exercise in reading comprehension. They led occasionally to rich conversations about where they lived, problems and solutions, history and how they were beginning to think about life.

(Letter continued below)

The deadline for New Mexico voters to request absentee ballots for the June 4 primary election is Tuesday, May 21. Starting with this election, voters can track their ballot’s progress after … MORE

A two-week summer camp organized by the Las Cruces Fire Department to instill confidence and leadership skills in youth will open for registration Friday. Admission to the free day program is open to … MORE

It doesn’t need to be the newspaper (although I think the Bulletin offers a wide range of possibilities, online or in print). Print magazines, online publications and podcasts might work well, too. The important part is reading (or listening, if a podcast) and discussing together.

Incidentally, our lead arts story in this week’s paper is Elva Österreich’s interview with author Denise Chávez about her new book, “Street of Too Many Stories,” and their conversation touches on the power of story as a way to connect communities with their ancestors. (No ouija board necessary.)

May you engage today with words, written and spoken, for remembrance and living fully.

Algernon D’Ammassa
Managing Editor

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