I loved this blog post by the Scottish Book Trust, on why fairy tales are good for children. There has been a lot of debate over this recently, as Richard Dawkins (author of The Selfish Gene, a book we have included in our secondary school donations, by the way) was purported to have criticized the effect of fairy tales on children, but later said his meaning was misunderstood. The post is worth a read, but summarizes why they are good in five points:
1. They boost a child’s imagination and cultural literacy
2. They teach us right from wrong
3. They develop critical thinking skills
4. They can help children deal with emotions themselves.
5. They are great fun!
Fairy Tales is one of our larger, and also one of the most popular sections we include in our primary school libraries. It has always been cited by librarians as a section that draws reluctant readers to the library – and perhaps that should be a 6th reason.