December 7: Children need to learn ‘real’ communication

IN response to Andrew Vine’s article ‘Surly face of a social media generation’ (The Yorkshire Post, December 1).

Here, here, Andrew – at long last ‘the penny has dropped’ on the value of the essential need for human beings to truly ‘interact’, communicate and collaborate – true ‘face to face’ communication in the ‘real’ world, not the ‘virtual’ world.

We must therefore provide children from the earliest of ages with varied opportunities to partake in speaking and listening activities. Only then will they learn the basic skills of communication and ‘literacy and numeracy’.

Introducing fun numeracy and synthetic phonic boards that also provide games, puzzles and activities for the young can be an ideal way to promote ‘face to face’ communication and at the same time enable young children to quickly create ‘real’ and lasting relationships with others.

Children of all abilities enjoy being challenged and the rewards their efforts bring. They learn to respect and value the contributions of others and the importance of working as part of a team. Through ‘interactive’, purposeful and reflective communication children are able to tap into their innate, innovative and creative selves enabling them to truly ‘think outside the box’. What could be better for young minds?