Six minutes a day

Six minutes a day

The hidden benefits of reading for pleasure

 Reading just six minutes a day can reduce your stress levels by 68 percent, according to a 2009 study by the University of Sussex.

 There can be many benefits of reading for pleasure. Book Club vice-president Catherine Fennessey ’17 finds that reading gives her a sense of calm that is stress relieving.    

 AP English teacher Ms. Peck believes that reading for pleasure helps students focus on one idea and learn from it.

   “Sitting down and reading a book, it’s a solitary experience, it’s a thoughtful experience, it’s an introspective experience, and it’s also focused,” Peck said. “You have to stay focused on one idea, one person, one person telling their story, and I think that that can be very therapeutic.”

    Trinity McClinton, ’20, says that reading can open up people to a whole new world.

   “It’s kind of like you get to walk away from whatever is happening to you and just get to go and be concerned about other people that don’t even exist, so it’s kind of like a separate world where you get to live a different life,” McClinton said.

    Fennessey feels that reading for pleasure is always there and is a lifelong resource that people can always go back to.

   “It’s something that you can always have, it’s not something that’s limited by your ability to do something, you can always read, that’s always something there for you,” Fennessey said.

   Peck also believes that reading helps people understand the feelings of others and helps them become well educated.

   “It will help students become more worldly and cultivated, and ultimately also empathetic people,” Peck said.

    McClinton also feels that reading for pleasure helps people learn new vocabulary and stimulates their minds.

   “I think that it exercises your brain in a certain way, when you read it opens your mind to new possibilities and you learn new vocabulary, so I think it helps,” McClinton said.

   Fennessey additionally loves to read and believes that it has helped her become more aware of her surroundings.

   “I enjoy reading, I feel like it makes me feel more informed about the world around me,” Fennessey said.

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