Dubai mums launch UAE's first digital platform for second-hand books

Two mumpreneurs are helping parents incubate a love for reading in children

Last updated: July 05, 2020 | 22:58

3 MIN READ

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Somia Nanwar and Grace Karim each have two children who are now avid bookworms. But while their kids were growing up, the mothers struggled to keep up with the pace at which the children outgrew their stories and wanted new ones. It was hard to find good books at affordable prices, which is why the idea for Bookends came about - the UAE's first digital platform for buying (and selling) pre-loved books at a fraction of the price that they would be new. We spoke to these two mumpreneurs about how to keep kids passionate about the written word

What is the most popular books for toddlers?

“Toddlers are busy little people with a lot of curiosity and desire to learn about the world. They need books that are very engaging and help them understand what they see, hear or feel. Finding the right book can be challenging, but it is the perfect time to spark the love of reading. Our top pick would be Going On a Bear Hunt by Michael Rosen and Helen Oxenbury.”

What are the main reasons children stop reading?

“By the age of six or seven, children are ready to conquer the world. They want more action and to explore new things. What they need is a huge variety of different books, or else they may lose interest in reading at this point in time. They don’t want to repeat any more. But new books are expensive and it’s not very economical to buy new books that the kids are outgrowing so quickly.

"Firstly, provide them with as much variety as possible. Secondly, be involved in their reading time.

"Parents can even provide some incentives similar to what schools have, such as certificates and awards.”

5 Tips for encouraging reading at home

BE A READER: “It is very important for the children to see their parents reading, so they imitate them.”

GET INVOLVED: “Read to your children and try to bring actions into the story to keep it engaging.”

REWARD THEM: “Establish a reward system that will be visible for the children, where they add the stars by themselves in order to create competition within themselves, resulting in a gift, or a treat.”

ENCOURAGE COMPREHENSION: “Ask your children to recreate the story in their own words with some changes to the ending, for example, so they can use their imagination for a different ending and maybe print it out for them.”

BRING STORIES TO LIFE: “Let the children act the story with friends, or create a script about the story.”

Why was it important to you to start Bookends?

“Reading is a treat for the soul and the mind and should never be taken for granted. As Dr. Seuss said: ‘The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.’

"Bookends is a marketplace for buying and selling pre-loved books. We have books for all ages and genres. We want to bring back the love of reading by making books more affordable and we want to save the world one book at a time by reusing them.”

Visit www.bookends.ae

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