Seeing, Reading, Drawing As the number of art teachers plummets and children spend more time swiping than sketching, we risk losing one of the simplest, most powerful forms of learning: looking. Reading and drawing both teach us how to see — one through words, the other through lines. They nurture curiosity, empathy, and imagination, and they shape the way children think about the world. In a society increasingly addicted to the instant, these slow, patient arts might just

New reports reveal a troubling decline in children’s reading for pleasure. Fewer children are being read to, and reading is increasingly seen as schoolwork—not joy. From misused reading programmes to celebrity book distractions, we urgently need a smarter, more joyful approach.