Classics

A classic is a book that has never finished what it has to say.

~ Italo Calvino

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I think it is very important to read to children.  In addition to the shared time between the reader and the child, I think that is where we begin to plant seeds for their imaginations.  They make up the images and the actions and the doings in their heads.  They create worlds based on the words of others.  They create their own words and ideas and know that there is value in doing that.  

Seeing with your mind is an important skill to develop.

And I think it's good to expose kids to classic ideas and classic tales.  Our literature carries our culture and our social lens and our thinking about a variety of topics.  Common points of reference.  Common understanding.  Common ground.

It also gives us things against which to push.  Things don't always need to be as things have always been.

I think you can pull different lessons from the tales we have told and retold ourselves.  There are morals and lessons from all of the books above - from Shakespeare and the Brontes and Carroll and, well I'm ashamed to admit it, but I forget who wrote the classic of the canon, "Zoo Babies," but you get my point.