Bibliotherapy in Action

An article like the one linked below reminds Retiring Guy how fortunate we are in Wisconsin to have the resources of the Cooperative Children's Book Center.


About the CCBC: The CCBC supports teaching, learning and research related to children’s and young adult literature and provides informational and educational services based on its collections to students and faculty on the UW-Madison campus and librarians, teachers, child care providers, researchers and other adults through the state of Wisconsin.

Link to February 17 School Library Journal article, "Reading Fiction Can Help Combat Obesity, Study Say".

Excerpt: Reading may be fundamental—but it’s also beneficial to a child’s health, according to a new study set for release in Pediatrics magazine next month.

Researchers at Duke University Medical Center tracked 81 clinically obese girls, ages 9 to 13, and found that 35 percent of the children managed to reduce their body mass index (BMI) when given a book to read about an overweight girl who helps herself to get healthier.

“Age-appropriate fiction, particularly if it addresses health-oriented behaviors, shows potential for augmenting weight loss in girls who participate in a weight-management program,” say the authors of the report "A 'Novel' Intervention: A Pilot Study of Children’s Literature and Healthy Lifestyle."