Ask any readers who their favorite fictional character in a novel is and you’ll likely get a detailed explanation about the beloved character that they admire. It might even sound like they’re talking about a person they know.

In a study, researchers looked at the brains of a group of people over nine days. Half of the group read the novel Pompeii, and half didn’t. After examining, researchers found the readers’ brains showed heightened connectivity in some areas. This is likely because the brain imagines the movement and emotions of the character they read about in the book. Even though the participants were then asked not to read the novel, they kept this heightened connectivity. We call that a “shadow activity”, almost like a muscle memory. So even after you’ve finished a book, your brain keeps those benefits for some time afterwards.

It has been suggested that people who read a lot of fiction become more empathic (移情的), because fiction is a simulation (模拟) of social experiences, in which people practice and improve their interpersonal skills. The people who not only read fiction, but felt a high level of “emotional transportation” while reading—as compared to people who weren’t taken by the story or who read non-fiction—displayed higher levels of empathy when tested. Increase of empathy is important for people because empathy is positively related to creativity, performance at work and cooperative behaviors.

Besides, reading improves “Theory of Mind”. It is “the ability to understand that others have mental states that are different from one’s own.” Of various activities, reading novels has been found to improve this ability, while watching television programs or movies has been found to do just the opposite — a reduced understanding of others and weaker cognitive (认知的) development overall.

Maybe we should put more of a priority on novel-reading. And many readers believe that reading a novel is far better and more meaningful than watching any movie. As David Kidd of the New School study said, “Fiction is not just a simulator of a social experience; it is a social experience.”

Finding time to red is an important part of developing literacy skills for all kids. And there are many easy and convenient ways to make reading a part of each day-even when it’s tough to find time to sit down with a book.

Reading opportunities are everywhere you go. While riding in the car, for example, encourage kids to spot words and letters (on billboards, store signs, etc.), turning it into a game (“Who’ll be the first to find a letter B?”). While shopping, ask your preschooler to “read” pictures on boxes and tell you about them. Point out the difference between the words and the pictures on the boxes. Encourage older kids to tell you what’s on the shopping list.

Even daily tasks like cooking can provide reading moments. You can read recipes aloud to younger kids, and older kids can assist you as your cook by telling you how much flour to measure. Give your child a catalog to read while you sort through the mail. Ask relatives to send your child letters, e-mails, or text messages, and read them together. Help your child create letters or messages to send back to the relatives. These types of activities help kids see the purpose of reading and of print.

Even when you’re trying to get things done, you can encourage reading. While cleaning, for instance, you might ask your child to read a favorite book to you while you work. Younger kids can talk to you about the pictures in the favorite books.

Make sure kids get some time to spend quietly with books, even if it means cutting back on other activities, like watching TV or playing video games.

Most importantly, be a reader yourself. Kids who see their parents reading are likely to resemble them and become readers, too!