Welcome to the Daily Dad podcast where we provide one lesson every day to help you with your

most important job being a dad. These are lessons inspired by ancient philosophy, by practical

wisdom, and insights from dads all over the world.

Thank you for listening, and we hope this helps.

You got to take an interest.

When Margaret Thatcher was in school as a young girl, she was assigned books

like we all were. Some were boring. Some were exciting. Some were strange. But without fail,

her father, with barely a high school education himself, took interest. He wanted to discuss what

she was reading. He wanted to read them with her. On one occasion, Thatcher recalled,

he found that I did not know Walt Whitman's poetry. This was quickly remedied, and Whitman is still

a favorite author of mine. He did this a lot. When he found that she was reading one thing,

he'd recommend something related to it. When he found gaps in her reading, he'd take her to the

library to fill it.

He got her to read the classics. He signed her up for political magazines and newsletters, which he shared.

And we've talked about raising a reader here, one of the commandments and the Ten Commandments for

being a better parent, of course. Well, this is how. It's not just about reading to them when they're

little. It's not just about getting them into when they're little. It's not just about

getting them into a good school or insisting they do their homework. It's about being involved.

It's about making reading a family affair. It's about letting them benefit from your experiences.

All the ideas and books you've been exposed to in the time you've been on this planet.

You raise a reader

by being a reader and by being a good reading guide and companion. And this is a process that takes

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