Encouraging Baby's Love of Reading

Begin your baby’s literature journey even before his birth. Suggest a children’s book theme for your baby shower or have guests bring their favorite children’s book in lieu of a card to stock your children’s library.  Also asking seasoned mothers for their favorites can help when adding items to your baby registry.

Another tip is to set an example by reading for pleasure. Children are always watching and wanting to mimic their parents. So enjoy a guilt-free break knowing you are teaching your children reading can be fun! Along with this, make reading part of your daily routine. When all three of my babies were infants (and once we had some sort of schedule down), I would read chapter books to them as they nursed and drifted off for their afternoon nap. I looked forward to that time and it was a restful 30 minutes of doing something I enjoyed in the midst of mothering an infant. I chose the Narnia series by C.S. Lewis, which was fun for me to reread and fun for older siblings to listen to as well.

My babies learned to hear the cadence of my voice while I was reading and had a positive association with it. If you don’t have anyone listening in on you, choose any book that interests you to start reading aloud.

As my babies grew, we made story time part of our routine before morning nap, afternoon nap and bedtime. It is a great way to calm down and connect before resting and is still is one of my favorite parts of my day with my children. We have a well-stocked home library, a Little Free Library in our yard, and we utilize the public libraries. New books and old favorites help me enjoy reading to them, which then rubs off on them.

Many types of books can start babies on their exploration of language. Some books encourage touching different textures, such as That’s Not My Truck, part of the Usborne Touchy-Feely Books series. There are scratch-and-sniff books, books that make noises or music, pop-up books like the many written by Jack Tickle and hide-and-seek flap books. Picture books can teach letters, numbers, shapes, vocabulary and more. Plus, the favorite bedtime storybooks, such as Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown, Guess How Much I Love You by Sam McBratney and The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle, can send your little one happily off to sleep.  All the fun board books written by Sandra Boynton are rollicking fun.

Now, not all children will magically love sitting in your lap and listening intently to three books twice a day—but don’t give up!  Lynnora Stary, Olathe mother of two, encourages, “In our literacy classes for my Masters in Education at Rockhurst University, the overwhelming evidence and research said ‘read to them.’  If they are squirmy, pin them down and read as much as you can before they wiggle away. Nothing else is as powerful or influential!”

If sitting still and listening are not your baby’s strong suits, sneak in reading like you would try to sneak in veggies for a picky eater. Read your recipes as you cook, read signs at family attractions, read during bath time (there are bath books!), read while she is strapped in her high chair eating or play audio books in the car. Having books accessible to your child throughout the house in baskets or mixed in with his toys allows him to have the opportunity to explore them on his own. 

Having a new baby at home is a challenging time, so find what works for you once you’re rested enough to resist lulling yourself to sleep while reading to your baby.

Stephanie Loux is the mother of Layla, 6, Mason, 4, and Slade, 1.