Reading is an important skill for children to learn. Reading expands their vocabulary, broadens their imaginations, sparks creativity, improves their communication, increases their concentration and enhances their knowledge. Helping your children fall in love with reading at a young age could be one of the best gifts you can give them. We’ve put together a few tips to help you develop your children’s passion for reading at a young age.
Make it fun!
Studies show children who read for pleasure have higher academic achievement, mental health and overall well-being. So how do you get them to enjoy reading? Make it fun! From a young age take your children to story times at the library, act out books with them and read with all the funny voices you can. Do your best to show them how fun reading books can be. My mother taught me you can never be bored if you have a book to read.
Let their interests lead.
It’s important to make sure your children enjoy what they’re reading. Let their interests lead the way when choosing books. If they love unicorns, check out all the unicorn books you can at the library. My fourth grader loves graphic novels. I let her take the lead and choose those books. Then I find other suggestions I think might be a good fit as well. Interactive activity books might be more appealing to some children. For example, maybe a picture book, a book with music and sounds, a how-to book or a book with sensory features.
Make it a routine.
Make reading a part of your family’s routine. Studies show that kids who read 20 minutes per day gain exposure to around 2 million words per year! Choose a time of day that works with your schedule to incorporate books. Maybe during bath time you can read to your younger children. We make it a point to read at least one book every night at bedtime—the kids usually beg for us to read more. Perhaps your entire family has a quiet reading time every day when everyone takes 15 minutes to read on their own. Or if your children are early risers like mine, they can quietly read books before playing with toys or using electronics.
Interact while they read.
It’s important to read aloud to your children every day, even when they’re babies. Do your best to make reading an interactive experience. Start with reading aloud to them. As they get older, read to them and let them “read” to you. Ask them questions about the pictures they see, how the characters might feel and what they think will happen next. As kids get older, you can still read at bedtime. Perhaps you pick a longer book from which to read one chapter each night. You can let them read to you one night and you read to them the next.
Model reading.
Children imitate your behavior. Show your kids how important reading is to you by letting them see you read. I like to end my night with a good book before bed. I talk to my family about the books I’m reading, and I ask them what they’re reading. I grew up watching my parents read books, so it has always felt natural to do the same.
Keep books accessible.
One way to encourage your child to read is to always have a variety of books easily accessible. We are a book loving family, so we have books all over the house. We keep children’s books on an easily accessible bookshelf in the living room for them. They also have books in their rooms and toy room. My favorite place to keep books is in the car. We spend a lot of time in the car running errands or waiting in pickup and drop-off lines at school and extracurricular activities. The car has become the spot where my oldest does most of her reading.
Visit your local library.
If you don’t own a lot of books, that’s OK! There are still ways to provide a variety of books for your children to read. Visit the library together. Make the occasion special and let kids sign up for their very own library cards. Let them check out as many books as the library will allow. My kids and I love to visit our local library where we can find books to take home, play computer games, work on puzzles and create puppet shows. The library even has educational iPads, movies and magazines to can check out. The library is one of my children’s favorite places to visit, and the best part is it’s completely free to use the resources. After each visit, we receive a receipt showing how much money we saved by visiting our library. We save thousands of dollars every year!
There are also little free libraries all through town. We enjoy visiting two of our local free little libraries on a nice day after a long walk or a trip to the park. Visit LittleFreeLibrary.org to see whether there are any little free libraries located near you.
Create a reading challenge.
If your children are a bit competitive, try out a reading challenge. You can see who reads the most books per month in the family, give each child a monthly book goal or keep track of how many minutes are read. Libraries also offer summer reading programs that always motivate my kids. They earn prizes throughout the summer as they hit reading milestones. Check out KC Parent's Guide to Summer Reading Programs for local resources.
Start young.
It’s never too early to start teaching your children about reading. We started reading books to our children the day they came home from the hospital. Hearing words read aloud helps your baby develop language skills. It also assists with brain development and helps babies learn emotions through your expressions as you read. Snuggling up with a good book is also a wonderful way to bond with your baby. When books are always a part of your children’s lives, it’s easier for them to fall in love with reading and continue their passion into adulthood.
Regan Lyons is a girl mom and freelance writer. She lives with her husband, Cale, and daughters, Atley, 9, and Ensley, 3, in St. Joseph.