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As a child, my parents fostered and nurtured a love of reading from a very young age. My mom read books to my brother and I and took us to the local library on a regular basis. My parents led by example, too. They read the Sunday paper every week and were often engaged in the current edition of a favorite magazine. We had a tall bookshelf in our living room and a bookshelf in our bedrooms. As we grew into independent readers, my brother and I would spend most of our free time reading books. My favorites were the Nancy Drew, Bobsey Twins, Boxcar Children and Babysitter Club series. My brother enjoyed reading the Hardy Boys series. Regardless of what we read, reading books for hours was something we enjoyed. We saw reading as something we did to relax or fill our free time.
During my days as a reading and ESL teacher, I worked hard to create a classroom environment that supported and nurtured my students’ growth as readers. I read aloud to my students every day and used engaging picture books to teach vocabulary, themes, lessons and as inspiration for writing projects. Reading aloud to my students was my favorite part of each day. This 15-20 minute block of time gave me the opportunity to engage my students in a story, take them places they’ve never been, see things they’ve never seen and build a positive association with reading.
As a mom of a busy and active toddler, I want to nurture and support her growth as a reader. It starts with reading to her every day! Our local libraries support a program titled “1,000 Books Before Kindergarten“, as a way to encourage parents to start reading to their children from day 1 and build a bond with their young children through reading. Even as newborns, your child will learn to love hearing your voice as you read a story to them.
Benefits of Reading to Your Children
There are many benefits to reading to your child every day and I’ve compiled a list of 15 benefits below. These benefits are based on my 10 years of experience as a teacher, reading articles from various sources and my studies when working towards my Master’s Degree in Reading Education.
- Exposes your child to wide range of vocabulary
- Improves your child’s language skills and builds awareness of how language works
- Builds foundational literacy skills – These early literacy skills include handling a book, naming, turning pages, opening & closing a book, print awareness, recognition of letters & sounds, and understanding how stories work.
- Engages child’s natural curiosity – Babies and toddlers love to see what’s on the next page or lift a flap to see what’s behind it. They are curious about the details of the illustrations and what they see on each page.
- Develops a child’s imagination – While children are listening to a story, they are imagining how a character is feeling or how they may feel in that same situation. This translates into their play, especially in young children.
- Improves child’s concentration and memory and increases his/her attention span – Children develop the ability to sit for an extended period of time and listen to a story.
- Builds a strong family relationship when you cuddle up and read books together – Reading books together is seen as a positive activity and one that your children will look forward to every day.
- Builds a child’s listening skills
- Boosts child’s self-esteem and communication skills – The more a child is read to, the more knowledge and vocabulary they gain. This leads to more confidence in the ability to find the words needed to communicate ideas, needs and wants.
- Exercises your child’s brain and supports healthy brain development, even if they can’t read the words yet – I ask my daughter questions while I am reading books to her. I will ask, “Where is the ….. ?” or “What does the ….. say?” She will point to animals and things on each page.
- Teaches your child about the world around them and takes them to places and times they’ve never been
- Develops empathy – Your child starts to imagine how they would feel in a similar situation as the character in the story.
- Reading is a fun and interactive activity – You can read the story using different voices and sounds. You can also have your child help you turn the page or point to things in the illustrations.
- Increases school readiness and success in school
- Helps your child learn to speak and interact with others
As you can see, reading to your child is filled with many benefits. Every morning, after breakfast, my daughter grabs a book from her Book Basket and brings it over to me. I like to make reading accessible by keeping a basket of books in the living room and a shelf of books in the playroom. She climbs into my lap and we read the book together. This is one of my favorite times of the day! It warms my heart seeing how interested in reading and exploring her books she is. I also love watching her “read” her books independently. She babbles, points to words and pictures, and turns the pages all by herself. Listening to her “read” her books is sweet music to this mother’s ear.
Yes, I agree! Reading is so important. Incorporating a healthy reading atmosphere when they are little helps to create a love of the written word. My 1st grader and I are now reading books together. I enjoy that special time together so much! XOXO
A healthy reading atmosphere is a great way to put it. I love that your 1st grader and you read books together. That is such cherished time together! First graders are so excited about learning, reading, and just being in school. I’m sure yours is just soaking up everything she can, like a little sponge 🙂
Two of my favorite points were that reading helps build imagination and it strengthens family time. Too often kids get “bored” nowadays when they aren’t in front of a screen. Reading is low on the totem pole for lots of families – thank you for raising awareness on the importance of reading!!
Yes! Screen time is much higher nowadays so I am trying really hard to encourage my daughter to see reading as a boredom busting activity. Thank you for the comment!