The ability to read is such a crucial part of development. Sometimes it’s not the easiest task to accomplish though. How can we accomplish a love for reading in a child without force-feeding them information? Here are some ways we can do just that.
Read to Them
This one seems self-explanatory, but reading to children is an important part of their development. Even just hearing a person talk helps to develop a child’s speaking skills, so imaging how much you can do by reading to them! Ask open-ended questions during the story to see if your child is paying attention and have a discussion with them about the book after you’re done as they get older. If you can’t fit it into your busy schedule, read a short story as you put them to bed.
Plan Family Reading Time
We can get so busy with life and often most of our attention goes to our electronic devices. Plan a reading day, maybe once a week where, as a family, you set the devices down and read. This could be a story together or it could be separate stories that you read individually. Either way, it helps to develop those reading skills on more of a frequent basis. If you are working with children in child care center or any other forum, you can also do the same thing. Plan reading time, maybe while children are being picked up, to help to build those skills.
Visit Local Libraries
Back in the day, libraries just had books. Now they put on all kinds of programs for all ages, and especially for children. Plan a field trip, a visit for an activity, or maybe just to have the children pick out their favorite books to read. Giving children an opportunity to read more and have activities through it, libraries can be a great resource especially if you are trying to find activities in your area.
Go to Book Fairs
Take kids to book fairs that publishers or authors may put on where they have a chance to look through a ton of books. This will give them another opportunity to find something they are interested in and will hopefully keep their attention. Also you might have a chance to have them meet their favorite author and have their book signed.
It doesn’t take much to promote reading with children, but it does take time. We often are very short on time, which is why you should focus on doing what you can. You may not be able to read to your kids at night but maybe you can listen to an audio book on the drive while they follow along. You may not be able to plan a family reading time but you may fit in a family trip to the library. Do what you can and remember to be intentional about developing reading in children.