Making Daily Reading Time Possible
Posted: Thursday, February 25, 2010
by Gabriella Gometra
The American Academy of Pediatrics suggests that we read to our children every day starting be
fore the child reaches six months of age. Children who are read to enjoy increased levels of literacy later in life, as well as increased feelings of security from spending time bonding with parents or other loved ones. How can we incorporate reading into our daily routine? How can we encourage our children to become excited about books and reading? Although we know it's what is best, it's not always easy to find answers to these questions.
Although the AAP suggests starting before your child is six months old, reading to a child that young can be challenging. When my son was that young he enjoyed trying to rip the pages of the book I was reading as he sat on my lap. If I read to him while he was in bed he would get upset that I wasn't holding him. At eight months to a year it became even more challenging as the page ripping got easier and more fun for him. Bedtime stories became even more frustrating for me as he took them as an invitation to stand up in his crib and start dancing. The trick seems to be to keep trying. If I got frustrated I would walk out of the room, but tried again the next day. Eventually his relationship with reading evolved so that it now soothes him at bedtime and during the day he makes sure that I read him each page in order without the destructive tearing.
In order to be able to consistently implement read-aloud time it is important that you are enjoying the activity. Your children will, even at a young age, be able to tell if you do not like reading to them. I suggest in the first months before your child begins grasping the stories to read things that you find interesting. I received a lot of flak for reading an anthology of social experiments to my son, but it seemed to work for us. Once he started focusing more on his surroundings the books were geared toward him, but while he was just a sleeping babe I was going to read what I was interested in reading. Note: There is a phase between the time when you can read anything and the time children begin following the story line. During this time it may be most enjoyable to read nursery rhymes and other stories where your child can enjoy the lilting flow of language. My son loved "A Giraffe and a Half" by Shel Silverstein.
If you keep story time as fun time it will be easy to continue it as your child grows older. Our two-year-old asks for stories multiple times each day. He wants to be read to by everyone that is a part of his life. By keeping it a continuously positive experience, we have made reading a way that he likes to bond with his loved ones. I am constantly amazed by his ability to memorize even long stories after only a few reads. Books have even become leverage when we need him to cooperate: until he puts his toys away we can't read a story. It's wonderful when one good thing is encouragement for another.
Reading to our children is a wonderfully enriching experience for our children and our selves. The American Academy of Pediatrics suggests that we begin reading to our children every day before they become six months old. With a little bit of patience and creativity it is possible to make this happen. Keep at it even if your child doesn't seem receptive. Make it fun: narrate with different voices for each character and silly faces. Keep your child engaged by asking questions and allowing time for him to ask you about the story. If you make it a game it will be easier to continue this bonding time as the months and years pass, which is the best thing you can do for your child's future.
Author Credit: Gabriella Gometra, stay-at-home mother and writer, builds sites on a diverse number of topics, such as cutlery knife sets and the ceramic knife set.
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Top-level comments on this article: (4 total)I enjoyed reading this article and whole heartedly agree with the fact that reading to children is a critical activity in childhood development. Not only should a child be read to before he or she can read, but that same child should be read to even after he or she can read. This helps instill the joy of reading making children lifelong readers themselves.
Yes, and I think it will be sweet (and a good experience) for my son to read to his little sister, when they are both a bit older.
Great article. Well done.Very interesting. Anything that promotes literacy and positive attitudes towards books is to be taken seriously. I am amazed that you could start at such a very young age.Thanks, like I said... patience and persistence.
Great job on putting this issue into something that anyone with children can relate to. I certainly never thought of reading to my daughter at that young of an age. Thanks for the insite!
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