Reading with your child improves their literacy skills.
Reading together as a family is not only FUN, but it also helps to build and improve your child's literacy skills. Saying that reading is FUNDAMENTAL is such a cliche, but it's true. Reading to your child in early childhood helps them to value books and stories. It sparks their imagination and it stimulates curiosity. Some of the other benefits are; it helps develop patience, helps children to focus, builds social skills, as well as communication skills.
“Reading together makes learning better! -Karen Lewis”
Reading is meant to be fun! What's the fun in reading, if you don't have someone to tell your stories to? There are many ways to encourage reading and make it enjoyable for the entire family, even for those who don't like reading. Here are some ideas to get you started:
Make Reading Entertaining
Be intentional
Schedule a time to read for at least 20 minutes everyday. This gives your child something to look forward to. Create a comfortable space in the house where you read together. This space should be nice and comfy. Read right before bed, this has proven to be the best time, as it is typically calm during bed time.
Involve Your Child
Allow your child to pick out the book he/she wants to read or have read to them. Allow them room to ask questions, read along, and even act out scenes. Do not silence your child during story time. As an educator, one of my favorite times is story time with my students and my kids. I love how excited they get when it's that time and I love to see them creating scenes, just by what's on the page or asking questions and retelling the story out of excitement before I could get to a certain favorite part. It's so funny! Read books more than once if your child wants you to (Repetition is imperative, as it helps with retelling which is prevalent in grade school.) Ask questions about what happened in the book. This helps kids to make connections, think aloud and understand story meanings.
Make it FUN!
We ALL love a good laugh. Plus, we have to admit. There's nothing more satisfying than the sound of a child's laugh, especially a young child. It's infectious! Allow your kids to take turns reading to you. Put them in the seat of the teacher and you the child and you will be amazed at how well they read, the things that they say and how they get into character. It is quite amusing, might I add. You can even play dress up on special days, which can be a reward for them. I promise you, this will definitely make your child not only love reading but reading with you.
What I love about reading is how it allows you to escape into the world of the unknown. It helps you to experience new adventures and there are no limits as to how far you can and will go. Reading is exciting, igniting and clarifying. It's the next thing to music that has the ability to make your heart feel relaxed and relieve stress. Hence, it can calm an anxious child enough to put them to sleep.
Reading together creates a BOND like no other; a bond that can not be broken! -Karen Lewis
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