Encouraging a Love for Reading

Maya 13 years ago

… one of the best ways to guarantee a successful scholastic experience for your child is to encourage a love of literacy – and it starts at home.

“Try to carve out some time to read to your child every day,” says Jordan. “Your child will begin to look forward to the time with you and will be exposed to more literature that way.”

“If your children see you read for work and school as well as reading for pleasure, it makes an infinite difference,” said Yoshimura.

Here are some additional pointers you can use in hopes of having your child pick up a book instead of a seat in front of the television:

Read with your child for at least 30 minutes a day. Make the process interactive by asking questions to ensure your child is comprehending what your reading. Make this process a routine.

Read yourself. If your child sees the enjoyment you gain from reading yourself, chances are it will rub off.Make up additional endings to a story, this helps your child to use his or her imagination and eventually will lead to your child’s understanding of plots, characters and the author’s message. Learning through imagination will help a child gain insight to story sequence.

Before you read the text of a story, do a “picture walk.” Look at the illustrations and guess what might happens before reading the book. This will also peak a child’s interest in a book.

Choose books for your child based on interest. If your child loves scuba diving, chances are that any book on the topic will be interesting to them. The act of reading becomes second to the subject matter itself.

Talk about books you like and dislike. It’s important for your child to see that it’s OK to not like a story, that’s how you determine what book you would like to read next.

For youngsters, read street signs or material posted at stores – anything that will engage your child and help them put together sounds. Learning how words are strung together will help your child to develop strong phonics skills.