What better gift can we give our children than a love of
reading?
Teaching children to read is one thing; encouraging them to want to
read is another. Obviously very young children can't read
themselves, so reading to them each day is such an important first
step. Why?
It gets them thinking creatively, sets reading up as an enjoyable
activity, gives children an appreciation and respect for books,
promotes language and vocabulary development, and allows for lots
of great family time. Nothing beats a cuddle on the lounge or on a
huge bean bag with your child while you read a book together.
When we read to children we:
- Answer children's questions.
- Promote language skills
- Promote reading skills
- Develop longer attention spans
- Strengthen family relationships
Even if you don't have a lot of time, and let's be honest a lot of
us don't, you can still encourage your child to read by making up
stories to go with picture books with no words or attending a
regular storytelling time. Most libraries offer this on a regular
basis.
It's never too early to start!
Children's brains begin to develop from the moment they emerge from
the womb. Newborns respond to bright pictures, the rhythm of words
and the comfort of a parent speaking to them. As parents, the voice
we use when we read to children is different to our normal speaking
voice which is something they really respond to.
The foundations that determine how clever, creative and imaginative
a child will be are largely laid down by the time a child turns
one. It's incredible but true: at this age, most children have
learnt all the sounds that make up the spoken language. By the age
of two, children have a vocabulary of around 50 words.
Research has shown that language is acquired most rapidly in the
first five years of life. What better way to teach language than to
read to your children?
Reading aloud to children will develop their speaking skills and
help them to make connections - the look of words, the way they
work in sentences, how the word functions. Books can help children
to learn to concentrate, to explore their inner feelings, to
express themselves and to resolve conflicts.
Recent studies have shown that there is a direct relationship
between literacy success and success within the wider world. Even
self-esteem has been linked to the ability to read and write. Don't
underestimate the power of books.
Don't worry if you don't have any children's books at home, a young
baby will love hearing you read from the newspaper or your
favourite novel as long as you make it sound good to them. Play up
the animation and use your best acting skills - they'll love
it.
The experts say that children need 1,000 stories read to them
before they begin to learn to read for themselves. Sounds like a
lot? It's just three stories a day over a year.