Reading to your kids should be an important part of your day. It creates closeness as you cuddle together as a family and share a story and it will help them with their education.
Interestingly, in past years it could often be challenging to encourage a child to read. They simply didn’t see the point. But technology has changed that. To be up to speed on the Internet, no matter what programs or apps a child uses, reading is essential.
A few years ago, the Globe and Mail’s André Picard quoted the Canadian Paediatric Society saying that “waiting rooms should be chock full of books, that children should be handed books during visits because they are comforting, and in addition to prescribing reading to kids they should be prescribed library cards, and parents-in-need should be steered to literacy programs.”
We know that reading to children is one of the greatest gifts we can give them. And you can start when they are babies. There are all manner of books designed for infants. With these kids the point is simply to make books familiar. Let them play with the books, chew on them and turn pages at their own rate.
As they get older they may be less interested in the story and more into labelling all the pictures. This is the stage when they are fascinated with words and learning that everything has a name.
Eventually they will start to pay attention to the story.
Reading to our children, teaching them how to read and encouraging reading is one of the greatest gifts we can give our kids.
If you have a child who is having difficult reading I recommend The Reading Coach’s Toolkit: readingwings.com. It‘s an online course developed by Vera Goodman that you can take from the comfort of your home. In just a couple of hours you’ll learn Vera’s Secrets to Reading Success to use with your children, family, friends, or even yourself! Vera is a retired teacher with a master’s degree in language arts.
The course features an interactive format, enhanced multimedia with text, images, animations, narration, and video. There are also lessons, exercises, tips and tricks and samples of recommended books.
The easiest way to get a child to be keen on reading is to help him find books that interest him. What does he like, dinosaurs or trucks? Flowers or Geography? Then head to the children’s section in the local library or a good bookstore and let him browse. The beauty of books is that there are books on virtually everything.
Helping to find good books for kids is a challenge that librarians and bookstore staff embrace. So, talk to them and let them work their magic with your child. You will be amazed and what they end up reading.
Teens can stump parents when it comes to helping them find a good read.
Many teens have developed a keen interest in fantasy. And there are an increasing number of books in the genre. I love to support Canadian talent so I recommend you introduce your child to author Holly Bennett who has written seven fantasy books, including Drawn Away.
My online review reads: “Young readers and older readers alike will be drawn into this book. The characters are well drawn and the story totally believable. As usual, Holly Bennett has written a book well worth reading.”
If we want our children to be literate we should read to them daily.
We are also our children’s primary role models so it’s important for them to see us reading. Whether it’s the newspaper (even online), a work-related report or a novel, let them see us reading.
Kathy Lynn is a professional speaker and author of Vive la Différence, Who’s In Charge Anyway? and But Nobody Told Me I’d Ever Have to Leave Home. If you want to read more, sign up for her informational newsletter at parentingtoday.ca.
