Kids tend to love or hate reading. Some would do almost anything to not have to sit down and read (Maybe even clean their room, which we all know how well they hate that job!)
Are you a parent who are interested in finding ways to inspire your children to pick up a book, here are some tips that might help you to find creative ways to inspire your child.
- Visit the library often. Check with your local library, many times they will have story hours available to younger children. Allow your child to pick out a book or two to take home and read. This is a great way to create a reading habit.
- Read aloud. Reading to a younger child or one that hasn’t quite mastered reading by themselves helps to instill the love of reading.
- Use Puppets to tell the story. Have a craft day with your child using socks, lunch-sized paper bags, scraps of fabric, ribbons, yarn, buttons, scraps of paper or whatever you can find around the house and create puppets of their favorite characters from their favorite books. Use their puppets to tell the story. Here is a fun idea using paper and a clothespin to make a Strange Monster Magnet (which could easily be made into a puppet using popsicle sticks) to read along with “Tale Of Two Beasts“
- Read with animation. By bringing each character to life by changing your voice and using body language, you will draw your child into the story and they will love hearing it told.
- Find books with humor. Children LOVE to laugh so find books that are funny whether it is comic books or silly stories such as “I’m a Dirty Dinosaur” where the kids can act out with the dinosaur as he sniffs and snuffs, shakes about the place, tap on his tummy like a drum, or maybe just stamp about the street.
- Audio Books. A great way to encourage children to seek out stories is by listening to audio books while driving or maybe during lunch or dinner. Usborne Books and More have several books which come with an audio book tucked inside too!
- Support each child’s individual interests. Allowing your child to pick out books that fit their passions, they are more likely to want to read. For instance, if you child loves cars and trains, but you buy books about bugs and birds, he probably won’t be as interested in the books. But him books about different kinds of cars and trains, and he will love learning more about his passion.
- Beautiful illustrations. Books with beautiful illustrations help bring the book to life. Illustrated Adventure Stories, Illustrated Classics, or Illustrated Grimm’s Fairy Tales are just a few great examples.
- Show by example. When children see mom and dad reading books, magazines, or even the morning paper, they are learning that reading is fun. They will learn by the example you set, so make it a good one!
- Buy books related to travel. If you have a summer trip planned out, buy a book related to where you are going. Going to Florida? Give them a book about sharks, alligators, beaches, palm trees, flamingos. Things and places they might see while on their trip.
- Provide Access. Always have age-appropriate books and magazines around for the kids to read. Books in their bedroom, in the bathroom, in the family room or in the car. If the books are nearby and readily available, they are more likely to pick them up and read.
- Set a reading routine. Maybe you read the newspaper first thing every morning, or maybe it’s every night after dinner. While you are reading, have your child sit down and read a book with you. Create a routine and they are more likely to make it a habit themselves.
- Appreciate any reading. If you have a reluctant reader who only likes to read comic books, embrace that. Reading is reading and if your child fights you over reading anything other than what they like, it may discourage them from reading anything at all.
- Limit the media. A child’s day can easily be consumed by all the technology out there in the world today. Favorite television shows, video games, computer time can all cut into any free time your child could have to spend on reading. Place limits on how much time they can spend on the technological side of life, and encourage reading.
- Create a special reading place. Designate a special spot in the living room, family room, or even bedroom as a special reading place. Make it comfortable and inviting with plenty of books available.
- Invite guest readers. Grandma, Grandpa, maybe Aunt Susie or the next door neighbor are coming for a visit. Invite them to share a story with the little ones!
- Use poetry. Children are pulled into poetry, so take full advantage of this to use poetry as inspiration.
- Read backward. Select a paragraph from the story and have the child read it backwards starting at the end of the paragraph and reading toward the beginning. By doing so, the child is forced to focus on the words instead of skimming through parts they know my memory.
- Read aloud no matter what the age. Reading aloud to older children has it’s own benefits too… one being that it can teach them larger words and broaden their vocabulary.
- Talk about what you are reading. Reading aloud isn’t’ enough. Be sure to talk about what you are reading, before, during, and after. Maybe the books is trying to give a “moral of the story” but a young child may not realize that. So when a character does something mean, discuss how being mean makes another character feel and maybe what character one could have done differently.
- Make your own ABC Books. Encourage young readers to draw each letter on a piece of paper then using old magazines to cut out pictures that match the corresponding letter.
- Create your own story. After reading a book, encourage your child to make up a new ending to the story or give them a prompt for them to write their own story. A Year in My Life is a great book for engaging your child in writing their own story.
- Make a book log. Have young readers record on paper what books they read, who the author is, and what they liked about the book.
- Right Writing. Have your child write their story on the right side of a spiral notebook, and create illustrations on the left side. Then, when they read their stories to their friends and family, they will get to see the illustrations about what the child is reading.
- Find a Pen Pal. Encourage your child to write letters to a friend or maybe even a family member that lives far away and they write back. This encourages a child to want to write to their pal and they will be anxious to get a reply back for them to read.
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