Reading at home with your child can be an incredible way to deepen your relationship, develop skills and encourage their learning. However, it can be so much more than that, especially with World Book Day 2022 on the horizon. And the 25th anniversary of the special day! Now is the time we should be making the talk of reading more prominent than ever. So, with that in mind, here we’ll explore the many benefits that reading at home with your little one can have.
The Difference You Can Make
Parents are the most important educators in a child’s life, even more so than their teachers. You are their first role model, and can have a significant impact on their attitude towards learning. In fact, nursery chain Kiddi Caru are one of the many professionals that promote reading at home. Doing it at home for pleasure is more likely to determine whether your child does well at school, rather than their social or economic background.
Personally, i remember my parents reading to me as a young child. My mum loved the Enid Blyton – Famous Five books so we read these most evenings. I really believe this is what inspired my adventurous side, wanting to go out exploring and my love of the outdoors. It’s also a memory that has stuck with me – almost 40 years on!
Developing Skills
Reading with your child will assist in developing their cognitive and language skills, as well as help to spark their creativity and imagination. By reading with your child from a young age, they’ll develop listening skills, as well as curiosity, and you’ll be giving them one of the greatest gifts of all – your time.
Reading is one of the greatest forms of escapism, and by opening your child up to this, you’ll be giving them tools to use as they grow up, as well as a form of adventure, and ways to make new friends – in real life and through the characters in books. In doing this, they’ll be increasing social and emotional development, as well as learning what genres they like and don’t like.
Bonding & Learning
It’s never too early to start reading to your child. Even as a baby, reading to them each day will help them grow accustomed to your voice and increase their exposure to language. Even if your child doesn’t understand every word, they’ll be hearing new sounds and phrases that’ll provoke feelings, curiosity and learning.
Reading together will help to increase your little one’s general knowledge, learn about other cultures, and of course, broaden their vocabulary.
The quality time you spend reading with your child will be some of the moments they treasure most in later life. Deepening their bond with you as you take them on imaginative adventures, learning, playing and discovering new worlds together. In doing this, you’ll be inspiring a lifelong love of learning. Supporting them in their future education and life experiences along the way. You never know, reading lots of books as a child could determine their career path as a writer, journalist, or even a teacher.
Getting Started
Sometimes, getting into the habit of reading can be the hardest part. However, with World Book Day 2022 just around the corner, it’s the perfect time to start. You could start with audio books, as these can be enjoyed in the car, or even whilst you’re cooking dinner. Reading aloud to your child, sharing ideas about the book, and talking about the words and pictures can spark an interest in reading from a very early age.
A great example of a book to use is Winnie the Pooh. Not only do the stories feature many different friendly characters and pictures. The words often physically interact with the illustrations of the characters on the page.
On top of this, reading a book yourself is another way to inspire a child to read. They’ll learn from what you do. Seeing you relax and read a book could inspire them to do the same.
Going to the library is also a great way to expose them to the opportunities that reading brings. Allow them to roam around, looking for a book that grabs their attention. Something they feel inspired to want to read at home.
You could even create them a bookshelf in their bedroom, filled with books they love. With their own little bookshelf, and the ability to make their own choices, they’re bound to love learning new words and immersing themselves in new stories with you. Allow their imagination to take over as they enter a land of possibilities.
Have you got your little one’s outfit sorted for World Book Day 2022?
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