8 Benefits to Reading With Children Every Day
There are many benefits to reading with children every day, particularly struggling readers. Data shows a large drop in the number of parents reading to their children on a regular basis. Read on for more information you can share with parents or send home.
Reading With Children Every Day
Do you have parents who don’t read with their child at home? We know, as teachers, that there are many benefits to reading with young children every day. But this is not happening for all children at home.
The Guardian reported on the annual Understanding the Children’s Book Consumer survey from Nielsen Book Research. The data shows a large drop in the number of parents reading to children every day. Of 1,596 parents of 0-13-year-olds, only 51% read to their preschool child every day. This is a drop from 69% in 2013.
I am sure you have heard many excuses for why parents cannot read with their child. The Nielsen Book Research found reasons included struggling to “find energy at the end of the day” and “the child’s preference to do other things.”
8 Reasons Why Reading With Children is Important
Reading with children, especially struggling readers, on a regular basis does take time but the benefits speak for themselves. Here are eight of the most important.
1. Improves Reading Skills
First and foremost, exposure to books improves children’s reading skills. Practice makes perfect!
2. Boosts Vocabulary and Literacy Skills
Reading increases vocabulary, comprehension and communication skills. In addition sentence structure, grammar, punctuation and expression will improve.
3. Improves Writing Skills
Exposure to new words, grammar and punctuation will improve children’s writing.v
4. Builds Confidence and Independence
Reading every day builds independence, leading to greater confidence.
5. Broadens Minds and Develops Empathy
Diverse literature opens children’s minds to the lives of other people. Subsequently, helping children make sense of the world around them.
6. Academic Success
Regular reading promotes academic achievement across the curriculum. Non-fiction books provide opportunities for children to increase their knowledge and interests.
7. Develops Imagination
While reading children create new worlds. This develops their creativity and empathy as they immerse themselves in the lives of the characters.
8. Reading is Fun!
When reading with a child, they can tell if the adult is enjoying themselves. Reinforce the message that reading is an enjoyable alternative to video games and TV by being a good reading role-model.
Child Selected Reading: Different types of books and their benefits
Some parents feel uncomfortable in bookshops, overwhelmed by the choice on offer. Libraries have a lot to offer, such as FREE books, and there will always be someone to help. Encourage parents to let their children choose their own books, they may be surprised to find out what they are actually interested in. This should always be the basis for making reading an enjoyable experience.
Let’s look at some of the different types of books and their benefits
- Introduce the concept of reading and build vocabulary
- Illustrations help define unknown words
- Encourage conversation and comprehension
- Strengthen visual and critical thinking skills
- Blends stories with art, working together to tell the story
- Introduce complex concepts in a safe environment
- Ease the transition to chapter books with increasingly complex vocabulary and sentence structure.
- Illustrations add details and hold interest.
- Develop patience as they can’t always be read in one session
- Specifically formatted for emerging independent readers
- Introduce children to a range of genres seen in chapter books
- Ease the transition to chapter books with increasingly complex vocabulary and sentence structure. Illustrations that add detail and hold interest
- Develop patience as they can’t always be read in one session
- Specifically formatted for emerging independent readers
- Introduce children to a range of genres seen in chapter books
- Promote literacy and improves self-esteem
- Reach reluctant readers of traditional text
- Provide contextual visual clues to the meaning of the written text
- Provide clues to emotional context children might miss when reading traditional text
- Encourage English-language learners to acquire new vocabulary and subsequently increase English proficiency
- Improves reading pace as they slow down to examine the images, supporting comprehension
- Develop critical reading skills
- Provide different reading levels and interests
- Colourful and inviting pages engage reluctant readers
- Hold attention and ignite imagination
- Arrive periodically and are familiar and not intimidating
- Support communication with friends as they learn around common interests
- Engaging with short and numerous articles
What Next?
Here, I have added some helpful articles on choosing and using picture books that you can send home to parents.
- Books for Keeps: Early Years Reading: the power of the picture book
- Novak Djokovic Foundation: Reading to Your Child
- PBS Parents: Helping Your Five-Year-Old Become a Reader
- PBS Parents: The Benefits of Reading Aloud to Your Five-Year-Old
- Philip Bunting Website: Read with, not to
- Power of Pictures: Choosing and using Picture Books
- Read Write Think: Choosing the Right Book: Strategies for Beginning Readers
You can also provide parents with links to free online books. I write about multiple free online resources here. But here are a few of my favourites.
Free Children Stories: Free and original stories for kids
KidLit TV: Read out loud stories
Storyline Online: Popular children’s books read by famous actors
Toon Books: Free online graphic novels
How do you encourage parents to read with children on a regular basis? Do you have any strategies you can share with us all?! Hit the comments below.
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I agree with what you said that reading books with children every day helps boosts their vocabulary, comprehension, and literacy skills. My niece is turning four soon, and my sister plans on having a small intimate party with the family. I’ll buy my niece a children’s book set because of what you’ve said here. Thanks.
Thanks for letting me know Levi! I am sure your niece will love whatever books you choose.
I liked what you said about how he will be able to learn a lot of new words and build independence and confidence while allowing them to develop their sense of empathy. My niece has been thinking about getting into reading more for her classes because she is really bored. Getting a pirate book from a professional could be really useful for her and she would really like to read some more.
I had no idea that reading to your child every single day can help them to develop empathy for other people! This is extremely important to me because I want to make sure that my four-year-old daughter grows up to treat others with kindness and respect. It would be great to find some affordable books to buy so that I can spend more time reading with my daughter instead of watching so much TV during these times of quarantine and COVID.
Love your layout and graphics. It’s sad that people don’t want to or can’t or don’t think about reading to their kids. It’s such a lovely thing to do. I know my parents read to us and I read to my kids when they were wee. I wish they’d let me read to them now. Cheers.
It is so true Lisa! I have very fond memories of being read to by my parents all those years ago 🙂