Do you want to raise children who love to read? As an early childhood educator and a homeschooling mom, I’ve had the opportunity to observe young children at various developmental stages in their lives. A universal similarity I’ve noticed in almost all children is that they love books.

What is it that makes books so appealing to young children? Perhaps it’s the colourful pictures or the one-on-one time shared with an adult. Maybe it’s the rhythmic movement of a story or the setting that is cast in the story. Whatever the reason… children like books.

As parents, it is our responsibility to foster a love for literacy in our children. How do we do this? Here are some tips for raising a child who loves to read!

Introduce books and reading in infancy.

It’s never too early to start reading to your children. There are so many types of books especially made for infants, from board books to cloth books. The selection is excellent! Read daily to your infant. Let him/her interact with books. Whether your child holds or chews the book, their interaction with books is critical to building an interest in reading.

Build your child’s library.

It’s important that your child has books that he or she can call his or her own. There are also cost-effective ways to do this.

– Books can be purchased second-hand from a used bookstore.

– Consider having a book registry instead of or in addition to a baby registry.

– Request that people attending your baby shower bring you a book to help build your library.

Ask friends or family who have older children if they would consider selling or donating their old books to you.

– From the moment you find out you’re pregnant, commit to buying at least one book every month, and before you know it, your child’s library will be overflowing!

– Request books as gifts. Sometimes, the number of gifts for birthdays and/or Christmas can be overwhelming. Provide family and friends with a book list so they can contribute to building your child’s library.

Read the book from front to back.

Your child will only understand the value of words if you read them. Read the title of the book. Read the author’s and illustrator’s names. Do not change the story’s text; read the book as it is written.

Encourage your child to be an engaged listener.

While reading aloud to your children, ask them various questions about the book while reading it. For example, “I wonder what’s going to happen next?” or “I wonder how the little boy feels?”

Read the same book many times.

Repetition of the story helps your child understand the link between the images, text, and the story being told. My daughter memorized her first book shortly after she turned two. She was able to do this because we read that book repeatedly to her. Even if you’re bored with reading the same story over and over again, if your child wants it, read it!

Provide some variety.

Too many books at once can be overwhelming. Our family has a shelf full of cardboard magazine file boxes. Each file box holds ten to fifteen various children’s books. We purposely divided the books so that each box would have a variety of picture books, at least one book on emotions (e.g., Bear Feels Scared), a numerical book (e.g., Click, Clack, Splish, Splash), and an alphabet book (e.g., Chicka, Chicka, Boom, Boom). Every couple of weeks, we put out a new file box of books. This rotation and variety keep us and our daughter interested in the books.

Check out the library!

Want to raise children who love to read? Bring your child to the local library. Some libraries have group reading times that parents can attend with their children. This will provide an opportunity to hear stories from a different adult. Also, you and your child will get exposure to various books that you otherwise would not have considered. Also, while at the library, allow your child to select a few books you can borrow.

Investigate what experts say are the best books to read.

Libraries and literacy groups regularly publish lists of the top books for children at different developmental stages. Investigate these lists and the book recommendations.

Be a positive role model.

Demonstrate your interest in reading. Perhaps you can allocate 10 – 20 minutes of family reading time every night. During this time, family members gather and read their respective books.

Include books in your child’s play.

If your child is interested in toy cars, perhaps you can provide a few exciting car books in their play space. Some great resources are available to parents and early childhood educators to help them extend the enjoyment of a book into various play activities. My personal favourite is Picture Book Activities: Fun and Games for Preschoolers Based on 50 Favorite Children’s Books by Trish Kuffner.

Literacy is the foundation of future education. I hope that these tips help you raise children who love to read.

Jennifer Bly

Author of My Kitchen, My Classroom: An Introduction to Homeschool and creator of The Deliberate Mom. Jennifer writes about parenting, homeschooling, her faith, and life with her husband and two girls. Jennifer has a Bachelor of Applied Human Service Administration Degree with a specialization in Early Learning in Child Care.