Helping Your Child Learn to Love Reading
As the year slowly starts up in the classroom reading will become such an important aspect of your child's day. You can help your child build that love for reading by following some simple rules.
Children don’t fall in love with reading because they have to read.
They love reading because it feels safe, shared and enjoyable.
Read with your child, not just to your child.
Sit close, share the book, and let reading feel like connection, not correction.
Let your child choose the books.
When children choose what they read, they feel ownership — and ownership builds motivation.
Read the same book again... and again.
Repetition builds confidence, and confidence is the gateway to enjoyment.
Don’t rush the story.
Pause, wonder out loud, laugh at the funny bits and talk about the pictures.
If your child struggles with words, stay calm.
Reading grows best in an atmosphere of encouragement, not pressure.
Make reading part of everyday life.
Recipes, signs, shopping lists and notes all count as real reading.
Be a reader yourself.
When children see adults reading for pleasure, they learn that reading matters.
Stop before your child wants to stop.
Leaving them wanting more is one of the best ways to build love for books.
Above all, remember this:
A child who feels safe while reading will eventually become a child who enjoys reading.
“There is no friend as loyal as a book”