10 Tips to Make Reading Fun for Your Child
By Laura Strom, Editor-in-Chief of Newmark Learning

Did you know that simply reading to your child is one of the best things you can do for his or her education? It’s much more valuable than just as a bedtime sleep inducer! Reading aloud to children does the following:

• Helps them hear language in new and different ways.
• Gives them a sense of story.
• Leads to better performance in reading, writing, listening, and other school subjects, according to researchers.
• Creates a bond between the reader and the child, facilitating a special memory association between reading and a happy experience.
• Turns many children into life-long readers. And a life-long reader is a life-long learner!

10 tips to get the most out of your reading time
1. Read every day, even if you only have a few minutes. This models that daily reading is an important part of each day. Children also love a pleasant routine. They will look forward to this special time.
2. Create a cozy place to read together. It can be a special chair, or even a pile of pillows.
3. Let your child help you choose what book to read. This will help you keep the child’s interest, and it makes him feel important. Visiting a library regularly makes choosing books easy and fun.
4. Talk about the cover. Have your child guess what the book is about. Who are the characters? What is the title? Who is the author? Have you read books by this author before? Have you seen this illustrator before?
5. Change your voice to go with the characters and the action. You don’t have to be an actor, but you can at least change your inflection for a livelier storytelling experience. Make sure you don’t read too quickly, too. You don’t want to sound like you’re rushing to finish.
6. Show the pictures as you read. Not only do the pictures help a child understand and connect to the book, the illustrations often add humor and whimsy to fiction.
7. After you read the book, talk about the story. Go back and look at the pictures again and talk about what happened. Point out any hard words to see if your child can figure out what they mean by looking at the surrounding words and pictures.
8. Try to make connections to something in the story and your life or the child’s life.
9. Be sure to prompt your child to critique the book. Ask questions such as, What did you like? What did you dislike? What made you laugh? What did you learn?
10. Vary the genres that you read. Mix fiction and nonfiction. A child’s future favorite book might be in a genre he or she has not yet experienced!

Reading with your Children: Literacy Begins at Home

Young children need lots of opportunities to practice reading in order to grow as literacy learners. Learning to read and developing literacy takes time.

Follow these steps to encourage your child to find the joy and fun in reading at every age:

Read with your child every day and let your child see you reading, whether it's the newspaper, a magazine, or a best seller.

Get your child a library card and visit the library often.

Discuss the books your child is reading in school and the ones you have read at home.

Take your child to story times at the library, author visits at a local bookstore, and other public programs that foster a love of books and reading.

Create a comfortable reading space for your child in your home.

Give your child paper and crayons so he or she can scribble, make pictures, and create his or her own book.

Play rhyming and word games, sing silly songs, or write stories and poems together.

Talk about daily activities to help your child develop language skills.

Read street signs, billboards, menus, and labels out loud.

Read with your child every day and let your child see you reading, whether it's the newspaper, a magazine, or a best seller.

Courtesy:

Reader's Digest
Newmark Learning