Reading to Your Littler One

 

Reading to Your Little One

I wrote a blog post months ago called, “Reading to Your Little One: Imagination Library” . You can click on the title to go check it out. In the post I talk about the importance of reading to your child and about the Imagination Library program that I have my little one enrolled in. 

Now that my little one is over a year old, I know I can’t believe it, I thought I would write another post on the importance of reading. Since we brought Maci home from the hospital we have been reading to her daily. Now that she is older she will pick out a book from her bookshelf and sit in our laps to have us read to her. We are working on putting the books away after we are done. We’re not there yet, but it's a work in progress. Maci will sit while we read her not one, but multiple books. I don’t think she would do this if we had not started reading to her so early. Even just a few months ago her attention span was not this long. 

There are books on her bookshelf that are well worn and you can tell are the standout favorites. She enjoys books with animals and babies best. We have been working on our animal noises and she has quite a few of them mastered, horse, cow, owl, frog, and sheep. There are a few others that still need some work. 

When reading to your child they are receiving many benefits. Here is a list of benefits and skills:

• Language growth 

• Concentration improvement

• Book handling skills 

• Imagination

• Bonding time with your child

• Instilling a love for reading

Reading to your child everyday exposes them to different vocabulary. This will help them with their language development and growth. Maci is not able to say many words just yet, but she understands so many! We are constantly talking to her and pointing out items. When we are reading we will ask her questions like, “Point to the dog.” or “Where is the blue ball?” to get her involved in the story. As we are reading the story we will stop and point out different items. 

Like I said before, I believe Maci’s attention span and concentration is greater because of her exposure to reading early on. When she is not focused on a book she is running around the house. Being able to focus on a task will be helpful later on in life, especially when she starts school. 

I would be interested in how many books we handle a day. I’m guessing that It is probably in the 30’s. With this much exposure Maci does well with handling books. She does well with knowing that we begin the book at the front cover and she does well with turning the pages. One skill we are still working on is putting the books away when we are finished. This past week has been going better, but we are still not there just yet. 

Reading opens your mind to many different possibilities. There are so many things that we can learn from reading! I hope Maci’s imagination will continue to grow with her reading exposure. I can’t tell just yet what her imagination is like. But I am interested to find out as she grows! 

Reading to your child is a great bonding opportunity! Mike and I enjoy our time reading together with Maci and we can tell that Maci enjoys it as well. Picking out a book to read is one of the first things she chooses to do in the morning. My parents, Maci’s grandparents, enjoy reading with her as well. As you are reading to your child ask them questions and talk about the story you are reading. The American Academy of Pediatrics has a few great articles on how to read to your child at different ages. 

When you read with your child at home you will be working on instilling a lifelong love for reading. Modeling reading for your child is a great way for them to see the importance of reading themselves. I can tell that Maci is going to be a lifelong reader.  

Dolly Parton has a program called Imagination Library, which sends a free book to your child every month from birth to 5 years old. This can help start a home library. I signed my daughter up for this program when she was born and we have received a book every month. The books are good quality and entertaining. 

I hope this information was helpful. Feel free to leave book suggestions and/or comments below.

Happy reading!

Here are a some of our favorites. I could have linked so many more! I love finding new books for Maci to enjoy!