How to Stimulate Your Child’s Love of Reading

How to Stimulate your Child’s Interest in Reading

A question that is often discussed among some of my friends is, “How can I stimulate my child’s interest in reading books?”

There are many ways to stimulate reading and I will list some ideas which I have found effective.

1. Read with your child from an early age.  Pick books that have compelling story lines such as those by Mo Willems for your little ones.  The choral reading in these books is great for interaction between parent and child during story time plus the plot lines are just plain fun.
2. Another way to stimulate interest is to model reading yourself.  Pick up a newspaper in the morning or a book at night.  Children will observe you reading and be more apt to want to learn to read or continue reading themselves.
3. Go to the library or join a book club such as Literati (Literati Kids).  Literati is a bit pricier but guarantees a steady stream of high-quality reading material.  The library is just a no brainer for books and fun story times.
4. Establish a reading time each day/night for your child.  For early elementary it is often 20 minutes in the evening.  For my preschooler we often do a half hour of books right before bed.
5. Provide a variety of reading material.  Some of the books may be about interests and hobbies and others just for enjoyment.  Provide both fiction and non-fiction to choose from.

Finally encourage your kiddos and be their cheerleader.  Encourage all activities that require reading.  Best of luck in your literary endeavors!!