How to raise a reader

Importance of shared reading

Sharing books is fun, intimate and extremely important for your child’s literacy because it exposes them effortlessly to all sorts of words, pictures and clues, all packed into one favourite book. Put very simply, the more favourite books your child encounters, the better their chance of being an avid reader later on.

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What isn’t so apparent is that these early years books have a syntactic complexity written especially for pre-schoolers. In other words, your child will hear complex language being spoken when you would never normally speak to them in that way. This makes it very different to everyday conversations you have with your child. One study found that children’s books could be even more complex than the normal everyday conversations between adults! Added to this, even really simple picture books will prompt you to use more complex language than the language you use when playing. All brilliant stuff for your child’s language skills.

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But that’s not all! Storybooks contain clues that help children understand the meaning of words that they might not know. And even without any formal letter instruction, studies show that children learn the sounds of letters as a by-product of enjoyable shared reading.

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This is rich input indeed. The amount and quality of shared reading with your child is positively linked with future language development and success at school.

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What can you do?

First of all, very obviously enjoy the story! Your delight will trigger more enjoyment from your child.

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Be full of questions, pointing and wondering out loud. “I wonder what is going to happen…!” followed by “Uh-oh, let’s turn the page and see…”

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Point out letters and words. Share that knowledge you have with phrases like: “Look, I can see your name, George!”, “This word says, STOP!” and “Bear begins with B, just like your name, Ben!”

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And, of course, we need to check out the faces and body language of your child, making sure they are enjoying the book. Are they savouring the closeness and the fun of reading together?  If you notice a lot of wriggling and yawning, you may need to rethink your strategy.

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It isn’t simply about opening up a book, reading it, and ticking the ‘I’ve read a story’ box. It’s about enjoying the time, making silly voices, laughing together, wondering what will happen next, pointing at pictures together, and then re-reading the whole book all over again. My record is six times in a single sitting, and they still wanted it ‘just one more time’!

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When you find yourself on the sofa, or in the garden, reading a book to your child over and over, you’re doing a great job. Building a love for books is precious. It’s fun AND it means that your child is much more likely to enjoy reading in the future.

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What if your child is reluctant to share books with you?

Try other books! Some children prefer books about trains or flowers or bridges to story books. They might prefer looking at photographs of your family or gazing at cookery books.

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Let them! Whatever floats their boat, read it. Everyone is interested in something. Find out what it is and read about it with your child. And if your child prefers sharing a book on the move, let them. Some children just can’t sit still for more than a minute. Sit looking at a book and let them come and go as you read. Slowly build up the amount of time they are able to sit with you as you read together. Praise them. Enjoy the time.

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Put simply, children who enjoy reading, and share and ‘read’ books when they are little make better readers when they are older.

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So, if you want to raise a reader, get reading and enjoying books together!