From the practical wisdom of a parenting expert to the community-driven insights of a co-founder, seven professionals share their best tips on weaving reading into the fabric of your child’s day. Discover how to establish bedtime reading rituals and foster a love for reading at libraries, among other valuable strategies. These actionable tips not only aim to integrate reading seamlessly but also highlight the lifelong benefits it can bring to your child’s development.
- Establish Bedtime Reading Rituals
- Blend Words During Bath Time
- Read Daily From Infancy Onward
- Incorporate Puzzles Into Reading Practice
- Turn Ingredient Curiosity Into Reading
- Watch Book Reviews for Bedtime Excitement
- Foster Love for Reading at Libraries
Establish Bedtime Reading Rituals
One effective way I’ve found to integrate reading into my children’s daily routine is by setting a “reading time” just before bed. This not only creates a consistent routine, but it also helps them wind down after a busy day. I often let them choose the book, allowing them to take control and get excited about the story.
This simple routine not only cultivates a love for reading but also enhances their language skills and expands their imagination.
Blend Words During Bath Time
My preschooler practices blending words while taking a bath, using foam letters. Blending is a crucial phonemic awareness skill that builds the foundation for later reading.
Recent research suggests that connected phonation—the practice of connecting the sounds as you blend (mmmmaaaaaaat)—is more effective than segmented phonation, or pausing between each sound.
To encourage this, I space the foam letters out a few inches on the bathtub wall, and my kiddo slides each letter toward the next as he holds out the sound. It’s helpful to start with initial sounds that can be held out without distortion, called continuous sounds, such as F, L, M, N, R, S, V, and Z.
When using stop sounds, take care not to add a schwa (for example, use a clipped sound of “b,” not “buh”) and instead connect the stop sound to the vowel as you blend (taaaaap, not tuh-a-puh). Just a few minutes of blending practice each day will help give him a firm foundation for later reading success.
Read Daily From Infancy Onward
We have been reading daily to our three children their entire lives.
As babies, I read my books out loud while nursing or during meal times. They don’t understand the words when they are that young, but they are still getting the benefits of being read to and hearing vocabulary they might not hear from a children’s book. Plus, I am getting a chance to enjoy my books. It’s a win-win!
Now that they are older, we continue to read daily at bedtime. Over the years, the types of books we read have changed with their interests. We now read chapter books without pictures to our eight-year-old. Even though he’s able to read himself, he still loves being read to.
Our bedtime routine includes us reading one chapter in one book, followed by him reading another book to himself until he’s ready to fall asleep. The benefit of reading to him his entire life has given him the desire to read, and his interest in books. He’s now a voracious reader!
Incorporate Puzzles Into Reading Practice
My eight-year-old daughter is generally not a fan of reading, mainly because she is not very good at it. One tip I’m using to help her read more is incorporating word-search puzzles and crosswords into her reading.
For instance, once she finds a word on a word-search puzzle, she has to read the word before searching for the next one. It looks like a game to her and makes her feel like I’m not breathing down her neck and making her do something she finds difficult. Instead, she can enjoy the puzzle and read while at it. It works like magic.
Turn Ingredient Curiosity Into Reading
When my kids were young, they had a strange interest in ingredients. You couldn’t put a plate in front of them without questions about what was in it—inquiries often delivered with a good deal of skepticism and suspicion.
I took this opportunity to hand out recipe cards at the dinner table as proof that there were no secret peas or carrots in the dish, and my kids learned to read difficult words they wouldn’t have encountered otherwise. From there, we moved on to packaging, expanding our vocabulary to include preservatives and dyes, alongside more wholesome ingredients, and it was a good lesson in health at the same time.
Instead of brushing off my kids’ odd interests, I turned it into a learning experience.
Watch Book Reviews for Bedtime Excitement
Watching a book review before bedtime can be a simple yet effective strategy with several benefits.
Watching a book review introduces an element of anticipation and excitement. It allows the child to get a glimpse of what the book is about, sparking curiosity and interest.
Engaging with a book review together provides an opportunity for discussion. You can talk about the characters, plot, and themes highlighted in the review, encouraging your child to share their thoughts and predictions about the book.
The visual and auditory aspects of a book review can cater to different learning styles. Some children may find it more engaging to watch and listen rather than read.
The bedtime setting adds a calming and routine-oriented dimension to the activity. Associating book reviews with bedtime creates a consistent and comforting ritual that signals to the child that it’s time to wind down and engage in a quiet, enjoyable activity before sleep.
Foster Love for Reading at Libraries
Making regular visits to the local library exposes children to a wide range of books, encourages exploration and independence in their reading choices, and provides access to reading programs and events. It fosters a love for reading, expands knowledge, and enhances critical thinking.
For example, a parent can take their child to the library once a week, allowing them to select books of their choice and participate in library reading programs. These visits create a sense of excitement and ownership, motivating children to incorporate reading into their daily routine.
Submit Your Answer
Would you like to submit an alternate answer to the question, “How do you integrate reading into your child’s daily routine? Share one actionable tip and its benefits.”