We all know that reading to our kids is important, but did you know that it boosts child development too?
We all know that reading to our kids is important, but did you know that it boosts childhood development too? Children learn better when they are read to, as it encourages language understanding. So, no matter how young your child is, if parents begin reading to them, they are at a huge advantage. In fact, it could boost your baby’s literacy skills for years to come according to research.
1. Reading basics
The basics of sitting and reading enable babies to learn vocabulary, boost language skills and understand the tone of voice. Also, we know that kids have huge imaginations and by reading to them from a young age, parents are giving them a sense of wonder and escapism. Books enable children to escape the world around them and become immersed in lands far, far away. This is wonderful and engaged children will love to hear stories and spend nights dreaming about the lands they have visited in their dreams. Mental imagery is encouraged when parents read to their kids and in time, kids learn how to read and produce this imagery themselves while reading alone.
2. Research
Norwegian research, which looked at 1,171 first-grade pupils and their parents, found that children whose parents read to them in early childhood or kids who grew up in homes with lots of books were better-prepared to learn to read when starting school.
3. Skills
Developing these reading and lifelong skills is easy once you start your kids off right. Reading isn’t just about spelling and grammar but understanding the words properly. Children who are read to obviously learn how to decipher words. Their recall is enhanced, and they connect the words in conversation or through reading. As a lot of learning is based on language, this allows youngsters to not only learn new words but understand them in a school setting.
4. Creativity
Let’s not forget the creativity part either as readers are tuned into a creative mindset. Your child could potentially become a storyteller of their own and write stories at home. Furthermore, kids learn that there is a huge amount to see in the world with different people from diverse backgrounds too. When a world seems small to a young child reading breaks the mould open and allows them to visualise a future in faraway lands!
5. Borrow books
Reading to kids doesn’t have to be hugely costly either with local libraries and charity shops. Children’s books are usually easy to come by without it costing the earth and you can save bookshop visits for special occasions if preferred. As your child goes into school and begins to learn how to read properly you will find the good habits you have started will help greatly. They will already be comfortable with books and understand the reasons why reading is so important. They should be happy to read too as they have learned to love it during their younger years and thanks to your commitment to reading regularly.
