The Power of Reading Aloud

Reading to your child is one of the most important activities you can do.

Choose books that will appeal to your child’s interests, that have rich vocabulary, and that are a little bit harder than what your child can read independently.

As you read with your young child, point out the structure of a book. All books have a front cover, a beginning and an end. Books have pages and each page has a top and a bottom. Show your child that you turn one page at a time to follow the story and that you read a story from left to right of a page.

Emphasize certain words and vary your voice for more dramatic read aloud sessions. Show your child the pictures in the book.

With children of all ages, encourage them to make connections between the read-aloud story and their own life. Read a chunk of the story and ask your child open ended questions. It is helpful to give your child a minute to think about the question. This will encourage your child to think more deeply about the story. Your questions can also help your child to elaborate and expand their ideas. Ask your child to retell the story and perhaps even act out parts of the story. This same strategy is equally effective when you play audio books in the car with your children. Stopping the audio book and having a brief discussion will deepen your child’s comprehension.

When explaining the meaning of vocabulary, use a child friendly definition. This kind of definition uses everyday language and connects to how the word is used in the story.

Most importantly, treasure this time to read wonderful children’s literature with your child!