How To Encourage A Culture of Regular Reading Amongst Children

“I’m sick of trying to get my children to read. They just don’t like anything except playing with tablets and smartphones.” These are the words said by multiple parents. Reading is extremely important for a child’s cognitive development and unfortunately, with excessive exposure to smartphones as soon as they’re a few months old, the habit of regular reading has almost become obsolete amongst children. If you’re also a parent who has run out of ways to motivate your child to spend some time reading, here are some tips that might help ease your frustration!

Be A Good Role Model

You certainly cannot force anyone to pick up a particular habit, whether they’re a child or an adult. However, you can become a good role model. In this case, it is essential to create an environment where children are motivated to read. The first step to doing that is to yourself read frequently in front of them. It’s simply unrealistic to expect your child to become a reader when they watch parents – their ultimate and most significant role models – spending the entire day in front of their own phones.

Alternating Screen Time With Reading Time

Most kids simply don’t open their mouth to eat till their eyes aren’t glued to the screen with CocoMelon or the likes. A lot of young children need a distraction while eating, and screen time can be replaced with books that have a variety of visual and auditory features. Your child may not like this change at first, so make sure to go slow and also be a little patient, because this would be more time-consuming rather than simply putting on a nursery rhyme and feeding your child.

Establish A Bed-Time Reading Routine

It might be best to read to your child at night before bed because it’s an excellent way to bond with them without any distractions. This way, your child will also be able to absorb more details because of increased focus, resulting in enhanced benefits of reading such as enriched vocabulary development and expansion of imagination. 

Choose Reading Materials Wisely

This is the most important aspect of encouraging your child to read because many parents and children associate reading with schoolwork. Reading is vital for your child’s overall development into a mature, perceptive adult regardless of whether they have an academic career. There are a variety of mediums that can stimulate a child’s mind with engaging stories, including the visual stories available on YouTube. You just need to find the material that interests your child. For example, if they like sports, you can read them stories about their interesting sportsmen, or characters that like playing the child’s most preferred sport.

Make Regular Visits To Books Shops and Libraries

When children are exposed to places involving books, they will have the perfect opportunity to open them and select the ones they like. Make sure that your child issues a library book from school during the Library Period and that you find a way for them to read that book. You should also make it a point to visit bookstores when you take your child to the mall, and buy a book with them just like toys and clothes. Additionally, they would be more excited to buy a book and finish it if they also see their parents doing the same too.