• Make reading aloud a daily habit. Make it a daily or nightly routine.
• Have your child sit on your lap or sit close. You are making loving memories. Reading is special.
• Previewing the book with your child is part of the fun. Look at each picture and talk about them. The conversation prepares your child for understanding the book. Ask your child to make predictions and think about what might happen in the story.
• Read at a pace that is not too fast or too slow. Make sure your child can see the picture and the words. Point to each word as you read it.
• Reading aloud requires a little acting. Give different characters different voices. Roar like a lion, screech like a witch, moo like a cow and your child will giggle with delight.
• Remember our goal is to teach children the joy of reading. Show them how smart they are by pointing out what they already know. (Pictures, Ideas, Letters)
• Tell your child about any words or ideas that may be new to them, but do not overwhelm your child by trying to teach them too much at once. That is why there are only a few questions on the Question Cards in the front of the book.
• When asking questions, give your child time to think. Wait three to five seconds for an answer.
• Listen to your child’s answers and respond in a non-judgmental way. There is not a single correct answer for these questions.
• Encourage your child to speak in full sentences. Ask “follow-ups”: Why? Tell me more. Do you agree? Give an example.
• Make reading fun!
" Reading aloud to your child is the single most
important thing you can do to help your child
succeed in school and in life. "
The Read to Me ELP™ can provide your child’s school with hundreds of professionally-selected books. Children take home a different book to read with their parents every night.
Questions attached to each book help keep children engaged and help them learn to read for comprehension. Reading aloud with your children has so many benefits (Link to the “Why Read Aloud?” Section) – it not only prepares them for school, but is a great way to spend quality time with them.
The books in the Read to Me program are part of seventeen different thematic units that are designed to promote early childhood development. Examples of the thematic units include humor, healthy me, friendship, poetry, and math, among others.
You can try activities from these units with your
child today!
Tips for Reading Aloud
“Reading aloud to children is one of the most effective and inexpensive activities parents, caregivers, and educators can do to promote literacy. Children who are introduced to books early and read to on a regular basis do better in school.” - Herb, S. (1997) Building Blocks for Literacy: What current research shows. School Library Journal, 43(7), 23.
“Children’s comprehensive, conceptual, and behavioral patterns are primarily shaped between the ages of birth to five years. It is especially important for families and child caregivers to read to children early and often.” - Essa, E. Introduction to Early Childhood Education (2nd ed.). Albany, Ny: Delmar.
