Encouraging Kids to Read

As an avid reader, it was always important to me that I pass that passion on to my kids once I had them. Well, now that I have a son, it remains important. I hear so many parents complain that their kids have no passion to read, that they think reading is "pointless and stupid", or that they just can't read well. In my experience, it is critical to begin early to instill a love for reading. Young children will grow to love to read when they can relate to a story; and as a result, they will develop a love for reading.

There were some things that I did early on with my son to help encourage his love for reading. One of them was to routinely go to our local library's storytime. Since he was 1 1/2, I would take him to storytime once a week. Initially, he wouldn't want to sit down through the whole story and he struggled focusing, but after a few months, he began to settle down enough to listen to whatever was being read. Once we got through that hurdle and he actually began listening to the stories, he really got excited, especially since our reader did a great job engaging the kids.

Besides storytime, I made a great hoop-to-do about reading every night. We would read a story together, and then once he became about 3 1/2, I would also encourage him to read a story by himself while I also read something myself. Obviously, he wasn't (and for the most part, still isn't) reading by himself, but the idea was that it was important to establish a routine to read. Not only that, but kids love to emulate what they see. When he would see me read, he was encouraged to read as well.


My last point to encouraging my son to read is in regards to finding books that appeal to his particular interests. For example, my son was heavily into dinosaurs when he was 2. When we would go to the library, I would point out to him books on dinosaurs and he would light up like a lightbulb! Again, at the time he obviously couldn't read, but he was excited to flip through the pages of the dinosaur books and look at the pictures. That love for reading was subtly set for him. Now that he is older, his interests have shifted from dinosaurs to anything superhero. Now that Captain Underpants is about to premiere in the theaters, I have taken advantage of that and have introduced him to those books and they have been a hit for him!

All in all, consistency and creativity are huge keys to encouraging kids to read - especially at a young age when they are impressionable. What has encouraged your kids to read? Do they still enjoy reading? Drop a comment below!

Until we read again...