Imagine sitting your baby in your lap and reading a book to him for the first time. How different from just talking. Now you're showing him pictures! You point to them. You explain what they are in a lively way. You've just taken the next step beyond talking. You've shown him that words and pictures connect. And you've started him on his way to enjoying books.

While your child is still a baby, reading aloud to him should become part of your daily routine. Pick a quiet time. Before you put him to bed is a good time; it gives him a chance to rest between play and sleep. If you can, read with him in your lap or snuggled next to you so he feels close and safe. As he gets older, he may need to move around some while you read to him. If he gets tired or restless, stop. Make reading aloud a quiet and comfortable time that your child looks forward to. Chances are he will like reading more because of it.

Try to spend at least 30 minutes each day reading to and with your child. At first, read for no more than a few minutes at a time, several times a day. As he grows older, you should be able to tell if he can read for longer periods. But don't be discouraged if you skip a day or don't always keep to your schedule. Just get back to your daily routine as soon as you can. Most of all, make sure reading stays fun for both of you!

What Does it Mean?

From the earliest days, talk with your child about what you are reading. You might point to pictures and name what is in them. When he is ready, ask him to do the same. See if he can find the little mouse in the picture, or whatever is fun and right for the book. Later, when you read stories, read slowly and stop now and then to think aloud about what you've read. From the time your child is able to talk, ask him "What do you think will happen next?" or "Do you know what a palace is?" Answer his questions and, if you think he doesn't understand something, stop and ask. Don't worry if you break into the flow of a story to make something clear.

Parent Pointer
Nothing is more important in helping children become readers than reading books aloud with them.

Learning About Print

Reading aloud together is a perfect time to help a late toddler or early preschooler learn what print is. Now and then, stop and point to letters and words as you read them; then point to the pictures they stand for. Your child will begin to understand that the letters form words and words name the picture. You are also letting him know that each letter has its own sound. This is one of the most important things your child can know when learning to read.

By the time children are 4, most have begun to understand that printed words have meaning. By age 5, most will begin to know that not just the story, but the printed words themselves go from left to right.

(Follow the words with your finger to help get this message across.) Many will even be identifying some capital and small letters and simple words. (For some ideas on learning letters, see As Simple as ABC.)

In late kindergarten or early first grade, your child may begin to read from print himself. He may want to do it instead of you. Let him! But be sure he wants to do it. It should be something he is proud and eager to do, not a lesson.

Look for Books!

What books you pick to read are also important. Ask a librarian to help you find books that are right for your child's age. As your child grows older, the librarian can continue to help find exciting books for both of you. (For more information on what libraries have to offer, see Libraries.)

Introduce your baby to cardboard or cloth books with big, simple pictures of things she sees every day. Your child might want to chew or throw the book at first. But after a while, she will become more interested as you point to pictures and talk about them. When the baby becomes a toddler, she will enjoy helping choose books to read.

As she grows into a preschooler and kindergartner, the two of you can look for books with longer stories and more words on the pages. Also look for books with repeating words and sentences that she can begin to read or recognize when she sees them on the page. By early first grade, add to the mix some books designed for beginning readers, including some with chapters.

Keep in mind that during these years children most often enjoy books with people, places, and things that are like those they know. The books could be about where you live or about parts of your culture, like your religion, your holidays, or the way you dress. If your child is interested in special things, like dinosaurs or ballerinas, look for books about them.

Also, from the toddler years through early first grade, look for books with poems and other rhymes. Remember when your baby heard your talking sounds and tried to imitate them? Rhymes are a later step. Rhymes, along with repeated words and phrases, teach your child about sounds and words. They also spark excitement about what comes next, which adds fun and adventure to reading. (For rhyming activities, see Rhyme with Me: It's Fun, You'll See!.)

Show Your Child You Read

When you take your child to the library, check out a book for you. Then set a good example by reading yourself. Ask your child to get one of his books and join you while you read a book, magazine, or newspaper. Don't worry if you feel uncomfortable with your own reading ability.

Just doing it counts. When your child sees that reading is important to you, he may decide it is important to him, too. (For ideas on how to help your child love books, see A Home for My Books.)

How Does a Book Work?

Children are fascinated by how a book looks and feels. They see how easily you work with it, and they want to make it work, too. When your toddler watches you handle books, she begins to learn that a book is for reading, not tearing or tossing around. Before she is 3, she may even pick one up and pretend to read, an important sign that she is beginning to know what a book is for. As your child becomes a preschooler, she is learning that:

a book has a front cover;
a book has a beginning and an end;
a book has pages;
a page has a top and a bottom;
you turn pages one at a time to follow the story; and
you read a story from left to right.

As you read with your 4- or 5-year-old, begin to remind her about these things. Read the title on the cover. Talk about the picture there. Point out where the story starts, and later where it ends. Let your child help turn the page. When you start a new page, point to where the words of the story continue and keep following them with your finger. These things take time to learn. But when your child learns them, she has solved some of reading's mysteries.

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