April 07, 2007

Reading Aloud to Your Children (#4)

Reading aloud to your children is one of the very best things you can do for them - especially after they already know how to read for themselves. Reading is quality time spent together; it fosters conversation and interest in learning. It can draw parents away from night-time television and internet habits and add to their own education as well.

Studies show that reading aloud to children motivates them to read on their own and significantly improves their vocabulary and comprehension. Choose from a variety of book types: classics, fairy tales, saint stories, poetry, humorous family stories, fantasy and historical fiction. Negotiating read-alouds with younger siblings can be a major challenge. Try starting with a favorite picture book for the younger crowd and follow it up with a few chapters from a full-length story Even a short amount of time - perhaps 20 minutes a day - can be an invaluable part of your child's education.

Further Information:

Negotiating Read-Alouds
A Study on the Value of Read-Alouds

1 comment:

love2learnmom said...

A Few Books to Get You Started...

Saint John Bosco and Saint Dominic Savio by Catherine Beebe

The Book of Virtues, The Children's Book of Virtues, The Children's Book of Heroes,
The Moral Compass
edited by William Bennett

Twenty and Ten by Claire Huchet Bishop

Caddie Woodlawn and Caddie Woodlawn's Family by Carol Ryrie Brink

26 Fairmount Avenue Series, The Clown of God, The Lady of Guadalupe,
The Legend of the Poinsettia by Tomie de Paola

Francis and Clare: Saints of Assisi, Saint Therese and the Roses by Helen Walker Homan

The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster

The Blue Fairy Book by Andrew Lang

The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis

The Railway Children by Edith Nesbit

The Reb and the Redcoats by Constance Savery

Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain

The Cottage at Bantry Bay Series, The Mitchells Series, The Winged Watchman by Hilda Van Stockum

Little House on the Prairie Series by Laura Ingalls Wilder