The Importance Of Reading Books To Children

Books are a lot more than the information contained in them. Reading books to children when they are very young has many advantages and I shall discuss them in this blog. 

When to start reading to children 

A new born baby cannot distinguish colours or see everything perfectly, the vision keeps improving each day. But they can hear you even when they are in their mother's womb. This is perhaps why pregnant women are encouraged to listen to good music and read good books. So the earlier you start reading to your child, the better it is. Soothing music calms down babies in the womb, and so do the spoken words of the mother or the father. You might be surprised to feel your baby respond while you read to them in the womb. However, it is never too late to start on something good. Start reading to your child even if he or she is a toddler. Read to the child before bedtime or anytime that you and your child decide on. You can also brainstorm your kids about alphabets, colors, fruits, vegetables, and more with our beautiful flashcards and activity flashcards.

What to read to your child? 

You can always find books that are appropriate for your child's age. Also, you can find books of different kinds. There are books made up of cloth meant for infants. There are board books that your toddler cannot easily tear away. Books full of colourful pictures always delight children. Also, there are books that teach animal sounds with recorded sounds of animals beside the pictures. There are large and small sized books and you just need to offer to read them to your little one and eventually learn what kind of books delight them. Short stories, fables, rhymes, jingles, or even educational books, each of these hold specific value to our children. 

The advantages of reading to your child

The biggest advantage of reading to your child is the lifetime benefit of inculcating a good habit like reading for the child. Reading to your child is a lovely bonding time too. You can eventually make it a bedtime ritual for the family. Reading enhances your child's vocabulary and speech fluency. Also the child gets the opportunity to know a lot many things. 

I have been an avid reader since childhood and books have been the best companion in my life. I started reading to my child when she was in womb. I made it a ritual to read to her before putting her to sleep. For the first few months, she would just stare. Then she would lisp. Around the age of nine months, she used to tear up her books, but eventually she stopped doing that and started taking an interest in looking at the pictures while I read to her. She would also mimic me reading the book blabbering in baby language. Soon after, she started saying her words, which was followed by what surprised me most – She started completing the sentences when I would read to her. Now that she is two years old, she knows that reading time is fun and looks forward to it. Along with reading allowing them to play with educational and sensory toys is also very important because it helps them to develop and grasp fine motor and sensory play skills.

Do you read to your child? What kind of books does your child enjoy the most? Please let me know in the comments section how your child reacts when you read to him or her. 

Anindita Ganguly has a doctorate in English Literature. Her research area is Women's theatre. She has worked as a writer and editor in several publishing houses over the last decade. A voracious reader who loves doodling and is passionate about music, gardening and movies.