Reading to and sharing books with baby is one of the most important things you can do for baby's development.
Why Read to Baby
Reading to baby is not about teaching vocabulary (at least not yet) and even less is it about teaching baby how to read. Reading to baby does, however, provide many advantages:
- Helps strengthen the bond between baby and you (when you sit down with baby and give him or her your full attention)
- Exposes baby to the variety of sounds that make up your spoken language (an important precursor to learning to speak and read)
- Teach your baby how books work (for instance, that they have a cover, that pages turn from right to left, that books convey information)
- Exposes baby to important concepts like shapes, colors, animals, and more
- Shows baby that reading is interesting and important
How to Read to Baby
Start now. It’s never too early to start reading to baby. Babies in the womb can hear the soft tones of you or your partner reading. And even though newborns can barely see a foot in front of them and indicate no interest toward the book, they still appreciate the sound of your voice and are absorbing what’s going on. Starting young helps make it a routine. But even if you’re starting “later” – like with a toddler – don’t spend a second thinking about shoulda, woulda, coulda’s. Start introducing books today (and don’t feel discouraged if baby can’t sit through a little board book). You are still giving baby a fantastic head start.
Read regularly. Try to read or share a book with baby daily. This is just a guideline, however; a new parent’s life is stressful enough without having another obligation. The point is to make reading and books a matter of course in your baby’s life.
Read happily. Reading should be a joy—not a chore – for you and your baby. If the day has been hectic, the baby is cranky or you are exhausted, leave the board book for another time. Or, once either of you gets tired of reading – whether it’s after 15 minutes or 1 – stop reading. The point is to associate reading with good feelings. (Making reading a part of baby’s daily routine helps ensure that you and baby will be in the mood to share a book on most days.)
Read disaster-proof books. With their thick cardboard pages, board books are made with baby in mind. Board books are drool-resistant, gnaw-able, and nearly impossible for little hands to tear. Share other types of books with baby if you’d like, but realize that the books might not last very long. Old magazines -- with their big, bold pictures and limited shelf-life -- are another good option.
Go with the flow. “Reading” to baby is not always the straight-forward activity it sounds like. A little baby might just lie there, showing no interest in what’s going on. An older baby might snatch the book away, flip pages at random, toss the book over baby’s shoulder, and be gone. On days like that, don’t worry. Just read the book out loud to yourself. At least you are exposing baby to language, and if you act interested in what you are doing, chances are baby will become intrigued, too. But don’t force the issue. The book will be there tomorrow.
Share the book. Don’t just read the words on the page. Gasp, squeal, act out what’s happening. Point things out. Name objects and colors. Encourage baby to turn the book’s pages – little things need help separating one page from another, but little hands can turn the page fairly early. In other words, make reading interactive and engaging.
