Reading is one of those things that I think your child will either love to do or avoid doing it at all costs. There doesn’t seem to be a happy medium, especially in primary school. Reading, however, is one of the best things that your child can do to progress. But what can you do to help encourage your child to read more? Sometimes you need to think outside of the box for different approaches to reading and I thought I would share with you some of the things that you could try.
Encourage your child to read
One of the first things that you might want to try is encouragement. Your child won’t automatically pick up the book and read it. Unless they enjoy it. So encouragement can be a great way to get them motivated to give it a try or read more often. Reading can help with their mental well-being, develops their imagination, and also can help them to improve their efforts in school. Even if you encourage just a few minutes each day it could make a big difference.
Read with your child where possible
Another great tip is to try and read more with your child. Many parents develop a bedtime routine around reading a book together, which is great, but if you don’t have that, try and find some time during the day where you can read together. Perhaps you could start a book series where you both enjoy the stories. The use of words and following along where you are reading will help them in school and also provide love for stories.
Reading apps can be very helpful
It can be hard to get your child off their devices at times, but thankfully this is where you could use them to your advantage. There are many different reading apps that you can download, that will be useful for your child. They can test comprehension and understanding, or just be an app where there are lots of different book options available.
Find books they will enjoy reading
One of the difficult things to do is keep your child engaged in reading. After all, some of the books they may bring home from school will likely be a little boring. Think Biff and Chip and their adventures. So why not try and find some books that they will enjoy reading? For example, if your son loves playing football, search out appropriate-aged books about football. It might be a story about a kid who dreams to be a professional, or it could be football facts. You will be surprised what there is.
Go to the library together
If you don’t want to buy any books for fear they may not be read then why not join the local library instead? You could check out different books that your child thinks could be interesting, and then bring them back when they are finished. It gives you a chance to try a different selection without investing too much.
Create a comfortable environment to read in
If you want your child to read then make sure you create a comfortable environment for them to read in. This can be one of the easiest ways to help them to feel happy to pick up a book and get lost in the words. It is also important because if they don’t want to do it, if they don’t feel comfortable then they won’t even attempt it.
Think of other ways to incorporate reading
If they really don’t enjoy books or the activity of reading then you can still get practice in through other ways. Crafts are a great way to encourage reading as you can ask your child to read the instructions on what you are making. The same can be said for cooking. Get your child to read the recipe as they are cooking.
Talk about books
The more you talk about books, the more interested they may become in reading them. So if you remember a book from your childhood share the tale with your child. They may feel inspired to read it themselves, especially if you make it sound exciting. This would work well with Roald Dhal books or Harry Potter.
Bring reading to life
Finally, bring reading to life. Sometimes film adaptations are a great way to inspire your child to read the books they have. Or even take them to museums or exhibitions that are showcasing stores and different authors.