Saying Yes to Reading

Although reading isn't our #1 priority, it does play a HUGE role in our family life. I lean toward Charlotte Mason homeschooling philosophies, my husband and I both enjoy reading, and we decided before we even married that books would be part of our family culture. If you would like to foster a love of reading in your children, perhaps you will find some of our strategies helpful.
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1. Read to yourself. Children imitate what they see in the people they look up to. If parents obviously enjoy reading, they'll assume it must be an enjoyable activity. I enjoy a wide variety of fiction, my husband's weakness is toward westerns and books (fiction & non-fiction) set during the Civil War or WWII, we both read non-fiction on whatever catches our interest at the moment. I usually have 3-5 books going at any one time, reading as often as I can but unable to read quickly. My husband finishes a book in one sitting but doesn't read more than a couple each month. Both of us read the Bible daily and frequently include spiritual readings to increase our faith. My children see me reading blogs and articles online, previewing items that will be offered to them next, and taking books with me whenever I drive them to activities that I'm not actively participating in myself. Give yourself permission to read daily, following your own interests and frequently trying out new types of literature.
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2. Read to them. We have scheduled a time slot twice a day to read aloud whatever picture and chapter books they/I choose. My 6yr and 5yr recently discovered that if they finish their work early enough they might convince me to add an additional storytime in the middle of the afternoon. Breakfast (our family meal) includes a short devotional. We read the Bible to them every morning.
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3. Begin young. Books are a very easy way to play with a baby as young as 4 months old. They see the pictures as you read the words, they touch the pages which may even be interactive (fuzzy, smooth, crinkly, etc), the time is short enough to match their attention span yet they experience the interest you are showing in doing something together. They can't choose to walk away from you, so why not decide to make books part of your time together?
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4. Read what they want to hear. I try to make sure at least 60% of the books on our shelves are actual literature (not brainless fluff). The picture books always includes classics, fairy tales, rhyming, biographies, and non-fiction. Out of that variety, our daughters are allowed to choose whichever book they'd like me to read aloud to them. I choose the chapter books (because they don't know what to choose), but while moving through a series I always ask at the end of the book whether they'd me like to continue with the series or take a break and read something different first. If they show an interest in a particular topic, I borrow library books that correspond to that interest so they can learn more about it. During his studies for his Master's degree, my husband read that boys often find non-fiction more appealing than fiction, so make sure that is available to your children.
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5. Make it part of the family culture. Visit the library, bookstores, used book sales, and make the visits enjoyable and semi-regular. Talk about the books you read. Listen to audio books. Watch the movie after reading the book (IF it's worthwhile and only AFTER reading the book). Print fun activity sheets to go along with the book or movie. Occasionally explain words they might not understand (but not often enough to interrupt the flow of the story). Google images and movies about things that come up during reading that the children might not be familiar with. Listen to the sounds certain animals make when it's brought up in a book. Go on local field trips that correspond to the stories (a house from the same time period; a planetarium; a children's science museum). Schedule time every day to read together and be willing to add time just for fun so they don't associate it with a "punishment" like a dreaded precursor to an even more dreaded bedtime.
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6. Don't confuse storytime with a reading lesson. Learning how to read is HARD WORK!! From the time they show an interest and aptitude to learn until they are truly proficient, I give our daughters a reading lesson most days. But once that lesson is over, it's over. I don't want them avoiding storytime because they'll be asked to work again, but rather enjoying the time together and the story itself.
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So far our strategies have worked well for us. Our oldest reads about three grades above her age level, our second daughter loves listening to books and looking at the pictures, and we're slowly beginning to introduce our love of reading to our baby girl. We are a family who reads and we read a lot. We plan to continue for many years to come.
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Linked with Works for Me Wednesday, Fellowship Friday