Here are a few strategies to help take your nighttime book routine up a notch:
- Ask questions. I love to ask open-ended questions. They give me insight into how my children think and reason. The other night, I was reading to my daughter and the main character mentioned a “best friend”. I asked her, “How is a best friend different than a regular friend?” She thought about it and said, “They let me be the boss.” Well that was not the answer that I was expecting, but it did give me a chance to clarify and offer more details. I said, “Well, my best friends are funny and nice. And we like to do the same things.”
- Point out new vocabulary or words that are not frequently used in your home. The other day, I was visiting a teacher and she was reading a book that mentioned the word “bypass”. She then stopped and explained what bypass was to the children. I jumped for vocabulary joy! Here is a great example. We live in a rural area where there are no bypasses. Children in this classroom very rarely hear that word in their day to day conversations with their families. Her ability to recognize the importance of explaining this new word was so important to helping the children comprehend the book that she was reading and she didn’t take that for granted.
- Ask about details in the illustrations. Pausing at different moments and admiring the art in the illustration is especially important when you are on your 200th read of your child’s favorite story. By now, they have memorized the book and know the words by heart. Instead of reading through, exasperated by the monotony of the book, pause and really look at the details in the illustrations. Ask your child questions about the pictures and get them to use some of that new vocabulary that they have been listening to you read repetitively.
Reading to your child every night is not only a wonderful way to build their brain, but it builds the heart too. My best moments in the hustle and bustle of everyday life are snuggled up in bed with my daughters reading a story that makes us giggle.
Ashley Norris is a former preschool teacher and is now faculty at East Carolina University in the Birth-Kindergarten Education program. She is an outdoor enthusiast that loves spending time with her husband and daughters surfing, skating, hiking and skiing. She is the co-founder of Tribe of Daughters and the author of “Queenie Wahine: Little Surfer Girl” and “Little Millie Ford and Her New Skateboard”.
