Almost every parent today knows the value of daily reading for their children; however most find it challenging to inculcate this habit in the daily routine of their kids. If you are a parent who has tried reading along with your children or narrating them interesting stories to foster their curiosity and interest in reading, but nothing worked, then this blog post is for you!
At Delhi Public School Kangra, one of the most trusted CBSE schools in Kangra, we encourage all of our pupils to pick ‘reading’ as one of their hobbies because it can truly help transform their life. While anyone can start reading books at any age, we recommend developing this habit from a young age. We have seen that when kids begin to read books out of curiosity and sheer interest, not by force, they develop better vocabulary, grasp abstract concepts faster, establish superior problem-solving skills, and strengthen their emotional intelligence. It eventually improves their prospects of securing a lucrative and stable job and also enhances the quality of their relationships in life ahead.
If you, too, want your kids to experience all these benefits, encourage them to include reading in their daily routine. We are sharing below a few methods you can try out in this regard.
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Create Book-Inspired Adventures
Some kids may begin reading books regularly on their parent’s instructions, but forced reading rarely provides the same benefits as reading by choice. Hence, we at Delhi Public School Kangra recommend implementing this unique approach to foster a natural love for reading in kids.
Here, parents are required to pour in efforts to bring stories to life to convert a child’s passive reading experience into a thrilling one. For example, if your kids are reading the ‘The Very Hungry Caterpillar’ book, order a butterfly growing toy kit online so your kids can watch the story unfold in your home. You can also build a blanket fort spacecraft if your kids are reading a book on space exploration. Such tangible experiences will help your kids understand that books are a gateway to adventure, not just pages to flip through.
These activities may look trivial but can significantly improve your child’s engagement in future reading sessions. Your kids may even begin looking forward to their reading sessions because of such experiences. Even if you cannot craft such experiences at home, taking your kids to locations similar to the book’s setting or preparing meals mentioned in a recently finished book can also have a similar impact.
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The Unfinished Story Technique
Whether you watch regular soaps on television or interesting series on OTT platforms, you will notice a common pattern used in all content formats – ending an episode at exciting plot points, making you eagerly wait for the next episode. You have to replicate the same in your child’s reading experiences.
If your kids are too young, start reading them bedtime stories, but intentionally stop it at the climax scenes. Such moments will build curiosity in your kids, and they will eagerly wait for the next day’s reading session to explore what happened in the story. But remember, to make the stories interesting for your kids, you, too, have to hone your storytelling abilities to implement this method. Trust us, the results will be worth the effort.
When you make such experiences a part of your kid’s daily routine, they will eventually develop a love for reading. Here, we at Delhi Public School Kangra would like to recommend choosing books with interesting stories and hooks so that you never run out of interesting cliffhangers.
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The Child-as-Author Approach
Who doesn’t love attention? While every individual wants attention, children love it. Hence, another unique approach to instilling a love for reading in your kids from an early age is making them the main hero/character of the story they’re reading. It works like a charm on children who resist reading books at all. You can start by printing pictures of your children and pasting them in a blank notebook.
Depending on the picture, start writing a small story around your child. It can be anything ranging from your child’s school experience to a typical day in their life. When your kids see a book with their pictures and a story about them, they will be filled with curiosity to read it. This technique is excellent for making kids develop the habit of reading books.
Once they have developed this habit, you can introduce them to age-appropriate books about their favorite topics/niches. Initially, you can create such books alone, but later on, do ask your kids to help you pick some of their favorite pictures and stories. These activities will not only foster a deep connection with books in your children but also heighten their creativity and confidence.
Conclusion
Reading books shouldn’t be limited to just another ‘to-do’ task. We are saying so because we firmly believe that reading is far more than merely reading words on a page. At Delhi Public School Kangra, one of the most trusted CBSE schools in Kangra, we view reading as a powerful personal growth tool that helps children go beyond the structured, controlled, and limited learning approaches. It introduces children to concepts they previously didn’t know existed, expanding their knowledge and competence stack. So, whether your child is studying in pre-primary or secondary classes, see to it that you help them develop a habit of daily reading. You can use any of the methods discussed in this blog post or find unique approaches that work best for your children.