Read Aloud & Raise a Lifelong Learner
November 3, 2016
Did you know that more than one in three children arrive at kindergarten without the skills necessary for lifetime learning? Research shows that reading aloud is the single most important thing you can do to help a child prepare for reading and learning.
The number of words that a child knows on entering kindergarten is a key predictor of his or her future success. Reading aloud promotes language development, brain development, bonding, and literacy skills like comprehension, phonics, and familiarity with the printed word.
Start small; try reading just 15 minutes a day with your child. Find a quiet place to enjoy reading together. Encourage discussion and questions. Talk through new words and examine pictures.
Check out www.readaloud.org for more information, and check out some great picks to reading aloud to children:
Picture Books:
Are You My Mother? by P. D. Eastman
Barnyard Dance by Sandra Boynton
Blueberries for Sal by Robert McCloskey
Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? by Bill Martin, Jr.
Llama Llama Red Pajama by Anna Dewdney
Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes by Eric Litwin
Chapter Books:
Fantastic Mr. Fox by Roald Dahl
Charlotte’s Web by E. B. White
Flora and Ulysses by KateDiCamillo
Frindle by Andrew Clements
Holes by Louis Sachar
Ramona Quimby by Beverly Cleary
