Tips on reading aloud to your child

Reading aloud to your child from the time he or she is a baby is the single most important activity you can do to help your child develop the skills they will need to learn to read and write.

Here are some simple tips to help you get started.

• Story time is a special time for you and your child to be really close. Get comfortable. Cuddle your child into you in such a way that you can both see the book and each others face.
• Choose a book that suits your child’s age and development.
• Bring the story to life with lots of energy and most importantly, have fun.
• Talk to your child about the story, point to the pictures and ask your child questions about what they see and what may happen in the story.
• Read aloud to your child every day. Sing songs, tell nursery rhymes and take books wherever you go.
• Join your local public library so there are always lots of books around the home and try their free story time sessions.
• Ask your family and friends to include a book as part of your child’s birthday and Christmas gifts. This will help you create your child’s very own library at home.

• Young babies will try and grab the book and put it in their month. It’s natural. Babies learn through their touching and tasting so cloth books are good.
• Read the book from the front cover and talk about the pictures. Stop when your baby is tired or loses interest. Try again later.
• Books for very young babies will have bright simple pictures with very few words. Often they‘ll be things that are already in the baby’s life.
• Make the noises of the characters in the book. Babies particularly love animal noises.
• Read aloud to your baby everyday and read over and over again the ones they love the most.

• Ask your child lots of ‘what’ questions and point to the pictures. What can you see? What’s the koala doing? Repeat back your child’s response and add to it.
• Give your child plenty of praise. Don't make it a lesson. Children learn from just having you read and talk to them.
• Encourage them to use their imagination and add to the number of words they know.
• Start introducing letters and pointing to the first letter of their name when it appears in a word.
• As always, have fun and read aloud to your child every day.

• The printed word is all around us. Read aloud signs, labels, lists when traveling, in the supermarket or just around the home.
• Let your child turn the pages and ask them to tell you the story. Ask them what comes next. This way you will help your child understand the story.
• Make up rhymes and songs together.
• Explore words and how they sound.
• Leave books around the home so your child can reach them and read to themselves.