Reading to your toddler

A recent study in Rhode Island Hospital compared two groups of eight month olds – one group was read to often as babies, while the other was not.  The results were startling -  the “receptive” vocabularies (number of words understood) of those who were read to increased 40 per cent since babyhood, while the non-reading group increased by only 16 per cent.

That in itself is a pretty good reason to read to your children from the time they are tiny tots.  Here's a few more:

Reading to your child enhances the bonding process & creates a sense of intimacy & well-being;

The intimacy of reading to your child is such a pleasurable experience that s/he will have a positive attitude towards reading as s/he grows up;

Reading calms your child, especially when s/he is fretful and restless;

Reading promotes increased communication between you and your child;

Pre-school children exposed to language by hearing words read to them and in conversation tend to do well in school;

Reading promotes a longer attention span, which is an important life skill;

Reading builds listening skills and imagination.

Your younger child learns about colors, shapes, numbers, and letters, while your older child discovers an expanding chain of knowledge.  An interest in cars, for example, will expand to interests in trucks, and other transportation like planes and rockets, and soon they will be reading about outer space, science and technology, and so forth.

Books teach your child about relationships, situations, personalities, and what is good and what is bad in the world they live in. Fantasy books provide material for imagination and free play. Fairy tales fascinate and help children distinguish between what is real and what is not.

Next year is National Year of Reading.  Visit the website to find out the latest news and find out what's happening in libraries all across Australia.