Ensure that early reading is fun!

Being able to read is essential for sucess in today's society and learning early reading skills should, most of all, be fun for your child. It's one thing to be able to teach a child to read, but it's something quite different to teach a child to love reading. Early reading therefore shouldn't simply involve teaching your child to recognise letters, string them into words and put them into sentences, but must also be concerned with fostering a love of books, words and literature. Here are some ways to nurture this love:

Be choosy - For very early reading select books with good-sized, clear, bright and happy illustrations and brief, easy to understand text. Many toddlers enjoy rhyming books as they love the rhythms in verse, but now is also a good opportunity to start introducing some very simple stories in prose.

Be determined - Many toddlers do nothing but wriggle the first time they're read to, but persistence is generally successful. Introduce a regular time for reading, bed-time is the usual favorite, but if you are able in the morning a snuggly story-time session in bed can be great as well.

Be original - You know what your child enjoys better than the book's author. So don't feel you are obliged to read the words exactly as they're written. Allowing your imagination to improvise along the way can enormously enhance your child's enjoyment of the story and help encourage early reading.

Let your child participate - Long before your child is able to read, they can join in the reading process. Suggest that they point out the different characters in the illustrations as you go along, or later get them to fill in some blanks in sentences or rhymes in books they're familiar with. As they get older try asking them questions like, "Why do you think that happened?" Joining in is part of the fun experience that early reading ought to be - your child loves to have your attention and will actively look forward to these sessions together.

Be animated - Remember - early reading should be fun - and nobody likes to listen to a boring monotone. A toddler who is still developing language skills will find an animated reading style not only more fun, but also easier to understand.

Be repetitive - Toddlers adore hearing the same story many times. It can drive you to distraction (believe me I know!!) but it's incredibly satisfying to their young ears - and will encourage those early reading skills too.

Keep it brief - Your toddler won't have developed a long attention span yet, so keep those early reading sessions brief. Go from page to page quickly to keep them from getting fidgety, and be prepared to finish story time after just a few minutes if they're really not in the mood.

Be cuddly - Children who associate reading with the comfort of cuddling up on a much-loved parent's lap almost always enjoy reading books later on.

Set a good example - If your toddler knows you enjoy reading, even just sometimes, they're likely to think it's a good, grown-up pastime and will most likely begin to initiate their early reading sessions themselves.

Lastly, reduce the amount of TV that's watched by your toddler and the rest of the family. Studies have shown that families who watch less read more.

About The Author:
Ellie Dixon lives in deepest rural Devon, England with her husband and two very large Newfoundland dogs. She is passionate about vintage illustrated children's books and loves to restore and edit them for today's kids to rediscover. Visit her website, Scruffy's Bookshop, to download some great books for pre-schoolers and older children, and while you're there sign up for her free monthly newsletter.

Tags: EARLY READING, CHILD DEVELOPMENT, STARTING TO READ, TEACHING READING, READING WITH YOUR CHILD, BOOKS FOR CHILDREN, BOOKS FOR TODDLERS, LEARNING TO REA

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Title:	Ensure that early reading is fun!
Author:	Ellie Dixon
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Ensure that early reading is fun!