By Suzanne Egan, Jennifer Pope and Mary Moloney Mary Immaculate College
The benefits of reading with young children, including babies, are well documented. Some of the benefits include enhanced language and literacy, which is critical to future educational attainment. Clearly pointing to the extraordinary brain development that occurs in the first three years of life, a growing body of evidence suggests that language and literacy experiences in these early years set the scene for children's later development.
However, not all parents start reading with their baby as early as they might. Some parents may think that their baby would not be interested in books, particularly when they are very young and language is limited, or that their child is just not ready for it.
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Our research shows that babies from as young as three months old enjoy and benefit from shared reading with their parents and caregivers. This is because reading is not just about the act of reading per se. Early experiences and relationships are so important for babies' and toddlers’ overall development.
Reading with very young babies provides a great opportunity for warm and nurturing interactions. Indeed, parents report their own delight when their baby and/or toddler points at, touches the images, and responds to their voice, and questions during reading. When approached in a fun relaxed manner, reading with babies and toddlers can be a mutually joyous learning experience for all involved.
Learning from the research on what enhances the reading experience for babies, there are several key tips to keep in mind when reading with a baby or a toddler.
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From RTÉ 2fm's Louise McSharry Show, tips for reading with children from Dr Holly Foley from Dublin Learning City
Pick sturdy, durable and textured Books
Babies and toddlers explore books in different ways to older children. They experience the stories initially through their senses. They enjoy grabbing and sometimes chewing on the book. Young children also enjoy touching and feeling the images on the pages.
Books aimed at babies and toddlers cater for this by typically having thick study pages, or by being made of fabric so they can survive being roughly handled or chewed, and thick pages are also good for small hands to manage. Textured pages with smooth and rough surfaces also support sensory development in young children.
Choose stories suitable for their age
Books need to be stimulating and attractive for babies and toddlers at each age point. Babies are not born with the visual acuity of adults, and for the first few months of life images can appear blurry to them. Books with high contrast images and patterns may be visually appealing to a new baby (e.g., black and white strips, large brightly coloured shapes).
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Wordless, single word, and simple story books with big pictures are ideal for older babies and toddlers. Look for books that have simple drawings of familiar things, actions, and events.
Be child led
Opening a book with a baby or toddler may be less a case of reading a story to them, from start to finish while they sit quietly, and more a case of a playful exploration of the pictures and pages. Young children may wish to spend a long time on one page, skip other pages entirely, or look at the book upside down.
They may turn a page before you’re finished reading the words, want to make up their own story, or chat about a picture. While this does not seem like 'reading a book’ in a typical sense, these interactions with a book are typical of young children and support early development and pre-literacy skills.
Build storytime into the daily routine
When asked about what barriers they faced when reading with their baby parents identified time as an issue, although parents themselves recognised that it might only take 5 minutes. If finding time is an issue, try to build story time into the daily routine. For example, after dinner perhaps sit with the child in a comfortable chair or space on the floor. They might like to sit on your lap, beside or in front of you, which helps them to associate reading with feeling safe and secure. Bedtime is a great time for books and story time for many families, and parents identify this as a good way to help calm and settle their child for sleep.
Reading a book with a baby or toddler should be a joyful experience for both adult and child
Ultimately, reading a book with a baby or toddler should be a joyful experience for both adult and child. Encourage children to connect sounds with the pictures they see in the books. Make your own sounds, and encourage the child/children to join in. These early connections and vocalisations help young children to make sense of their experiences, support language and cognitive development and are the foundations of early reading, and possibly a lifelong love of books.
Today is World Book Day
Dr Suzanne Egan is a Lecturer in Psychology at Mary Immaculate College. She is a Research Ireland awardee. Dr Jennifer Pope is a Lecturer in Early Childhood Studies at Mary Immaculate College. Dr Mary Moloney is a Senior Lecturer in Early Childhood Studies at Mary Immaculate College.
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The views expressed here are those of the author and do not represent or reflect the views of RTÉ
