Reading Aloud to Kids: The 12 Benefits of Reading Books Out Loud to Children of All Ages

Reading aloud to children is one of the most important things you can do to ensure their future success, and more and more Americans seem to be jumping on the read-aloud bandwagon. While only 78 percent of families read to their pre-kindergarten-aged children frequently (three or more times a week) in 1993, this increased to 86 percent in 2005, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.

It's never too early to start reading to your kids. Experts recommend starting as soon as they're born.
 
Kids of all ages (and adults, too) benefit from being read to, including even babies and toddlers.

"Children are never too young to have stories read to them," says Nancy Verhoek-Miller, a specialist in early childhood education at Mississippi State University.

The benefits are so profound, and kids form so much of their intelligence potential during the early years of their life, that experts recommend reading aloud to your child as soon as he or she is born, and continuing indefinitely.

"The single most important activity for building the knowledge required for eventual success in reading is reading aloud to children," a Commission on Reading report found.

In fact, reading is so important that a non-profit group called Read Aloud America is traveling to different schools to promote literacy, encourage a love of reading in adults and children, and increase children's prospects for success in school and life.

Not only will reading to your child help him develop language and listening skills, and a sense of curiosity, but it will help to strengthen the bond you share as well.
 
Their Read Aloud Program (RAP) brings together kids and families at host schools to stimulate their interest in reading, decrease television viewing, increase family time spent in reading activities, and connect the values of good books to everyday life. Although the program is currently only offered in Hawaii, you can gain the same benefits from reading to your kids at home.

Why Read to Your Kids? Here are 12 Important Reasons

1. Build a lifelong interest in reading. "Getting kids actively involved in the process of reading, and having them interact with adults, is key to a lifelong interest in reading," said BeAnn Younker, principal at Battle Ground Middle School in Indiana.

2. Children whose parents read to them tend to become better readers and perform better in school, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.

3. Reading to kids helps them with language and speech development.

4. It expands kids' vocabulary and teaches children how to pronounce new words.

5. Reading to toddlers prepares them for school, during which they will need to listen to what is being said to them (similar to what they do while being read to).

6. Reading to older kids helps them understand grammar and correct sentence structure.

7. Kids and parents can use reading time as bonding time. It's an excellent opportunity for one-on-one communication, and it gives kids the attention they crave.

8. Being read to builds children's attention spans and helps them hone their listening skills.

9. Curiosity, creativity and imagination are all developed while being read to.

10. Being read to helps kids learn how to express themselves clearly and confidently.

11. Kids learn appropriate behavior when they're read to, and are exposed to new situations, making them more prepared when they encounter these situations in real life.

12. When read to, children are able to experience the rhythm and melody of language even before they can understand the spoken or printed word.
 
Source: www.SixWise.com

Developing an interest in reading
Tips from the United States Department of Education

Parents are more concerned about their child's progress in reading than in any other subject taught in school, and rightfully so. In order for students to achieve in math, science, English, history, geography, and other subjects, reading skills must be developed to the point that most of them are automatic. Students cannot struggle with word recognition when they should be reading quickly for comprehension of a text.

Because reading is so important to success in school, parents can and should play a role in helping their children to become interested in reading and in encouraging their growth in reading skills. At the same time, parents and teachers need to work together. Many teachers are now sending home practical ideas for parents to use with their preschoolers. As a result, young children are developing some of the skills at home that will later help them in school.

What Can Parents Do To Help Their Preschoolers In The Learning-To-Read Process?
Research shows that children learn about reading before they enter school. In fact, they learn in the best manner--through observation. Young children, for example, see people around them reading newspapers, books, maps, and signs. Parents can do a lot to foster an understanding of print by talking with their preschoolers about signs in their environment and by letting their children know they enjoy reading themselves.

As I Read To My Preschooler, What Should I Do Specifically?
Many parents recognize the value and enjoyment of reading to their young children, but perhaps they are not clear about the specific skills that could be enhanced through the process. Most important, reading should be an enjoyable experience. Research reveals that when young children experience warm and close contacts with their parents when they are being read to, they develop more positive attitudes toward reading.

Run your index finger under the line of print. This procedure is simple and helps children begin to notice words and that words have meaning. They also gain an awareness of the conventions of reading (e.g., one reads from left to right and from the top of the page to the bottom; sentences are made up of words; and some sentences extend beyond a single line of print).

One of the greatest advantages of reading to preschoolers (or children of any age) is the opportunity for vocabulary development. Children learn the meaning of words through good literature; words take on rich meaning when used in an interesting story.

What Can I Do For My School-Age Child Who Doesn't Like To Read?
In the early elementary years, from first through third grades, children continue learning HOW to read. It is a complex process, difficult for some and easy for others. Care must be taken during these early years not to overemphasize the learning-to-read process. Reading for pleasure and information develops reading interests and offers children the opportunity to practice their reading skills in meaningful ways. Parents of elementary-age children should provide reading materials in the home that arouse curiosity or extend their child's natural interest in the world around them.

By encouraging and modeling leisure-time reading in the home, parents take the most important step in fostering their child's reading development.

How Can Reading Research Information Be Useful To Me, As A Parent?
Current research in reading reveals three important considerations for parents AND teachers:

Children who read, and read widely, become better readers. 
Reading and writing are complementary skills.
Parents are important to children both as role models and as supporters of their efforts.

What Does Research Say About Ways Parents Can Help Their Children With Reading?
The following suggestions have been beneficial to many parents:

Provide a good role model--read yourself and read often to your child.

Provide varied reading material--some for reading enjoyment and some with information about hobbies and interests.

Encourage activities that require reading--for example, cooking (reading a recipe), constructing a kite (reading directions), or identifying an interesting bird's nest or a shell collected at the beach (using a reference book).

Establish a reading time, even if it is only 10 minutes a day.

Write notes to your school-age child; encourage written responses.

Ask your child to bring a library book home to read to a younger sibling.

Establish one evening a week for reading (instead of television viewing).

Encourage your child in all reading efforts.

Source: United States Department of Education