The fun of reading books with your child

‘Read me a story mummy’, is what my three years old daughter will tell me every evening. Her interest in stories started once she began to understand them. It was not long ago that we started telling her stories, and it was mostly something that would pop up in our minds and make it up as and when the so called ‘story’ progressed. She began to enjoy listening and thus began the ritual of storytelling, which now takes place every day.

We started off simple alphabet books and picture books. Soon we moved to storybooks with lots of pictures. As days passed I noticed how intently she listened, how engrossed she got in the characters - made a sad face when someone got hurt, frowned when there was suspense. We then moved on to fairy tales and Hans Christian Anderson’s collection of stories - Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Cinderella, the Ugly duckling, The Little Mermaid. Soon she started to act like a princess and I was the queen, the house was a castle, her dinner of shaped pasta were butterflies, broccolis were trees Sometimes was a mermaid or a swan floating around the house. Needless to say, that this list was endless. I enjoyed role-playing with her. I was in awe of the impact these stories had on her.

The time we spend reading has helped us grow closer and strengthened the bond between us.It made me a patient listener and gave me an opportunity to answer the hundreds of questions that came to her mind. I see a more confident little girl now.

What I realized is that one needs not be a great storyteller. I sometimes told her stories by making her the main character to address issues that I needed her to understand or a habit I wanted her to change. She seemed relate to them. For instance, there was a time when we were getting complaints from her teacher at the playschool. It seems she was quite aggressive with the other children and would frequently push them. We tried to explain to her that the behavior was not acceptable and that no one would want to play with her if she continued this way. As days passed, things did not seem to change. Then one day I told her a story on how there was a girl who was not liked by anyone because she pushed and hit others; on how the girl’s friends got hurt and felt sad by this act of hers. She was quite moved by the story and more importantly by the fact that the others got hurt, which I assume, she did not realize earlier. Then on, her behavior with her peers changed dramatically. She was nice to everyone and proudly told us everyday what a good girl she was at school. It taught me how simple issues could be addressed this way.

The next step in the storytelling ritual would be introducing her to flash cards or cue cards. They are a set of cards with pictures, words or numbers, which are commonly used for visual learning. This can be a fun and an interactive way where the child can make up a story from random words or pictures. The experience can also be in the form of a game or from an educational point of view, for example, practicing math.

These days with more work to be done and such less time in hand, we can and do tend to overlook the importance of storytelling. It is much easier to make them watch cartoons on television or watch a story on the Internet. Watching a story does not have the same impact on their imagination. A program on television or a story on the Internet will stimulate their imagination but only to a certain extent.

Research has shown that reading to your child promotes their language skills, develops their understanding capabilities, improves their reading ability, helps them deal with fears and lengthens their attention span.

It gives me a great pleasure to read to my little girl and also to see how my baby boy listens to the stories. I am certain that in the days to come, my daughter will be more than eager to read to her little brother, thus strengthening the bond between them. I know she will help me in inspiring her baby brother and letting his imagination run wild but the quality time that the two of them spend with each other is having a very positive effect on my baby boy. He respects her and listens to what ever she has to say intently. I am hoping that this will have a positive reinforcing impact on any future sibling rivalry that might happen amongst them.

I am glad to instill the habit of listening to stories in her, this will in turn inspire her to read and one day write her own stories. As a parent, I believe one of the best things you can do for your child is to read to them. This will provide a strong foundation to their academic success.