By Sue Anganes

One thing I have always found to be fun and enjoyable with my children is to read aloud to them. Reading is peaceful and relaxing, and it gives them the one-on-one attention that they naturally crave. It makes them imaginative and puts a desire in them to read on their own.

The baby book stage, where my kids chewed the books more than I read them, was precious to me. Cardboard pages with colors and shapes or pictures of animals introduced them to the concept that everything had a name or word associated with it. It was exciting to me when my little ones wanted to turn the pages by themselves. We didn’t get much reading done then, but it developed the excitement of turning a page and seeing something new. This stage seemed to whiz by for me.

During the toddler years big picture books came on scene, and I would often find myself reading the same book over and over until I could recite it from memory. My kids at this age seem to love the familiar, and often they memorized the books too, which actually helped them to begin to read. One fantastic author, Richard Scarry, has always been a family favorite. If you don’t have at least one Richard Scarry book in your library you are truly missing out. Scarry’s detailed drawings depict animals in everyday situations; home, school, shopping, etc. All the pictures are labeled, and it’s an enjoyable way to be introduced to reading. Another author who is in the “must have in the library list” is Dr. Seuss. Who hasn’t learned to read from one of Seuss’ collection?  With all his repetition and rhyming, it’s a sure bet that kids will enjoy listening to the story and the rhythm of the words. Reading at the toddler age gives kids a time to settle down, quiet themselves, and learn to listen. I always liked to ask questions about the stories because it was so much fun to hear their answers and what interested them in the books. It also trained them to pay attention to what was being read.

Reading before bedtime is truly one of my favorite parts of my day. I enjoy it so much that I still read nearly every night to my two youngest boys; eleven year old, Ted, and thirteen year old, Ray. Even though they are proficient readers on their own, we still spend time together at night with a good book. We use to cuddle up in my full size bed, but since Ray is now two inches taller than me, and Teddy is gaining on me fast, we now just sit in our quiet living room to read. At about 9 pm each night we start by reading a chapter from the Bible alternating between the Old and New Testament every night. When they were younger we just read from a Bible storybook, but for the past couple of years we read right from the Bible. After we read the Bible, we spend time in a chapter book. We have read literally hundreds of books together. When they were younger we read all of the Little House series by Laura Ingalls Wilder. Wilder’s biography of her childhood made history come alive and was a fantastic way to learn about those who settled the mid-west in the 1800’s. The Redwall series, by Brian Jacques, kept us in suspense every night. They were the perfect “boy” books with battles and quests and damsels and rogues. When some of my favorite characters were felled by the sword, I’d even get choked up and have a hard time reading aloud. The characters were definitely well-developed and descriptive! If you would rather have a lighthearted read before bedtime (battles and swords sometimes keep boys awake longer than they should be), Beverly Cleary’s Ramona the Pest and her other famous books are such fun to read aloud together. We loved reading Cleary’s books, many of which we’ve re-read numerous times. They are perfect for reading to younger children who enjoy looking at an occasional picture from the chapters.

Our all time favorite bedtime read is anything by Roald Dahl. You may recognize him as the author of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. We have never laughed so hard as when we are reading his books. If you haven’t read Dahl aloud, you are truly missing a family experience. Beware, some of his works may seem a bit off-color (James and the Giant Peach as well as The Witches are on the banned book list), but if you appreciate his type of humor, you have no choice other than to find every children’s book Dahl has ever published and read them over and over again (especially the funniest parts) and succumb to side-splitting laughter.

This year is my twenty-first year of homeschooling and I have come to realize over these years that there are three basic elements in education that a child needs to master in grammar school thru high school years. The first basic is math, the second is grammar, and the third is reading. Being proficient in those three things opens the door to learning everything thing else there is in life. Reading aloud, especially from a young age, develops a child’s vocabulary, helps them to develop an ear for sentence structure and proper grammar, and benefits them in their writing skills later on.  Being cuddled up and reading together before bedtime is one of the most pleasurable times of bonding for me with my kids; a habit I’ve formed over the past twenty-six years of being a mom to six. It is bittersweet knowing that in a few years I probably will not be reading aloud to my youngest boys anymore. I do have two grandchildren that I will read to, but nothing can replace the precious time I’ve spent with my own children reading aloud before bedtime.

This is my youngest son (Uncle Teddy) reading Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak, to my two-year old granddaughter, Amelia. They both seem to be enjoying the time together.

Here are some tips on making reading aloud enjoyable to your children:

Let them pick the books! It goes without saying that what a child enjoys will keep his attention. It may mean that you read the same book over and over again every night, but eventually the child will move on to other books. As my kids got older, I always decided with them what books we were going to read.

Get out to the library. What’s more fun than shelves and shelves of books that can be brought home for free?  Don’t forget to keep a book list or keep track online of the books you’ve borrowed, or that one book hiding under the bed may not be free anymore. I’ve learned that the hard way a couple of times.

Build your own home library. Go to library book sales and let the kids “go wild. Where else can you pick up a box of books for five dollars? We have found so many treasures at book sales, and have also donated our less favorite books back for future sales.

Find a cozy space to read. My kids always wanted to crowd into my bed. Now we have to read in our living room or it just doesn’t seem right. Kids are creatures of habit and a routine is always comforting.

Make reading aloud a routine. Maybe you can’t read right before bedtime due to a work schedule, but there should be some time set aside during the day that you can devote solely to your kids. Reading aloud is much more fun than the dirty dishes or a basket of unwashed laundry. Put the kids first. Shut the television off.  You will never be sorry.