10 Tips to Help Kids Love Reading

First 5 San Diego launched its “Read Early, Read Aloud” campaign this November. First 5 sees that poor literacy skills is one of the major challenges facing school systems today, but child development experts have found that reading aloud to children before they start school better prepares them for academic achievement and helps cultivate a love of reading, a vital foundation for learning.

First 5 sent out their tips that would help kids to love reading, and I believe those tips can be tweaked to make kids love math as well. The tips are:

• Read to your child every day for at least 30 minutes in total.
• Spend time talking about the pictures in the book before turning the page.
• Try reading for a few minutes at a time; children may only sit for a short time for a story.
• Read favorite stories again and again. Seek out books about things your child likes.
• Tell your child how much you enjoy reading with him or her. Talk about story time as the favorite part of your day.
• Make the story come alive. Act out the character roles or sing about the pictures.
• Read slowly enough for your toddler to understand.
• Ask questions about the story and let your child ask and answer questions, too.
• For infants, choose simple and colorful cloth and vinyl books with bright colors.
• For preschoolers, choose books with repetition and rhyme.