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Continue your toddler’s love of books
18 January 08Books open up amazing new worlds and experiences for your toddler, and stories help him develop speech, imagination and even counting skills. Reading books together has probably become a much loved ritual from when he was a baby, so continue your toddler's love of books and reading.
Stifle your yawns if you've read the same book every night for the last month and your child still wants to hear it again – repetition is a hallmark of the toddler years. The reason children love to read the same stories over and over is that they're so thirsty to learn. And you may find that your toddler has memorised his favourite passages and is eager to supply key phrases himself; both signs of increasing readiness to read.
To encourage his love of reading, choose books about his favourite activities like swimming at the beach or playing at the park. Or back up his favourite videos and TV shows with books about the characters. Follow his lead in what he's interested in, as well as experimenting with a wide variety of books. You may be surprised what sorts of stories your toddler enjoys hearing! Make storytelling a part of life: tell stories while you're in the car or at the dinner table. Mix it up with classic tales like Goldilocks and the Three Bears, and anecdotes from your own childhood. Toddlers also love when you make up stories that feature them as the central character.
Library story-hours are also wonderful experiences for toddlers, as well as a great opportunity for social interaction for parents and toddlers alike. And of course libraries allow you to take home dozens of different books without spending a cent! Another way to keep your child interested in stories is to involve your toddler in telling the story. He's interested in stories that produce reactions, and with enough repetition he can eventually "pretend" to read the entire story to you.
Here's some tips how to help your toddler “become the story”:
· Provide actual objects of the ones mentioned in the book. Use real stuffed animals, musical instruments, or little plastic boats.
· Demonstrate the action words. If it's a story about a boat, rock back and forth. Or if it's a plane, stand up and pretend to zoom around the room.
· Sing a favourite song in a section, like "Wheels on the Bus," for a book about trucks.
· Build anticipation and ask, "What's next?" before you turn the page.
· Substitute your toddler's name for the main character of the story.
· Put together a photo-story of a typical day for your toddler. Take pictures in the morning as you go through the rituals of his day. Sit with your toddler and tell the story about what's happening from one picture to the next.