1. Bonding – Reading is a nice way to spend time together and wonderful opportunity to connect with your child.
2. Listening Skills – Comprehension is dependent on paying attention. Reading aloud builds listening skill for children. You can add voices, puppets and movement. Books on tape are a great addition for your reading time.
3. Attention Span – Helps develop concentration and self-discipline. Regular reading gets children listening and sitting still longer periods of time. Listening to a book builds memory retention skills.
4. Expanded Vocabulary – Helps expand the number and variety of words used. Descriptive words and specific names of things used more often.
5. Social Emotional Skill – Reading helps to cope with stressful and difficult experiences. It gets conversations going and shows children their feelings are normal.
6. Life Lessons – Real-world situations in an age-appropriate way. Children enjoy books that feature children in their age range, modeling things they do every day.
7. Creativity – Reading serves to help further their imagination. It is important to developing interest and ideas to help children think outside the box, which benefits their emotional health as well.

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Alberta “Teacher Bibi” Walker
Master Teacher
FranDelJA Enrichment Center