We all know the importance of reading to your children when they are young. Or do we?
Studies have proven that reading to our children starting when they can’t read for themselves and encouraging them to read throughout their childhood is critical for their future development and success. Here are a few of the reasons why reading is critical to a child’s development:
- Reading prepares your child for school.
- Reading will improve your child’s vocabulary and spelling.
- Reading improves a child’s advancement in the educational system.
- Reading fosters a love for books.
- Reading helps children learn how to deal with the stresses of life.
There are other reasons – perhaps less well known – why reading to your children is vital to their development. According to Teach Reading Early, teaching your child to read at an early age will have the following advantages:
If we think back to our own lives, didn’t reading improve our grades, vocabularies, and opportunities that extended beyond the classroom? It’s difficult to imagine anyone pursuing college degrees who haven’t had a passion for reading or an interest in exploring new ideas.
We learn through words, which in turn teach us how to be express ourselves accurately and interact with others with grace in the world. I imagine few people succeed academically who haven’t embraced reading as an important activity in their lives.
The Benefits of Reading to Your Children
If we want to ensure that our children enjoy academic successes and are properly prepared to meet the world, it’s important to read to them as early as possible. Here are some additional reasons, as noted by Teach Reading Early.
It is now known that reading helps a young child’s brain to develop. During the first six years of a child’s life, he or she learns at a faster pace than at any other time in his or her life and grows vital connections in the brain. The connections made during this period of a person’s life form the basis of future learning and intellectual ability.
Reading can impart a love of learning and can lead to higher grades. In fact, several studies now indicate that strong oral language skills are the basis for literacy development. In addition, proficiency in reading enables children to comprehend more of what they are reading whether it’s an article from a magazine or data they’ve researched on a website.
Studies indicate that when a parent reads to a child, that child will grow in self-confidence and independence. In fact, reading can promote greater maturity and increased discipline.
Early readers will not feel shunned when they enter school. Instead, they will have more opportunities to relate to their peers with greater confidence while possibly being recognized for superior accomplishments.
Early readers have improved linguistic skills in the form of a richer vocabulary, correct grammar, improved writing skills, better spelling abilities, and over time they become more articulate.
At what age did you start reading to your children?