Books My Children Love

Reading with your child can be a very fun, rewarding, and educational experience for you and them. But how do you read to your child effectively (make it a learning experience without it feeling like one)?

How to Effectively Read with Your Children:

Point at Pictures or Words in the Book-This helps your child to follow the story as you read. It also teaches them how to read from left to right.
Explain Pictures or Words- If you have a younger child, ask them to point to pictures on the page. If you come across a word you don’t often use, ask your child if they know the meaning and explain it to them.
Use Lots of Expression- This helps keep their interest and makes it fun! It also helps them know when different characters are speaking.
Talk About the Story Together- Let them stop you to ask questions during a story if they need to. Talk about their favorite parts of the book, the characters, setting, or something they learned.
Let Them “Read” to You- Even if they don’t know how to read, let them retell the story to you or make up their own story. This builds their imagination, memory skills, and confidence.
Know When to Stop- If you see your child has lost interest in a story, you can stop reading to them. Don’t make them sit and listen because then reading will become boring.
Challenge Them With a Chapter Book- Your children might be interested in chapter books younger than you think. We started reading a chapter of a chapter book when my youngest was 2 years old—she enjoyed finding the pages with pictures and would pick up on key parts of the story. I’ve listed some good starting chapter book series below.

Below are a few books we have loved reading in our home! I listed them by ages, but really you can mix and match books that best fit your child’s age, interests, and reading level.