Your home may be full of joy, intense bouts of activity, and endless, curious questions about the world as your preschooler zips from one room to the next in search of a new toy, a new thing to taste, or for answers to his innocent questions. Cherish these moments as they grow up in a blink of an eye and encourage their remarkable minds, after all they have so much to learn and discover. As curiosity meets imagination, one of the best ways to stimulate their minds is by inculcating a reading habit early on.
With a plethora of reading comprehension strategies now available to parents, helping little children set a reading habit won’t take much time or effort. However, the benefits are endless.
Benefits of Reading for Preschoolers
- As reading and reading comprehension strategies expose children to a rich and diverse vocabulary and even syntax and grammar structures, it helps familiarize themselves with language patterns.
- The more a child reads, the more it helps stimulate his brain. This further aids cognitive development along with sharpening other skills such as an increased attention span, problem-solving skills, and social conversing skills.
- Reading books and especially, reading words out loud helps children hone their communication skills, whether at home or at school. It aids them in expressing their thoughts and feelings more lucidly.
- As books and storytelling introduce children to new worlds, scenarios, and characters, it encourages them to explore new narratives and ideas, further strengthening their imagination and creativity.
- Almost all children’s books come backed with a moral. They often tackle and explore feelings, emotions, and the difference between right and wrong. Reading can help children with emotional development and coping strategies.
- As the world becomes more connected by the day, introducing children to global and cohesive literature is the need of the hour. Books that celebrate all religions, ethnicities, cultures, and perspectives help create awareness and understanding at an early age.
Now that we’ve taken a brief look at the benefits of reading for preschoolers, it’s time to jump into some helpful ways for how to improve the reading skills of a child.
6 Techniques to Enhance Reading Comprehension
- Create the ambience
- Set a Standard Reading Time for Them
- Show Them
- Choose a Variety of Literature
- Use Technology
- Visit the Library
- Always Celebrate Milestones
Do you like your workstation clean with a piping hot cup of coffee right next to you when you need to tackle a particularly hectic workday? If yes, it only goes to show that our surroundings matter. The same is the case for children. Just as you dim the lights and draw the curtains to prepare them for bedtime, creating a reading-friendly environment is the first step. Find a quiet corner in the house and create a reading nook with cozy cushions and seating and good lighting. You can also throw in a bowl of your child’s favorite snacks to make it an even more enjoyable experience for them.
If a child wants to read throughout the day or even into the night, it may not be the wisest thing to do. It may affect their school, play, meals, and nap time. Most parents like to set aside about half an hour after dinner and before bed for their children to catch up on their reading. Remember that it shouldn’t feel like a forced task for them but an enjoyable activity. If your child doesn’t take to reading immediately, try again after a few days.
Children learn everything by mimicking our actions and behaviors, so we must practice what we preach. Make some time in the day for yourself to catch up on some reading, even if it may not be a book. A magazine, a newspaper, a comic book, or even a children’s book. To make things more enjoyable for your child, you can make reading a shared activity. Allow the child to make mistakes when pronouncing a new or tough word and correct them whenever necessary.
If you only enjoy a particular genre as an adult, it means that you’ve sifted through many genres to settle on one. Give your child the freedom to make this choice for himself too. Choose books with different illustration types, different tones of voice, and the like. Interactive books with varied textures, pop-ups, pull-out animations can make the experience more stimulating. When reading stories, use different voices for different characters, add eccentricity to the way the characters talk, and even add sound effects to keep your child engaged and alert.
While most parents are averse to any screen time for their kids, incorporating some technology to make reading a fun habit may not be a bad idea. There are plenty of interactive e-books and educational apps specifically designed for preschoolers. You may also try age-appropriate educational websites and platforms that help improve the reading skills of a child.
No, libraries aren’t a thing of the past and a library membership is one of the best gifts you can give your child. In the library, your choice of books are not limited and allowing your child to pick a book of his choice also gives him a sense of independence. Your child will be very excited to read a book of his choosing. If your child has an artistic side to him, carry drawing and coloring material along too. Encourage your child to draw or write about the stories they read and they may also look at other books for reference or inspiration.
Acknowledge your child’s milestones–big or small. Whether it’s finishing a book, remembering a difficult word, learning a new word and using it in his vocabulary, children are eager to receive positive reinforcement.
EuroKids encourages reading everyday for preschoolers and our curriculum is designed as such to stimulate and invigorate young minds. We motivate our brilliant young minds to dream big, to stay curious, and to inspire others around with their extraordinary imagination and storytelling powers. For more such interesting blo
