From the deep dark recesses of my computer.

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      As parents we all strive to help our children master the art of reading. It’s an important skill, a milestone of sorts. Once children are able to read, they have the ability to do in-depth learning about anything that is of interest to them.  They can use a dictionary, do online research, lose themselves in a great book or just follow instructions.  So, how can we encourage our children to enjoy reading?

     The old adage, “Read to them, read to them, read to them” is certainly one of the best ways to encourage a love of reading.  But of equal importance is making certain that your children are exposed regularly to the written word. For a child just beginning to understand the concept of the written word, an entire book might seem quite daunting. While your children should have books available to pick up as interest dictates, there are so many other options available for emerging readers to explore.

     Look around and you will see that our world is filled with words. “WALK”, “FOR SALE” and “EXIT” are common first words for beginning readers, only because they are so visible in our day to day travels.  Children seldom learn the word “STOP” from a book; they learn it because they see it regularly on that big red sign at the end of the road!

     You can point out other signs as you travel through your town.  They may have become unnoticeable to you, but the bright colors and different shapes may interest your child and help him to recognize the repetitive words.  Signs also offer diversity; our twenty-six letter alphabet can have many different looks, depending on the choice of font, case and style.  A child that is able to read “exit” may not be able to read “exit”. Exploring these differences encourages word recognition, and may even make your travel time seem shorter.

     Catalogs and magazines offer the opportunity to look at enticing pictures, and will encourage a child to ask “What does ____ spell?” in their effort to find out more about something that intrigues them.  I was quite surprised when my son Brad at age five was able to read the word “available” on a real estate sign.  When I asked how he knew that word, he told me he saw it in his Lego catalog, as in “not available in any store”.  He had seen this phrase often enough, that he began to recognize the individual words. There are a huge variety of catalogs and magazines available to consumers free for the asking.  You need not limit your choices to children’s publications, either.  Sporting goods, electronics or clothing magazines may be just the thing to pique your child’s interest. 

     Share maps with your child.  Provide local maps showing the streets in your town and help her to locate your home from a birds eye view.  Make sure your children have access to a map of your state, as well as your country and a world map or globe. If you travel, offer maps of your destination with the route highlighted. Find maps showing the layout of the city you plan to visit.  Even most campgrounds offer a map of their property and interesting hikes or natural features.  Make a point of showing your child the places you visited on the map.  And, let them look at the maps whenever they wish, in spite of their inability to ever fold it right again! 

     Invest in magnetic letters for the fridge.  Play with letter combinations, maneuvering and changing the letters around to create new words.  Graduate from these to magnetic words that can be combined to create entire sentences. A new sentence on the fridge in the morning may inspire your child to read a bit, even before breakfast.

     Creating a book for your child will personalize the process a bit.  Include your child in the process, if she is interested.  A silly story about your dog, cat or even the child herself can be a good starting point.  Have your child illustrate the tale and create a simple binding. This first book may inspire her to create additional stories for herself.  The bonus here, is that she is not only preparing a story that she can read later; she is also discovering the process of writing!

     Something else to consider: take the time to discover your child’s natural learning style.  It took quite a few years, but I have finally come to realize that my youngest son, Evan is an auditory learner.  He retains what he hears, often verbatim. When he was just learning to read, I could ask him how to spell the word ‘cat’ and he was able to phonetically sound out the word.  However, if he saw the word ‘cat’ it was painstaking to watch him try to sound it out.  Word recognition was very difficult for him.  He must have seen the word ‘and’ at least three hundred times before he could read it without sounding it out!

    Some children might have obstacles to overcome in their quest to conquer reading while others may come to it naturally.  If we can help guide them, taking each of their individual needs into account, learning to read can become a simpler and less stressful process than it is sometimes perceived to be. Regardless of our children’s learning style, allowing our children the freedom to choose their reading material – be it maps, catalogs or comic books – might just help them to see reading as a fun activity, rather than something to dread.

UPDATE: The boys are now 11 & nearly 14. They read voraciously, in spite of never had a real “lesson” in how to do it. A couple of years ago a teacher I know thought they were reading at high school level. I have no idea what level they are at now!