Learning how to read to your kids is a skill we often take for granted. You open the book. You sound out the words. They listen. Easy, right?
It's not difficult to read to your kids, but how you do it can make a big difference in whether the love of reading takes root. There are few better at it than Fort Smith's very own Tiffany DeVries. Tiffany is a librarian at the Miller Branch of the Fort Smith Public Library. Her Story Break series on Facebook and YouTube are very popular and pretty much kept us parents sane during the pandemic.
Macaroni Kid recently had the privilege of picking her brain about the reading process, particularly as it relates to how to read to your kids. She was more than generous!
1) How soon should parents start reading to their children?
Start reading to your children yesterday. By that I mean – do not wait. There is not a “too young to be read to” in my opinion. I started reading to my daughter (Amelia) before she was even born. While I was pregnant, I read her “Oh, Baby, the Places You’ll Go! A Book to Be Read in Utero,” adapted by Tish Rabe from the works of Dr. Seuss. It was a way for me to connect to the growing child inside of me. When she was a newborn, I read to her whatever I was reading – the news, a magazine, books. She may not have understood anything I was saying, but that was not the point. Communicating with your child is important at all ages, and I think that this was an excellent way for me to adapt to communicating with a new child.
It essentially opened the communication door to me, and it made her accustomed to being read to from the very beginning. When my daughter was a few months old, I started introducing board books to her. One of our favorite board book authors was Sandra Boynton. The silly, rhyming stories are completed with adorable illustrations that caught my daughter’s eyes. I have a video of her attempting to “read” Boynton’s book “Moo, Baa, La La La” when she was not even a year old. (Side note: I sent the video to the author and received a sweet response from her daughter in return.) So, if you are not reading to your child yet, there is no better time than now to start.
2) What are the benefits you have most enjoyed from reading to Amelia?
Amelia LOVES to read and be read to. I attribute a lot of her adoration of books to the fact that she has never known a time without books. From the beginning, they were just part of her life. A love of books is something that we both share and has been a way for us to bond. I love snuggling up with her and a book and us taking turns reading to each other.
3) What are some reading tips that can help build engaged readers from an early age?
Choosing appropriate books helps. For example, do not read a long book about trucks to a child who hates trucks and can only sit still for a smaller book. The length and subject of the book are very important. When children start reading independently, be sure and choose books that have a lot of site words and are repetitive. You want to build their confidence, so try to find books that your child will know most of the words on a page, with a few challenging words mixed in. I like to recommend the five-finger rule when finding a book for a new reader: pick a book and have the child try to read a page.
For each word they do not know, hold up a finger. At the end of the page, see how many fingers are held up. If 0-1 fingers are up, the book is too easy; 2-3 is a perfect choice; 4 you may want to give it a try; and 5+ will be too difficult. A couple of excellent book series for new readers is the Dear Dragon series by Margaret Hillert and the Elephant and Piggie series by Mo Willems – a very funny author! Find books that your child will be interested in. What do they like - fire trucks, princesses, dinosaurs? Whatever they are interested in, I bet there is a librarian who can find some books on that subject.
4) How does your approach to reading to your child change as she gets older?
Over the past seven years of motherhood, my approach to reading to my child has changed a lot. I have gone from reading to my belly, to reading whatever I could find to a newborn, to reading simple, and short, board books, to longer and more engaging picture books, to simple beginner reader books, to early chapter books, and now to chapter books. As your child gets older and more independent, reading will also change. Books will become longer, topics of interest will transform, children will begin reading to themselves. The one constant, though, is… reading.
5) What are some suggestions if you are not a strong reader, but you know the importance of it and want your children to do better than you did?
I think family reading time is a great start. Bath, brush (your teeth), and books has always been our nighttime routine. Incorporate a time for reading every day and stick to it. Even if it is just for 15 minutes a night – do this for your family. What great memories you will create! My daughter and I have so enjoyed those times together. You could also listen to audiobooks together in the car. The Fort Smith Public Library has audiobooks available on CD and digitally through Library2Go and Hoopla. Are you finally going on a summer vacation this year? Bring along a family audiobook and listen on your road trip!
Tiffany DeVries has served patrons of Fort Smith libraries since 2012. Her background in business and marketing shows through in her video series. She's funny, creative, and so enthusiastic about books that it brings a smile to your face. (And more importantly, your child's!) Check out more from the Fort Smith Public Library here.
