Reading with your child or grandchild is a great way for the child to learn and for both
of you to have a wonderful time.

Since I was a young girl, I have had a love of books. My parents provided me with a large assortment of reading material from the classics such as "Goldilocks and the Three Bears" to the then contemporary "Green Eggs and Ham" (that should date me). My mother was an English teacher, so she knew the importance of reading to her children. Still I wonder if she realized the full impact that exposure to literature has on a child's imagination, vocabulary, and ability to read alone.

Ample studies now show the benefits of reading can be gained as early as infancy. Advantages include teaching the melody and intonation of our language. Even before your child becomes a toddler, you can teach the mechanics of reading such as how to hold a book, turning the pages gently, and reading from left to right and from the front of the book to the back of the book. As your child approaches the preschool years, he can start to recognize that letters make up words and that the words make up sentences of different structures. Knowing how important literacy is, you may be wondering, "How do I introduce reading to my child?" It is important to set aside a daily reading time in a quiet location. Remember to turn off the TV or radio, thus reducing distractions and allowing you to talk with your child about the story and its pictures.

As your child matures, reading takes on additional roles. You can encourage your child to read not only for pleasure but also for information. Ask your child to find information from the Yellow Pages, the Internet, cookbooks, etc. If your child has a particular interest, such as soccer or horseback riding, help him to research it. In addition, as his reading improves, encourage your child to read to other young members of the family including brothers, sisters, and/or cousins. In doing so, your child or grandchild further develops oral reading skills.

Some children may appear to read well but fail to have an understanding of the story. To check your child's reading comprehension, ask a lot of questions about the story. Good questions include: "Does this book remind you of any thing that has happened to you? Which is your favorite character? Why? Does this story remind you of any others you have read? Can you guess what is going to happen next? How do you think the character feels?"

Most importantly, you can encourage your child to read by being an avid reader yourself. Don't think you need to be reading Hemingway or Steinbeck to set a good example. In our house, I love to read novels, while my husband prefers magazines and newspapers. In this way our daughter is exposed to a variety of reading materials. We often take Maggie to the library or a bookstore when we are looking for something new to read. She loves these outings and has quickly learned how to return and check out library books and where the children's literature section is at the bookstore. It's exciting for me to find the books that I read and loved as a child and to share them with my daughter. As my mother did for me, I'm hoping through my example that I will be able to develop in Maggie a lifetime love affair with reading.

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