Hello friends! Welcome back to Kouao Blogs. I know I’ve been missing in action for a while, so forgive me. I have officially pulled myself back together, and now I’m ready to get to work.
This year is all about the “why” for reading. We’re going to convince as many people as possible to become readers. Just call me your local reading advocate. This does not mean I am a professional in any way. I just know this is what has worked for my kids, and I'm sure it can work for yours too. Now that we have that out of the way, let’s get to it.
For this blog we are talking about three benefits of reading to your children. Of course, there are many, many more. But I just decided to stick to my favorite three. Here are the three benefits we will focus on:
- Improving vocabulary and language skills
- Stimulating the imagination
- Enhancing cultural awareness
Let’s get into these benefits!
- Improving Vocabulary and Language Skills
The first benefit of reading to your child is the ability to improve vocabulary and language skills. Reading is an excellent way to expand vocabulary and improve language skills. According to an article written by The Literacy Project, books for kids contain 50% more words than children would learn through conversation, TV, or radio. That’s 50%!! There’s something about actually seeing the words in print that clicks for young learners. They’re able to put together how it looks versus how it sounds.
You would be amazed at how well your learner could hold a conversation with you, because of the number of words they understand. If you need help getting your child excited about reading, it’s simpler than you think. READ TO THEM!! The more you read and engage with your children, the more excited they are about reading.
My suggestion is to start with shorter picture books that interest your learner. Maybe try finding a book about their favorite character, cartoon, or sport. There are literally books about everything out there. But if you can’t find a story you child likes, do what I do often: write your own.
- Stimulating the Imagination
The second benefit of reading to your child is the ability to stimulate their imagination. With so many people needing a getaway from the real world, reading is an excellent way to escape into another world full of new scenarios and events. This benefit is particularly positive for children. It boosts their imagination and creativity.
Can you imagine a child with no imagination?
Terrible, I know. A child with no imagination is a child that is not happy. Reading allows children (and adults alike) to put themselves in the story, imagine a world where they can do anything, and flourish in that creativity.
It is my goal to promote the community that prioritizes a big imagination and creativity in a way that pushes children into a more positive, more imaginative, more creative world.
We can do this together.
- Enhancing Cultural Awareness
The third benefit of reading to your child is the ability to enhance cultural awareness. When you read books about other cultures, you help your child become more well-versed in culture in general. You essentially help them to become more aware of the similarities and differences between the races. And you teach them the importance of respecting diverse perspectives.
I know this can be controversial for a lot of people, but is shouldn’t be. Cultural awareness allows us to be better neighbors, better friends, and better colleagues. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with children learning about other cultures. Nothing at all.
My suggestion is to make sure your child has a different book that represents each other culture in their home library. The worst that could happen is that your children learns something new in the process.
As we conclude, I hope that you’ve learned at least one new thing. Improving vocabulary and language skills, stimulating the imagination, and enhancing cultural awareness are all benefits of reading to your child. We’re not even saying you need to read a novel that has a million pages. One simple picture book each night is all that your child needs to improve their vocabulary.
P.S.
Moving forward, we are going to be intentional about being better advocates of reading. Our children need it. My goal is to reach a point where I can donate books on a regular basis to children who need them. You can always help us on this mission by purchasing a book(s) from our website. We will donate the book(s) to CHKD.
Love you guys! Thanks for the support and remember to 
