Originally published by Scholastic Parents on May 26, 2022<\/em> Children don\u2019t become avid readers overnight. To grow curious about the world and develop an appetite for learning, it\u2019s essential that children be immersed in reading behaviours and material at home. After all, children spend the majority of their waking hours outside the classroom. So it\u2019s up to those caregivers who \u201cbookend\u201d the school days to foster a literacy-forward environment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cFamilies, communities, childcare programs all need to serve as reading role models for children,\u201d says Jenni Brasington, national director of Family and Community Engagement (FACE) at Scholastic Education. \u201cThe more we strengthen families\u2019 capacity and confidence to support literacy development at home, the better outcomes will be.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The good news is, it\u2019s easy to be a reading role model for your child with these three strategies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Children learn from modeling. Setting an example for your child as a lifelong reader will leave a vast impression.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhen children see adults reading a variety of books in the home, they are more likely to mirror that behaviour,\u201d says Judy Newman, executive vice president and president of Scholastic Book Clubs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Don\u2019t worry if you\u2019re not picking up a book every day. Your children can learn vocabulary and comprehension skills through materials like newspapers, magazines, or even cereal boxes and recipes!<\/p>\n\n\n\n “I never saw my dad read a book, but he read the newspaper every day and always shared the comics with me,\u201d says Brasington. \u201cTo this day, the first thing I reach for when I get a newspaper is the comics. The point is, parents can find a way to see themselves as readers \u2014 even with non-traditional literacy materials \u2014 and share or model this with their child.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Use books as an opportunity to bond with your child.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Discuss your child\u2019s interests, which are constantly changing, and guide them to books that speak to these interests.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Parents of frequent readers are 50 percent more likely than parents of infrequent readers to tout reading books for fun as important, according to the Scholastic Kids and Family Reading Report<\/em>. And children sense the encouragement: More than 82 percent of frequent child readers ages 6 to 17 say nearly everyone they know reads, versus 34 percent of infrequent readers who can say the same.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This active participation in your child\u2019s reading life may mean the difference between a frequent or infrequent reader down the line.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As children grow and begin to read independently, they will explore different types of reading formats, like chapter books and graphic novels. It\u2019s important to provide your child steady access to a variety of titles as their curiosity guides them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cReading books from different genres aloud can only strengthen a child\u2019s interest in varied types of texts,\u201d Newman says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Similarly, your young reader may choose a book that is just above their reading level. No problem: Seize the moment and carve out time for a read-aloud. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIf your child chooses a book that is above their reading level, you can support them by reading it orally,\u201d Brasington says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However you model reading engagement for your child, remember that reading can be practiced anywhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt\u2019s not so much about quantity, but how often we utilize the books and other literacy materials we have,\u201d Brasington says.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" You can easily show your commitment to reading, even if you don\u2019t regularly dive into novels yourself. Originally published by Scholastic Parents on May 26, 2022Versioned for Scholastic Canada Children…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":717,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[5,6,7,10,11],"class_list":["post-713","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-reading-tips","tag-book-clubs","tag-book-fairs","tag-parents","tag-reading-aloud","tag-reading-fluency"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n
<\/em>Versioned for Scholastic Canada<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\nRead, read, read \u2014 even if it\u2019s not always a book.<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Use books as an opportunity to bond with your child.<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Provide access to books.<\/h3>\n\n\n\n