I’m always looking for new ways to get books into my kids’ hands. I look for ways to sneak more books into their day.
Research shows the benefits for children who are read to— from the time they’re infants until they’re in their early teens—go well beyond setting them up for academic success. Reading builds empathy and imagination. It helps kids regulate their emotions and understand their world, and reading together promotes feelings of bonding and attachment.
So how do we raise kids who list “reading” as one of their favorite pastimes? Here are a few ideas I’ve put to work in my family’s routine to read more books:
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Frequent the Little Free Libraries in your town (or start your own!)
These are the wooden birdhouse-looking structures in front yards and community centers, labeled “Take a book, share a book.” In my trunk, I keep a bag of books my kids are ready to pass along, so we’re always ready to pull over and make a trade. We visit the same few little libraries week after week, and participating in this network of book-sharers feels a bit magical, like we’re secret book fairies. My kids get a kick when they notice the copy of Good Night, Gorilla we left the week before is gone—someone in our neighborhood has our old book!—and I’ve lost count of the number of books we’ve discovered in these book drops that are now treasured favorites. Check out this map to find a Little Free Library by you.
Read on the go
Use your commute to school or daycare to listen to a story. Stop by your library’s “read-along” section, and grab a few titles. Tell your kids these are special books just for the car. No CD player in your car? No problem. These days there’s no shortage of next-level story podcasts for children. The one in heaviest rotation in our car is Circle Round, which adapts folktales from around the globe. It’s voiced by Hollywood actors and features the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Next time you’re out running errands, cue up a story. You’ll be developing your kids’ comprehension skills, and they’ll learn a new vocabulary word or two.
Bring in books that correlate with your child’s current interests
Is your child obsessed with the music of Taylor Swift or Lin-Manuel Miranda? Why not delve into her fascinations at the library? When my daughter started kindergarten, she was curious about her school mascot—a bobcat. I found every book on bobcats at our local library, (there were more than I expected!) and she eagerly listened to me read each one. Is your little one starting a new sport, about to get his first haircut, or enthralled by the trash truck? Let him explore his world through non-fiction books. If you don’t know where to start, ask a librarian for help to you find specific interest books.
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Put some extra intention into their bedtime reading routine
In her book Reading Magic, literacy expert and children’s author, Mem Fox, suggests parents aim for a bedtime routine with three books: one favorite, one familiar, and one new. I used this formula when my girls were very young, and have since adapted it to include the following: something recently published, something I read as a child, a non-fiction book, and a picture book with dreamy illustrations.
Explore a variety of genres, and think beyond the obvious. You could flip through a cookbook together, and have your child put sticky notes on recipes she wants to make. You could complete a few pages of a Where’s Waldo or an I Spy book. Or, why not work your way through a collection of fairy tales, or biographies? I’ve been adding in a poem or two (E.E. Cummings, Langston Hughes, and Shel Silverstein have some great ones for kids), or an age-appropriate story from the Bible. Vary the reading material at bedtime, and watch what resonates with your child.
Let your kids catch you reading, then ask them to join you
One night, my first grader woke up after a bad dream. She stumbled sleepily out of her room and found me on the couch, reading. “Go find a book,” I whispered, and patted the blanket tucked around me. “You can come sit with me for a bit.” We read together in dim light and silence for a stretch of time, and then I carried her back to her bed. The next morning she asked if we could read together like that again soon. Of course! I said, then inwardly, How have I never thought of this before?!
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Visit your library’s used book sale
Many libraries have a section of donated books for sale, or an entire bookstore. At our local library, kids’ books are often priced at a quarter or 50 cents. I give my kids a dollar each and let them pick out and pay for their own books, and the rush of excitement and pride from this activity always translates to enthusiasm to read their new purchases.
Subscribe to kids’ magazines
Remember the thrill of getting mail as a kid? Highlights magazine is still a classic, and flipping through its pages every month with my daughters always makes me feel like I’m a kid again. Highlights has an edition for babies, one for preschoolers, and a bilingual version as well. These are great to stash in your car to keep your little ones happy on longer rides. Apple News+ also offers a selection of children’s magazines. Ranger Rick, Animal Tales, and Girls’ Life are some of my kids’ favorites, and letting them scroll through magazines on an iPad is a way to give them some quality screen time.
Tuck books in various corners around your home
Make sure their reading material isn’t just relegated to a shelf in their room. Spread out books around the house—on the coffee table, in a basket in the corner of the living room, anywhere their little hands can reach. Choose ones about an upcoming holiday or season, or that expand on a topic they’re learning in school, and watch your kids pick up a book when they have some downtime.
Use their artwork as bookmarks
I keep the books I’m reading scattered around the house, and I use my kids’ drawings and scraps of art as bookmarks. This sounds so simple, but for my kids, it’s created a strong positive association with books.
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9 Great Ways
And there you have it! 9 great ways to sneak more books into your kids’ lives. I hope this helps you foster a love of reading in your family.
