5 Benefits of Reading To and With Your Kids

The Literacy Site and GreaterGood recently partnered with Coughlan Companies Community Fund to donate $250,000 worth of books to Philadelphia Reads.

This vital program sends kids home with books in an effort to increase the literacy rate within communities that test below national standard. Philadelphia Reads works with many corporate and individual volunteers to work one to one with children to improve literacy levels and foster a lifetime’s love of books.

Clearly, books and literacy play an important role in a child’s development.

Reading has amazing benefits for both kids and their parents. According to an article by Lori O’Keefe published in the American Academy of Pediatrics:

“A new AAP policy statement recommends that pediatric providers advise parents of young children that reading aloud and talking about pictures and words in age-appropriate books can strengthen language skills, literacy development and parent-child relationships.”

Here’s five ways reading together makes a big difference:

1. Build Relationships: Sharing the experience of reading a book together allows parent and child to create deeper bonds between them. Snuggling up with a book is a great way to spend time together and creates a unique, shared experience even as kids get older and “grow out of” cuddling .
2. New Experiences: When kids read, they get to experience new situations before they encounter them in real life. If a child is scared about attending kindergarten, reading about it beforehand can ease the transition. It’s also a great way for kids to experience diversity and branch out from the environment and culture they were raised in. Reading about and relating to the experiences of other people is extremely helpful in the development of empathy.
3. Improved Communication: Reading together allows kids to be exposed to an increased vocabulary, speech patterns and enunciation. This superior command of language also affords children better communication skills.
4. Improved Concentration:Sure, kids don’t typically like to sit still and listen, but by reading to them, parents can help their children learn to focus and discipline. Story time rewards kids for stronger self-discipline, longer attention spans, and better memory retention. No one wants to miss “the good part” because they were squirming!
5. A Lifetime’s Love of Books: It’s never too early to start showing kids the joy to be found in a book. Readers enjoy and amazing pastime and a recent study suggested that readers are the best people to fall in love with.

You can donate a book today to a U.S. child in need. Just ten dollars gives ten children in the United States their first books, and the opportunity to discover a lifelong love of learning.