Page 21 - Ed guide 2022 Feb

How kids
benefit
from being
read to
Reading aloud to children is one of the joys of
parenting. All children, whether they’re infants,
toddlers or school-aged, can benefit from being
readto,andparentswhoseyoungstershavegrown
up often look back on story time as some of their
favorite moments as moms and dads.
Reading aloud to children is about more than just
establishing a bond between parent and child.
According to Reading Rockets, a national public
media literacy initiative, children as young as
infants can benefit from being read to. Infants
can look at pictures as their parents point to them
and say the names of the various objects within
them. By drawing attention to the pictures and
associating words with them and real-world
objects, parents are helping infants learn the
importance of language.
Kids of all ages can benefit from being read to, even
after they learn to read on their own. The following
are a handful of ways that reading aloud to children
can benefit them.
• Reading to children dramatically expands their
vocabulary. A 2019 study published in the Journal
ofDevelopmentalandBehavioralPediatricsfound
that young children whose parents read them
five books a day enter kindergarten having heard
roughly1.4millionmorewordsthankidswhowere
never read to. The disparity is even significant
when comparing kids who are periodically read
to each day with kids who are read five books
per day. Children who are read to daily may hear
slightly less than 300,000 words prior to entering
kindergarten, while those read five books per day
will hear more than 1.4 million words.
• Reading to children expands their imaginations.
The Northern Virginia Family Services reports
that research has shown that children who
activate their imaginations through being read to
develop higher activity in the area of their brain
that’s responsible for cultivating mental images
and deciphering and comprehending verbal cues.
That heightened activity bolsters youngsters’
imaginations and instills in them a greater
fondness for reading.
• Reading can help kids learn to focus. Parents
of young children no doubt know that such
youngstersrarelysitstillforanysignificantlength
of time. However, when being read to, young
children, even those who are initially reluctant to
engage in story time, will learn to sit still for the
duration of the book. That can help them learn
to focus, a benefit that will pay dividends when
children begin school.
• Reading to children can speak to children’s A Special Advertising Section of The Morning Call
interests or emotional needs. Reading Rockets
notes that children’s favorite stories may speak
totheiremotionalneedsandinterests.That’swhy
so many youngsters insist on reading a favorite
book over and over again. Though that’s often |
boring for parents, it can benefit youngsters, who
will eventually move on to other books.
Reading to children can benefit them in myriad Sunday, February 27, 2022
ways and provide a great way for parents to bond
with their youngsters.
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