Reading aloud to your child lays the foundation for literacy development and is widely regarded as the single most important activity for reading success. Not only does it allow a connection to be made between the written and spoken word, but it also serves as a demonstration of fluent reading. Even as your child starts reading on her own, reading aloud to her is still extremely beneficial. Since she can listen to more difficult books than she can read, it exposes her to more complex ideas and vocabulary than she’d get by reading on her own.
If you’re struggling to find time to read to your child as much as you’d like, try one of our library’s most amazing (and free!*) resources, TumbleBook Library. This website, filled with tons of picture books and short chapter books, allows your child to follow along with the words of a book as it’s being read to her. While it’s not quite as cozy as that one-on-one time with mom or dad, listening to a book this way is a great alternative on those busy days!
*The Washington-Centerville Public Library subscribes to TumbleBooks, which allows you to use it for free! This means that you need to use the link on our website (rather than going to the TumbleBook Library website directly). Just go to http://kids.wclibrary.info/read/ and click on the Tumblebooks icon to get started. You’ll need to enter your name and library card number, and then you’re off and running!
