Make Reading Fun for Kids
Books are everywhere in my house, but rarely on the shelf where they belong. My children love to read when they are small (well they love when I read to them). They have their favorite books, the ones they always request. Strangely enough one of my daughters loved reading the “Learn to Potty” far past her actually potty training. I have noticed when they get a bit older sometimes reading doesn’t seem as fun. Sometimes reading can be frustrating, or seem like work since they work so hard in school. Keeping consistent, and encouraging your child to read will definitely help…but sometimes you just need a little help to make reading fun for kids.
I received compensation from Digimoo Studios in exchange for this post. All opinions are my own.
Here are a few tips to help make reading fun for kids.
Visit the Library
Head on over to the library. Go often! Many libraries have a dedicated children’s librarian. Use the librarian to find great book suggestions based on topics your kids love. We recently went to Disneyland, and the children’s librarian suggested a series of books that take place in Disneyland for my older girls. They loved them!
Read…All the Time!
It’s important to read every single day…even if it’s just a couple minutes at a time. Make it part of their naptime and bedtime routine. I also make it a point for my children to see me read. I tell them all the time if I’m reading a book I enjoy.
Talk About It
Reading comprehension is also a huge part of reading. During and after reading a story, talk with your child about what happened in the story. Talk about the pictures, ask them what they think will happen next. At the end of the story, ask them what they liked/disliked about the story.
Make it Come to Life
Use voices for characters in the book. Don’t be shy! No acting experience is needed, just have fun. Your child will love it. Use sound effects for the exciting parts or just for the simple things like doors opening, animals, cars, etc.
Switch it Up
Technology is amazing, and now you can also use it to help read to your child. So many different books and apps are available now for so many different ages. A super fun story app for kids over the age of 5 is Storm & Skye and the Secret of the Car Wash.
Storm & Skye The Secret of the Car Wash is the first episode in an exciting series following Storm & Skye. Your child will join them as they explore a whole new world found in an old car wash. A knight, a dragon…what else is in store?
Storm & Skye and the Secret of the Car Wash has nine chapter and each are around 5 minutes long. Filled with music and lively narration your child will be instantly enchanted. As the book plays, your child can interact with the scenes. Have them touch hot spots for silly or exciting sound effects. At the end of each chapter, an interactive scene that includes elements from the story can me played with and moved around. The story is heartwarming and includes beautiful illustrations. Storm & Skye and the Secret of the Car Wash will help stir your child’s imagination and love of books.
“All children love listening to a great story that stirs their imagination. It instills their love for reading, makes them better listeners and sparks their creative fantasy. Life is a story, and there’s no better way for children to deal with the challenges of this story than having the creative skills to approach them with an open and inventive mind. Parents these days unfortunately have less and less time to read to their children. We take it as our responsibility to put great, extensive storytelling on the map as an important and enjoyable part of children’s education.” says Barnier Geerling, director of Storm & Skye and the Secret of the Car Wash.
Storm & Skye and the Secret of the Car Wash was perfect addition to our ipad during our long car ride to California. Although I had seen screen shots before hand, I was still amazed by the illustrations (and animations!). Some of the scenes were absolutely stunning, one in particular reminded me of a certain movie by Peter Jackson. My daughter Sophie, 8, really enjoyed the story. She started out using her headphones, and soon enough, her sister Harley, 5, was asking to hear the story as well. I enjoyed the narrators voice, he reminded me of Jim Dale (great voice over actor) and he did a great job making the characters voices all different. My girls can’t wait to see what adventure Storm & Skye have next!
Storm & Skye and the Secret of the Car Wash is available for both iOS and Android devices. Look more more adventures with Storm & Skye in the future!
My daughter loves to read. She is just starting to learn how to put the letters together to start reading herself.
When my kids were younger, we always went to the library. It was one of our favourite activities to do. It was so fun to go home and read all the new books.
We have always loved visiting the library. It’s the perfect place to get lost in a book.
Great tips. My kids love visiting the library.
Storm and Skye look like so much fun! My kids love reading and we all love going to the library.
I love to read and tried to pass that love of reading onto my kids by reading to them often and making sure they could participate. Even simple things when younger like pointing out the pictures or making a game of can you find the…….
What fun ideas. Thank you. I’m lucky in that all three of my girls are becoming readers. Literacy is serious business. 🙂
We read together every night sometimes it is just a picture book or a chapter from a kids chapter book
Reading is so important for kids and making it fun can make it seem effortless for them
Yes! I used to take my kids to the library so often! There were always activities or new books on display there!
We Visit the Library weekly, and we also get them involved in reading programs, and they love the reading apps, and pop up books make it fun for them.
Great tips! Sometimes it is like pulling teeth to try to get my son to read a book after his homework. Hopefully these tips will make it easier!
To make it fun we used to take trips to some of the places we would read about. I remember Charlloettes Wen… we went to a farm and she looked for a talking spider! I tink aloo modeeling reading promotes reading.
I had to try an assortment of books before little man fell in love with a series. Now I have to beg him to stop reading and go to sleep 🙂 Thanks for sharing your tips.
I love your great ideas. Let me tell you that the library is my favorite. I take my son once a week. I wish that it were closer so that we could go more often.
These are great tips. It is so important to foster a love of reading EARLY!
My girls are not the biggest reading fans! I wish they were and always try to tell them about the adventures of reading.
My 16 month old grandson loves it when I read to him. And now I’m seeing him pick up books and babble as if he is reading to himself. It’s SO cute!
When I was a kid I used to love going to the library. With books so easily accessible on our devices now, this is definitely an experience that a lot of kids are missing out on.
My boys seriously LOVE going to the library. I am so happy that they love to read so much!
I love these idea’s! I know if we have kids I will read to them each night, that is something I didn’t get as a kid, and I want to do for mine! I think it really helps open up their imagination!