Read Aloud 101

One of my favorite sites, The Bookworm Club, recently shared a helpful
infographic with tips on how to make storytimes rich for children.


I think I've mentioned before that I had next to no experience with kids before having my own baby, and while I've loved reading my whole life, I only read for myself. Even reading my own work aloud for classmates in my creative writing MFA programs was a little difficult.

Now I read aloud to my son almost every day, and I've learned a lot about how to do that. Though he's too young to ask questions or interrupt the story, over time I've found myself stopping to point out things in the pictures, or ask "What's going to happen?" as I struggle to turn the page while hanging on to his wiggly self.

My 5-year-old stepson has gotten more interested in books with each visit to our house, and I love picking books I think he'd like. After going to the zoo, for example, I picked Put Me In the Zoo by Robert Lopshire. It was one of my favorites as a girl, and I loved seeing my stepson hop around and show off what he could do with his spots. When I recently read Knuffle Bunny to him, he spoke like baby Trixie for days afterwards as he played.

I love seeing how a simple story can influence children! I look forward to reading with my son as he grows, because my stepson was so eager to help turn pages and point out things in the illustrations and ask questions and make guesses about what would happen next. When reading to children, you're actually sharing the stories because you're presenting it to them, interacting with them as they understand what's being read to them, and get to see them delight in the book's world.

But I digress! The Bookworm Club's guide to reading aloud is fantastic and I felt like it needed to be shared, so I'm posting the image here (with permission). Please also check out their post about the tips, and take some time to peruse their excellent site!


Read Aloud 101