Benefits of reading and storytelling with children and babies
Reading and storytelling to babies and children at Kool Kidz childcare is an every day occurrence and part of the Kool Kidz curriculum but it shouldn’t stop there as reading to your child/children is a great way to bond with them and help them grow up with a love of books. It’s also a perfect way to spend time together as a family. Reading to your child is an activity that you can do at any time, which lays the foundation for good communication skills, critical thinking and problem solving.
Reading to children and babies can have many benefits;
It helps them develop a love of books
Reading to your child from an early age will help them develop a love of books. Children who are read to every day from birth onwards will learn that books are fun and exciting. They will want to spend time with you reading books and storytelling together – which is great for building strong parent-child relationships.
Improved communication skills
Do you know that the development of communication skills begins even before an infant is born, as the voices of his/her mother can be heard from inside the womb. Once a child is born, he/she is able to respond to the sound of this familiar voice as studies have shown new born infants recognise the sound of their mother’s voice at birth (Berk 2003).
Children also respond to sounds of the human voice in particular the pitch and rhythm of their own native language. It is therefore important for parents and guardians to continue to foster the development of language in children from early infancy through reading and storytelling.
Improves their vocabulary and language skills
Reading aloud also develops vocabulary skills in young children. By hearing new words being used frequently they will pick up these words naturally when they start talking themselves.
Stimulates their imagination and creativity
Reading and storytelling also stimulates imagination by allowing children to use their imaginations while listening to stories being read aloud by parents or other caregivers. Babies and toddlers love colours and pictures and reading about characters that don’t exist. This fills their imagination with possibilities and scenarios in their head of their magical world.
Enabling children to build their sense of identity
Children build their sense of identity as they use their home language to construct strong foundations in both the culture and language/s of their family and of the broader community. They are able to communicate their needs for comfort and assistance and express their feelings and ideas in their interactions with others. Children respond to language as they listen and respond to sounds and patterns in speech, stories and rhymes in context. As they interact with others to explore ideas and concepts, they learn to convey and construct messages with purpose and confidence, building on literacies of home/family and the broader community. This exchange of ideas, feelings and understandings using language and representations in play builds confidence. Children will actively use, engage with and share the enjoyment of language and texts in a range of ways and take on roles of literacy users in their play. Children begin to develop an understanding that symbols are a powerful
Join us this National Simultaneous Storytime
A perfect time to read to your child is during this year’s National Simultaneous Storytime* will be held on May 24th at 11am and this year’s selected book could not be any cuter. ‘The Speedy Sloth’ written by Rebecca Young and illustrated by Heath McKenzie is about celebrating all winners especially those who don’t come first.
Various Kool Kidz early learning services will participate in National Simultaneous Storytime by reading the ‘Speedy Sloth’ to children of all ages from babies to the Kinder children at our childcare centres throughout Melbourne. It’ll be a great time for the educators to bond with the children.
https://www.alia.org.au
*National Simultaneous Storytime (NSS) is held annually by the Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA). Every year a picture book, written and illustrated by an Australian author and illustrator, is read simultaneously in libraries, schools, pre-schools, childcare centres, family homes, bookshops and many other places around the country. Now in its 23nd successful year, it is a colourful, vibrant, fun event that aims to promote the value of reading and literacy, using an Australian children’s book that explores age-appropriate themes, and addresses key learning areas of the National Curriculum for Foundation to Year 6.
