Parents are the busiest people on the planet. Managing your own life along with keeping up to the needs of small children is overwhelming. Raising happy, healthy children is always top of mind for parents. 

Then there’s the educational piece. There’s a lot of pressure to make sure you prepare your child for academics and to become a responsible, contributing adult. You’re told that your child’s brain is rapidly developing and it needs to be stimulated, but just keeping up to their physical and emotional needs is leaving you exhausted. 

Don’t despair! What if we told you there are three things you can focus on that will help your child build a strong foundation for learning. We’ll get to that soon, but first of all, we want to acknowledge some of the barriers you might be facing that are making it challenging for you.

Common Barriers to Reading Together

Dr. Clare Crosh is a primary care and academic pediatrician at Advocate Children’s Hospital in Oak Lawn, Illinois. Her research interests include early childhood education, health equity, and shared reading. Through her practice, Dr Crosh helps parents understand the benefits of reading to their child beginning at birth. 

Dr. Crosh’s research shows that even though parents know it’s important to read to their baby, they said they didn’t have enough time and/or resources were limited. Some parents were also facing mental health challenges or thought it was too early to begin reading. Other barriers faced by parents include financial challenges, feeling socially isolated, and experiencing physical health issues. 

If you are facing challenges, we hear you. We encourage you to prioritize your own well being. Reach out to your local health care provider and seek support from family, friends, and your local community. Let go of the things in life that seem pressing, but won’t really matter over time. Be kind to yourself and do whatever you can to take care of you, so you have energy for your little one. 

Why Reading With Your Child is Important 

Research shows that 90% of a child’s brain is developed before their 5th birthday. During the first few years of life, brain connections are growing rapidly. The connections that get a lot of use become stronger and others that are not used are pruned away. That’s why the early years are so important for setting your child up for future success in school and in life.

Now, let’s get on with those three things you need to focus on to build a strong foundation for learning: 

1. Make reading a part of everyday life
2. Teach letter sounds
3. Build background knowledge

5 Simple Ways to Make Reading Part of Daily Life

Dr. Crosh and co-author Arin Gentry wrote a book for parents called, You Can Read to Me. It’s a sweet story with photographs of diverse families reading with their infants. Dr. Crosh recognizes the barriers faced by parents and the need to help parents overcome challenges. She also highlights how beneficial reading is for babies and parents. Shared reading supports brain development and builds strong parent-child bonds. 

Use the following ideas to make reading a part of everyday life. 

1. Place books in multiple locations around the house
2. Read to your child during feeding time or while you supervise bath time
3. Carry books in your travel bag, so you can read while waiting for appointments or enjoying a snack break at the park
4. Read environmental print such as signs, product labels, menus, mail and messages, and instructions for games, toys, and household items
5. Encourage other family members or friends to read to your child. This is a great way for older siblings to bond with baby, while practicing their own reading skills.

Reading exposes your child to hundreds of words that they would not hear during everyday conversations. This exposure helps them build a large vocabulary and strong brain connections for learning to talk and express their thoughts and ideas. It also prepares them for learning to read and being successful in school.  

Tips for Teaching Letter Sounds and Shapes

We are surrounded by print. Drawing attention to print in everyday life is a great way to introduce your child to the alphabetic system needed for learning to read. This brings us to our second point which is about teaching your child letter sounds. English is based on an alphabetic code. Your child needs to know the code to be able to read.

Singing, humming, reading, and talking help your baby hear the sounds of language. English has approximately 44 of these unique sounds called phonemes. Your child will need to know these distinct sounds and learn how they connect to letter shapes in order to read. It’s never too early to focus on the sounds of reading. Your baby will love interacting with you while you are singing and talking to them.

You can teach your child letter sounds through playful learning using our Alphabites Game Pack. Grab your pack and get started today!

For toddlers and preschoolers, it’s helpful to draw attention to letters and words while reading with them or viewing environmental print. Explain how the letter shapes help you know the sounds to make to read the words. Draw out the sounds in a word to help your child hear each of them.

For example: Say /sss/ /uuu/ /nnn/ to help your child hear the three individual sounds in the word sun or /shhh/ /eee/ /p/ for sheep. Sun has 3 letters and 3 phonemes. Sheep has 5 letters that represent 3 phonemes. 

Learn more about this essential skill in our post on Phonemic Awareness.  

Building Your Child’s Background Knowledge Through Experiences

A new baby can make it really challenging to keep up with everything that needs your attention. That’s why we encourage you to prioritize your own well being, so you have the strength and energy to care for your baby. Even if you can’t get out of the house on a regular basis, reading to your baby is a great way to begin to build the rich background knowledge your child needs to grow strong brain connections. 

Books contain beautiful illustrations and thoughts and ideas that help your child learn about the world without leaving the comforts of home. There are so many wonderful board books that make great gifts for babies. Let friends and family know that you value books and reading and appreciate them as gifts. 

Your local library is a wonderful source of books. Many libraries also offer classes for parents and babies. These are great opportunities for you and baby to socialize with others around shared activities and books. Some neighborhoods have “Free Libraries” with treasured books waiting for someone to take them home. You can also check with your community and local health care provider to see if there are free book programs available in your area. 

Try to get outside with your baby as much as you can. Outdoor experiences are so important for exposing your child to nature and learning new things about the world around them. Stroller trail walks and neighborhood parks are also great places to socialize and meet other families. Remember those books you packed in your travel back. Pull them out, because reading outdoors is a unique and fun experience that children enjoy.  

Providing lots of experiences and talking about the world around you helps your child build rich background knowledge and strong brain connections. It can take effort to pack up and get out of the house, but it is so worth it for you and your child to share these learning experiences.   

Final Thoughts: Every Page Counts

Parenting is the most challenging job in the world. Some days go really well and others are a total disaster. Every parent wants their child to be successful in life, but there is so much advice out there, it’s hard to know where to begin. Dr. Crosh suggests that reading with your baby is one of the most important ways to help your child build a healthy brain and form strong family bonds. Using books to make learning a part of everyday life is an easy way to build alphabetic and background knowledge that will set your child up for future success. Take it one day at a time, be gentle on yourself, and reach out for help when needed. 

We are happy to support you in helping your child build a strong learning brain. Please feel free to contact us with your questions.

Sources

Crosh, C. C., Sherman, S. N., Valley, J. E., Parsons, A., Gentry, A., Glusman, M., ... & Copeland, K. A. (2024). Beliefs and Motivations Regarding Early Shared Reading of Parents From Low-Income Households: A Qualitative Study. Academic pediatrics, 24(3), 486-493. Google Scholar

You Can Read to Me by Clare Crosh & Arin Gentry. Blue Manatee Press