As parents, we often choose books that match our child’s reading level, thinking it’s the best way to support their progress. But research shows that reading books with advanced vocabulary, including classic literature, can have a far greater impact on language development. When children listen to complex sentence structures and advanced vocabulary, they develop richer vocabularies, increased comprehension, and improved social/emotional regulation. In this post, we’ll explore why reading above your child’s level isn’t just helpful, it’s essential, and how this simple habit can lay the foundation for lifelong literacy and critical thinking skills. 

Find our top picks for advanced read aloud books at the end of the post!

Why Reading Advanced Vocabulary and Classic Literature to Your Child Matters

A child’s brain develops rapidly from birth to age 5. These early years are a critical period for learning and have a lasting effect on academic and life success. Exposing your child to rich vocabulary through conversations and shared reading helps them build an oral dictionary of words and their meanings. 

A strong vocabulary is essential for reading comprehension, which is the purpose for learning to read. Classic Literature gives children access to time tested characters, plots, and themes that support social-emotional regulation and problem solving skills. Reading books together, having rich conversations, and participating in a variety of life experiences are essential for building strong brains.  

The Science Behind Reading Above a Child’s Level

Research shows that from age one on, children learn about 860 root word meanings per year. This amounts to about 2.4 root words per day which adds up to about 6000 root word meanings by the end of Grade 2. However, children with less exposure to rich vocabulary and conversations have a more limited vocabulary, estimated at about 4000 root word meanings by the end of Grade 2. This is important because from Grade 3 onward, children tend to gain a similar number of root word meanings per year, making it difficult for those with a smaller original bank of words to catch up to their peers. 

The size of your child’s vocabulary will largely be determined by the vocabulary they hear in your home. Young children can easily learn complex names of dinosaurs, yet parents are often hesitant to use complex words when speaking with their child. Go ahead and use bigger words, and then rephrase what you say using simpler words with similar meaning. This is a great way to introduce your child to new words and extend their knowledge of the meanings of words they already know. Encourage your child to speak up when they don’t know a word or prompt them to guess at what new words mean. 

Studies show that reading aloud with children increases vocabulary which supports greater comprehension. However, it’s not just the reading that matters, it’s also the conversations you have about what you are reading. When you read literature that is above your child’s reading level, you expose them to thousands of words that are not used in everyday conversations. These words are more complex and varied and often require explanations about their meanings. It’s the conversations about the words that help your child increase their vocabulary and comprehension. 

Conversation Strategies that actually work:

1. Talk together about the topic, events, and characters in the story
2. Make connections between the book and real life experiences
3. Have your child retell some parts of the story

Reading books with advanced language also exposes children to new meanings for familiar words. For example, the word run seems simple enough as most children quickly learn that they can run from place to place, but you can also run a business, run a washing machine, and run computer software. A creek can run beside a path and your nose can run. You can have a bad run of luck, score a home run, and get a run in your knit sweater. Experiencing these variations of run through books, conversations, and life experiences helps your child build a category of meanings for this word. Knowing the root word run also makes it easier to read and understand variations such as runs, running, and ran. 

Differences between listening comprehension and reading comprehension at early ages.

Listening comprehension develops first and is dependent upon the brain processing what is heard through the ears. Your child listened to voices for several months before birth, and they learned to talk by listening to voices and interacting with others. Learn more about how children learn to talk in our Raising Readers post. 

To learn to read, your child has to hear the individual sounds in words. This is called phonemic awareness. Then, they have to connect the sounds to letter shapes so they can decode written words. When a child is learning to read, the brain is working hard to use the alphabetic code to decode words. This heavy cognitive load can interfere with grasping the meaning of what is being read. Having your child reread a book several times helps them learn new words, reduces the decoding load, and increases understanding of what is being read. 

Another support that reduces cognitive load while reading is having a large oral vocabulary to draw on when trying to decode unfamiliar words. Readers with large vocabularies can decode complex words faster, because close approximations help them quickly pull a familiar word out of their memory after a few attempts and mispronunciations. Read Can a Child Teach Themselves to Read? for more information on how to support self-taught reading at home. 

Reading classic literature and books with advanced vocabulary improves listening skills and builds large mental dictionaries that support reading comprehension. 

The ultimate goal of learning to read is understanding what is being read.

Exposure to Books with Advanced Vocabulary:

• Increases vocabulary
• Supports listening and reading comprehension
• Promotes awareness of story structure and grammar
• Increases reading fluency
• Supports creativity and imagination
• Increases communication skills 
• Improves emotional awareness 
• Supports critical thinking

What Counts as “Advanced” Reading for Children?

Advanced reading refers to books with words that are beyond the typical reading level of early learners. These books contain words that are more complex than the basic words found in decodable books and early reader books.

Classic Literature includes great books that have stood the test of time. They are enduring, carry knowledge of history and culture, and introduce children to imaginative, magical worlds. Classic Literature includes stories, fables, myths, legends, folk tales, fairy tales, and nursery rhymes. It entertains, teaches about life, preserves cultural history, communicates social values, and transfers knowledge from one generation to another. There are many great books, but it’s time that decides if they become enduring classic literature.  

Although many picture books, graphic novels, and early readers have some higher level vocabulary, they don’t always stretch a child’s language skills. Books with more complex vocabulary and deeper story lines introduce children to higher level thinking skills. Complex books require a child to remember more information to make sense of the ongoing story line. Advanced books also introduce children to new words and expand their knowledge of multiple meanings for known words.

Find our full list of recommended books at the end of this post!

Benefits of Reading Classic Literature and Advanced Texts Aloud

Books build vocabulary, awareness of grammar, and knowledge of sentence structure.

Written language follows grammar rules and is generally more structured than spoken language. Books provide a wide variety of examples of how language can be recorded in written form. An early reader book contains simple language and sentence structures, so reading more advanced texts that your child cannot read themselves exposes them to richer vocabulary and more complex sentence structures. This knowledge provides a strong foundation for learning to read and write their own stories.  

Books encourage imagination and critical thinking.

When children hear stories that are beyond their reading level, they become immersed in rich, imaginative worlds created in their own minds. The picture one child sees in their mind may be far different than another child’s visual representation. 

The visual images your child creates in their mind can be a wonderful prompt for rich discussion. You can support imaginative thinking by asking them to describe an item from the story. Ask for details such as shape, size, color, where the object is, and what is around it. Have your child describe characters from a story - what they are wearing, how they are feeling, or why they did a certain action. 

You can also talk about ideas that you agree or disagree with. Just because something is written down does not mean it’s true, so helping your child listen to books with a critical ear is a valuable skill.

Books prepare children for academic reading later in life.

Academics and careers require learning, understanding information, and problem solving. Having a large vocabulary makes it easier to add new words encountered in each new grade at school. A large vocabulary is also useful while preparing for a career and engaging in the world of work, because it supports comprehension and increases understanding of new knowledge. 

Having a large vocabulary makes it easier for students to understand what they read and to communicate their knowledge, thoughts, and ideas. Learning through reading stories makes encounters with new words more memorable and easier to recall when communicating with others. 

Books enhance bonding and support social-emotional growth.

Research shows that reading with your child helps build strong family bonds that last a lifetime. Books prompt conversations and lead to rich discussions about a variety of topics that might not otherwise come up in daily conversations. They expose your child to thoughts and ideas that are new and novel and provide examples of ways to solve everyday problems and extraordinary life challenges. 

Books also create self awareness and help children understand their own emotions and recognize emotions felt by others. Well developed characters in stories provide examples of self control, how to take turns, follow directions, and focus on a task. Books also contain examples of people working with and getting along with others. These interpersonal skills help children build stronger relationships in their community.  

Books teach children about life, culture, traditions, and history.

Before languages were written down, knowledge was passed to the next generations through speaking and telling stories. The oral retelling of stories can be changed over time by individual storytellers, but written language preserves stories as they were originally recorded. 

Classic stories, fables, myths, legends, folk tales, fairy tales, and nursery rhymes carry timeless messages that teach about life, preserve cultural history, communicate cultural values, share traditions, and transfer knowledge. They often carry a message or moral, show how problems are resolved, and sometimes even have happily ever after endings. They can be humorous and often contain unfamiliar words that are not commonly used in everyday language. These books and stories prompt rich discussions about how characters lived their lives and what might or might not be considered appropriate in today’s world.

The most important point of reading advanced literature is that it is the rich discussion that you and your child have about the book that provides the support for learning new vocabulary and building strong comprehension. You can learn more about that in our article about Dialogic Reading (coming soon.)   

How to Choose the Best Advanced Books to Read Aloud

Classic books were not written with today’s readers in mind, so they require support to explain and interpret unfamiliar words and topics. They also require discussions about history and how characters, actions, ideas, and socially accepted norms change over time.

Tips for selecting advanced books for shared reading.

1. Look for books with rich language and more complex sentence structures
2. Provide motivation for discussion by choosing books about topics of interest
3. Find series or authors that your child enjoys
4. Preview the book so you are familiar with the content
5. For younger children, choose simplified adapted or abridged versions from reputable publishers
6. Read short passages at a time, using an expressive voice
7. Use context to explain one or two unfamiliar words 

You can also ask librarians for book suggestions and use online sites that offer book reviews. You know your child best, so your own good judgement is your best guide for choosing advanced literature to read with them.  

Making Complex Stories Understandable and Engaging

Strategies for explaining unfamiliar words or themes.

1. Use context clues such as the story line, surrounding words, and illustrations
2. Explain the word using simpler language, a synonym, and short definition 
3. Use background knowledge from your child’s experiences
4. Reinforce the vocabulary by using it in future conversations
5. Draw a picture to explain words
   

Example: Chloe was weary after the long hike up the mountain.

• “How might Chloe be feeling after a long hike?” (tired, exhausted, wore out)
• “Weary means really tired, like how you felt at the end of that long soccer tournament last weekend.” 
• “Work was really busy today. I feel weary, so I’m taking a 5 minute rest break.”  

What to do about outdated views or uncomfortable themes.

Classic books were written long ago making some of the language, viewpoints, or themes outdated. Previewing the story can help you identify words or ideas that might not be appropriate for your child’s age or fit with current social norms. It’s okay to change words you are not comfortable with and even skip parts of the story. If something comes up that you don’t agree with, have a conversation about it. Discussing why certain views are outdated helps your child learn how social and cultural practices and viewpoints change over time. You know your child well so it’s best for them to learn and be guided by you about sensitive topics or outdated viewpoints.

Abandoning a Book

And lastly, never spend time reading a book that does not speak to you and your child. Some books start out slowly, so be sure to give them a fair chance. However, there are so many wonderful classic and advanced books that you could move on to. Have a conversation about when and why a book should be abandoned so your child understands that it's okay for them to switch it up when a book isn't catching their attention. Most of all, just have fun reading together and let the conversations about words and ideas naturally happen as the stories unfold. 

"Reading should not be presented to children as a chore or duty. It should be offered to them as a precious gift." ~ Kate DiCamillo

The Best Classic Books to Read Aloud to Children 

👉 Download your FREE Printable Book List now! 👈

 

 

Sources

Batini, F., D’Autilia, B., Pera, E., Lucchetti, L., & Toti, G. (2020). Reading aloud and first language development: A systematic review. Journal of Education and Training Studies, 8(12), 49-68. Source

Biemiller, A. (2013). Vocabulary Development and. Handbook of Early Literacy Research, Volume 2, 2, 41. Link

Berns, G. S., Blaine, K., Prietula, M. J., & Pye, B. E. (2013). Short-and long-term effects of a novel on connectivity in the brain. Brain connectivity, 3(6), 590-600. https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/pdf/10.1089/brain.2013.0166 

Denio, K. (2021). The benefits of read alouds for young readers. https://scholarworks.calstate.edu/downloads/8623j374g 

Massaro, D. W. (2017). Reading aloud to children: Benefits and implications for acquiring literacy before schooling begins. The American Journal of Psychology, 130(1), 63-72. Source

Perrin, C. A. (2004). An introduction to classical education: A guide for parents. Classical Academic Press. https://www.ascentclassical.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/ICE_PSE.pdf 

Steinhoff, M. (2023). Utilizing Classical Literature in Kindergarten Classrooms: A Tool for Developing Social Emotional Skills and Reading Comprehension. https://digitalcommons.hamline.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1937&context=hse_cp