My husband loved bonding with our son during their nighttime reading sessions. When he began kindergarten, our son came home to report that his teacher called him “loquacious.” I took this as a compliment, and attributed it to all those stories his dad read to him during the first five years.
From birth, the part of your baby’s brain responsible for speech production and language processing is highly active. When the two of you engage in a dialogue, even as one-sided or non-standard as it may be at first, you are laying crucial groundwork for language and cognitive development.
Though it may seem counterintuitive to read to your newborn, as Nike® would say, “Just do it!” And then, continue to “just do it” daily to help your child realize impressive language and comprehension gains.
Reading to your child at bedtime is far different from a daytime reading experience. At night, relaxation is the goal, so the approach to reading a bedtime story is designed to calm and soothe. Even just a few minutes of bedtime reading continues building literacy and language skills before your little one drifts into the arms of Morpheus.
Enjoy these activities for three classic bedtime storybooks, or use the generic activity ideas with whatever bedtime book you’d like. No matter which book you are using, don’t worry if you never get beyond the first few pages. At this age, your child is benefiting through bonding and hearing the cadence and tone of your voice.
Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown
- Make sure your little one can see the pages easily. Read the book’s title aloud while pointing to each word. Point to the moon outside the window, and point to and label the stars. Then, open the book and begin reading quietly.
- Point to each item mentioned in the text, e.g., the green walls and the red balloon. Make it an interactive experience, even at this young age. Ask questions along the way, always giving your child plenty of time to “respond” even though he or she may not yet be talking. For example, you could say, “Look at the kitty. What does a kitty say?” Modeling conversational turns is very important for language development. After you pause to give your child time for a “response,” answer your own question however you’d like. In this case, you could say, “A kitty says, ‘Meow!’”
- Continue reading and discussing the pictures as long as your little one is engaged.
Guess How Much I Love You by Sam McBratney
- Make sure your little one can see the pages easily. Read the book’s title aloud while pointing to each word. Point to the two rabbit-like animals on the cover and explain that they are called hares. Describe the hare as being related to and similar to a rabbit, but the hare has much longer ears than a rabbit, is bigger than a rabbit, and has powerful hind legs. Point to the hare’s long ears and large hind legs.
- Open the book and begin reading quietly. Point to and label things in the illustrations, e.g., Little Nutbrown Hare, Big Nutbrown Hare, their ears, a butterfly, and so forth.
- Ask your child questions along the way, always giving your child plenty of time to “respond” even though he or she is not yet talking. For example, you might ask, “Wouldn’t it be fun to have ears like Little Nutbrown Hare’s?”
- Continue reading and discussing the pictures as long as your little one is engaged.
Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? By Bill Martin, Jr.
- Make sure your little one can see the pages easily. Read the book’s title aloud while pointing to each word. Point out and label the brown bear’s eyes, nose, mouth, ears, feet, and very long claws. Explain that claws are like fingernails, and touch your little one’s fingernails.
- Open the book and begin reading quietly. As you move through the pages, point to each animal as you label its features, e.g., eyes, feet, feathers, tail, and so forth.
- Whenever possible, make the sound that the animals make. Encourage your little one to imitate you. In subsequent times through the book, your child may be able to recall and make each sound without prompting.
- Continue reading as long as your little one is engaged.
Reading activity for a bedtime storybook of your choice
- Choose books with simple illustrations and with individually named characters. Studies funded by the National Science Foundation have shown that books with named individuals help babies distinguish between characters in the story, and babies pay closer attention to the story.
- Consider books with rhyming text. The ability to rhyme is one of the best predictors of how easily your child will learn to read. Rhyming helps him or her distinguish between different sounds and notice patterns and sounds within words. This ear for language—phonemic awareness—leads to an understanding of the role phonemes (specific sounds) play in word formation.
- Create a relaxing atmosphere. You might hold your child comfortably in your lap, making sure he or she can see and reach the book pages easily. By 3 months of age, your child’s eyesight will have improved considerably. As you read, show baby each page, and point to and label characters or things mentioned in the text. At this age, expect your little one to want to touch or grasp the book—even put it in his or her mouth to explore. That’s okay; it’s how babies learn. You might give your child a toy or rattle to hold as you read.
- Read with quiet enthusiasm, assigning voices to the characters in the story. And, make it an interactive experience. Even though your little one may not yet be able to reply verbally (and even when your child eventually can), pause after you ask or say something, giving your little one time to “respond.” That response could be subtle—perhaps something as simple as “ah,” “eh,” or “ugh.” Such back-and-forth interactions are examples of conversational turns—talking with your child rather than talking at him or her—and are critical to language development according to studies conducted at both MIT and Harvard.
You’ll find many more age-based Bedtime Reading Activity ideas in the ParentPal app.
