What Kinds of Books Should I Read with a Preschooler?
Some fun and appropriate books to read with preschoolers are about:
- Dinosaurs, animals and fairies
- Letters, numbers, shapes and sizes
- Simple stories with rhythm and repetition
- Going to school (can help in making the experience fun and exciting)
The key here is to choose books with an abundance of appropriate images as well as those with rhymes and repetition.
How to read with preschoolers
Reading to children is important because it’s your way to help them become familiar with more words and sounds. Also, you can help them develop an interest in reading and learning and stimulate their creativity and imagination. To facilitate that, it helps to do the following:
- Make reading a routine (e.g. same time every day, one book each day)
- Make it easy for the child to focus (choose a comfortable reading place, turn off the TV)
- Make storytelling fun (try using funny voices and sounds)
- Encourage the child to talk and ask questions during reading
The goal here is to make reading and storytelling a consistent and fun experience. Weeks and months of consistently doing this will do wonders for a child’s rapidly developing brain. Also, making it a fun experience can make the child always look forward to that storytelling time. It’s also an amazing way to form a strong bond with the child.
Other benefits of reading and storytelling
Aside from helping form a strong bond with the child and support their brain development, reading and storytelling also provides other benefits.
First, stories can help children develop an understanding and respect for other people. They will become more familiar with what others are feeling and going through. With this familiarity and understanding, they can also start to develop respect for other people and cultures.
Stories can also help children develop a better connection with others. This is a result of developing a better understanding of other people’s practices and emotions. With this better understanding and connection, children can better get along with other kids especially during playtime.
Stories are also a good way for children to learn about different worlds and environments (as well as expand the number of possibilities they think). With this exposure and stimulation, their imagination will be stimulated and further developed.