“How to develop reading habit in my child?”
I receive such emails from anxious parents almost every second day. In today’s technological era when a child is born holding gadgets in hand, it becomes difficult for them to enjoy the aroma of a book and to remain lost in the land of stories like we used to be. I empathise with them. Think of it! If we were bombarded with an equivalent information cascade, we would have struggled too.
Developing a reading habit among their child is the wish of every parent. However, there aren’t any set of rules that can be applied. Every child is unique and has different temperament, likes & dislikes. Thus, we need to navigate, and experiment as per our child’s frame of mind.
Let me share my story. My elder one had been pretty much into reading but it was difficult developing reading habit in my younger one. Nothing was working. I personally was just trying everything under the sun: from letting her choose her own books at the bookstore; reading to her at bedtime; buying piles of books in the hope maybe there’s a genre that she might like; taking her to book clubs; reading sessions, etc.
Eventually despite being an ardent reader myself, I gave up. As an educator, I understood maybe whatever I want my child to learn from books, I had to find some other way for the learning to happen. That’s when I made a list of all the movies based on books. The first movie we watched was Narnia. I told her that it was based on an amazing book by C.S. Lewis. And guess what! Once we finished the movie, my younger daughter wanted to read the book because she loved Aslan, the lion.
That’s how it happened for us. Since then, she had been reading books & watching movies. Today, five years later, my younger one is completely hooked to books, and has developed an exceptional reading speed that at times she finishes book in a single day! Recently, she had been busy finishing a murder mystery series and to my dismay, she had been snuggling in my bed every night because she can no longer sleep alone. Phew! That’s the drawback of having a reader with eclectic taste. 😉
Thus, to every parent, I always suggest – Find your own magic. Continue exploring together with your child in the forefront, you never know when & where it clicks.
Also, it is important to always guide but never to pressurize. And you never know as a parent you might be overlooking their amazing talents while focusing on the reading. Thus, keep eyes and ears open and mold as per the child’s unique talents. Reading will be a natural progression.
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