On 2nd March, it is World Book Day. Whilst it can be hard to make time for books on a daily basis, at Angels we believe that stories are an important part of day to day life for young children. With other parts of the routine taking priority as we get busier, story time can often get pushed aside. Whilst it can be easy for this to happen, it is vital that we keep reading either together or independently a part of life for children, as it has many important roles in childhood development.
Story time has a lot of different benefits for children. It can teach them key social skills, such as the ability to listen and engage with speech, as well as asking questions if they do not understand the story. This encourages active engagement and your child will learn to retain information and retell you the story, especially if you ask them questions about it afterwards.
They will also learn academic skills, such as a broader knowledge of vocabulary, grammar, and language. You can read to your child, and when they are old enough, they can start to read to you. Improving their knowledge in this area is important in making sure that they reach key milestones in their development.
Children can also begin to learn decision making this way, as you can let them choose which book to read each story time. Doing this means that bigger decisions will become easier. It also gives your child autonomy; allowing them a small and manageable amount of control over their own life.
As well as helping their development, story time can also provide key bonding time with your child. It is quiet and gentle alone time set aside for you to bond with each other. You can choose a book together, or let your child pick, or even take it in turns. On top of reading aloud to your child, you can talk about the story and illustrations afterwards. This engagement is really helpful as it keep up an open dialogue in the relationship between you and your child. Check out all the info World Book Day have for families https://www.worldbookday.com/families/
Making time for this can be difficult, but story time is one corner that isn’t worth cutting. Setting aside just an extra ten to thirty minutes before bed time for a story will make the world of difference to both you and your child. Happy reading!
