{"id":7050358,"date":"2026-08-28T22:00:17","date_gmt":"2026-08-28T22:00:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/peraltafinancing.com\/uncategorized\/raise-kids-who-love-reading-with-these-7-effective-strategies\/"},"modified":"2026-08-28T22:00:17","modified_gmt":"2026-08-28T22:00:17","slug":"raise-kids-who-love-reading-with-these-7-effective-strategies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7050358","title":{"rendered":"Raise Kids Who Love Reading With These 7 Effective Strategies"},"content":{"rendered":"


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I come from a family of teachers, but I was never forced into reading\u2014it was something my parents valued and part of what we did at home. On the other hand, I had a cousin my age who was forced into reading before kindergarten and, to this day, hates reading. I picked up reading naturally when I entered kindergarten, but he had more difficulty grasping it.\u00a0<\/p>\n

My story is an isolated example of how families can influence kids\u2019 attitudes toward reading at a young age, but it\u2019s powerful because it\u2019s carried into my adult life. Now, my wife and I read to our eight-year-old and five-year-old daughters nightly. Already, we\u2019ve seen the effect our nightly stories have had on our older daughter\u2019s reading trajectory.<\/p>\n

We noticed when we read the same stories to her over and over again, she began memorizing them. At first, she associated the pictures with parts of the story. Then, she started sounding out the words and tapping the syllables as she read them. At that point, we knew that she had transitioned to reading. We didn\u2019t follow any particular program or pressure her, but we modeled what reading looked like, and she caught on quickly.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Reading at School Isn\u2019t Enough<\/h2>\n

We all remember that kid in class who struggled to read aloud and know how painful it was for them. As parents, we want to set our children up for academic success at a time when only one-third of American children are proficient readers (NAEP, 2019).<\/p>\n

While schools focus much of their time on getting struggling readers up to speed, they often don\u2019t have the time or capacity to encourage independent reading. Promoting reading at home can effectively support a child’s academic growth and foster a love for lifelong learning.<\/p>\n

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Image Credit: NDAB Creativity\/Shutterstock.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Cognitive science research<\/a> tells us that reading to our children is one of the best ways to support their literacy development\u2014starting well before kindergarten. Studies show that family members and caregivers play a significant role in a child\u2019s literacy acquisition. Parents who read to their children, have books in their home, exhibit a positive attitude toward school, and establish high-achievement goals for their children tend to have higher achievers than parents who do not.\u00a0<\/p>\n

However, finding the right resources and carving out extra time takes some planning and effort. Some parents may also find it challenging to get struggling or reluctant readers to embrace reading for pleasure.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Creating a Family Culture That Encourages Reading<\/h2>\n

Reading after school hours shouldn\u2019t feel like homework for your children. In our experience, we\u2019ve found some hacks to help you create a culture of family literacy and foster a love of reading.<\/p>\n

Read aloud to your children, beginning at a young age.<\/h3>\n

Reading stories aloud helps you bond with your child and introduces them to extensive vocabulary sooner, according to Dominic Massaro<\/a>, former psychology professor and researcher.<\/p>\n

Massaro found that picture books are two to three times as likely as parent-child conversations to include a word that isn\u2019t among the 5,000 most common English words. Reading aloud also models fluent reading, encourages discussion, and sparks creativity.<\/p>\n

Allow kids to read about things they enjoy.<\/h3>\n

While kids should be exposed to high-quality children’s literature, it’s okay to read popular books about people and places they\u2019re interested in. This approach makes reading more enjoyable and helps them expand their knowledge and vocabulary in areas they are passionate about. For example, my girls have a Little Golden Book about Taylor Swift that they read weekly.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Model what reading for pleasure looks like.<\/h3>\n

I read every night to wind down. My children frequently see me reading; when appropriate, I read passages aloud that might interest them. This shows them that reading isn\u2019t just a school activity, but something you can do for pleasure.<\/p>\n

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Image Credit: Miljan Zivkovic\/Shutterstock.com.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Stay plugged into what they\u2019re learning at school.<\/h3>\n

My eight-year-old takes home reading homework weekly, and we often work on it together to reinforce the subject matter she\u2019s learning at school. If she comes home excited about a project, we discuss what she’s learning and go deeper into why it interests her\u2014understanding what your children like can help you find books they\u2019ll likely enjoy.<\/p>\n

Practice patience.<\/h3>\n

Children need to learn to read at their own pace. If they are frustrated, you can encourage them to take a break and return to a story or book later. Forcing children to read can build resistance and a dislike for it.<\/p>\n

Consider alternative resources to traditional books.<\/h3>\n

My children both have library cards, and we try to visit often, but we also encourage them to choose digital books from apps we\u2019ve loaded onto their tablets. Many of these resources are colorful and interactive and help our daughters associate spoken words with the written words on their screens. Best of all, our daughters don\u2019t have to wait for us to read to them\u2014they can choose books independently and discover what they like to read. When used under parental supervision, vetted digital resources can be valuable in promoting reading and literacy skills.<\/p>\n

Try digital apps for engaging reading opportunities.<\/h3>\n

While it’s natural for parents to be cautious about their children\u2019s screen time,\u00a0 digital devices offer potential in promoting literacy. Recent research<\/a> has shown that audiobooks and e-books can significantly enhance phonological awareness, vocabulary and spelling development, and reading comprehension.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Of course, not all multimedia resources support literacy. Our family carefully reviewed several digital apps to ensure they were age-appropriate, easy to use, and engaging. We found many libraries and schools already offer carefully vetted apps that children can use at home\u2014for free. Here are a couple of apps we liked.<\/p>\n

Kanopy Kids<\/a> \u2013 Because our library subscribes to Kanopy Kids, our daughters can log into the app using their library cards and access hundreds of children\u2019s books and films from their tablets. We can’t always make it to the library, but with this app we can bring the library home to us.<\/p>\n