Most people know you should read to your kids often, but not many people understand exactly why reading to your kids is so important. Apart from the fact that it lets you spend some much needed one-on-one time with your little monkeys, reading is actually a fundamental activity for children’s development.
Check out these 6 reasons why reading to your kids is important:
1. Improves concentration. When you read to your kids, they begin to actively listen and learn to pay attention for long periods of time. Regularly focusing on a story helps children develop good focus and concentration skills when presented with new information.
2. Boosts critical thinking skills. Reading allows your kids to be exposed to different worlds and situations, even if they aren’t real. Between the stories of princesses and their favorite adventurers, they’ll be thinking analytically, challenging their brain to predict what’s going to happen.
3. Improves memory. In order to be able to understand a book, your child needs to be able to remember the characters, backgrounds, and details of the story. Try reading a longer book to really get your little one’s brain working.
4. Develop their empathy. Books aren’t always rainbows and butterflies. It’s good to expose your kids to books that are a little deeper in meaning. Reading them these books exposes them to different emotions, teaching them how to empathize and relate with characters.
5. Broadens language skills. Even though you speak to your kids every day, whether you realize it or not, you tend to use the same words over and over. Reading books helps gives your kids exposure to different types of words from various topics and levels. The more exposure they have to new words and sounds, the more fluent and well-spoken they’ll be.
6. Enhances imagination. Think about when you read a book. You develop a visual picture and imagine what the characters look like and how they act, kind of like a little movie. When you read to your kids, they’re doing the same thing. The more stories you read, the more imaginative they’ll get!
Reading allows kids to step into a magical portal into their own new world, all while developing important skills. You can even reward them for being such a good listener with a trip to visit their all-time favorite character, Monkey Joe! Let your little one’s imagination soar as they bounce the day away at your nearest location.
