I have been reading bedtime stories to my son for as long as I can remember. Even though a few weeks ago he turned 5-and-a-half I have no plans to stop reading to him. The nightly bedtime reading is one of my favourite parts of our entire day and we have evolved from reading silly and repetitive board books to reading imaginative and thoughtful chapter books.
We have a pretty chaotic schedule at the moment and although some days feel louder and more overwhelming than others when it’s time to read everything slows down. There is stillness and peace. My son climbs up to his high sleeper, I tuck him in, and then I begin.
I always do a “Remember what happened yesterday?” prologue before I start actually reading new pages. We review what events happened to our leading character. Then I give my son one more chance to get a sip of water or dance any extra sillies out.
I usually get through a page or two before he interrupts me with a question. He will want to know what a word means or why would a character behave a certain way. A few pages later and I can tell my son has drifted off to sleep.
I truly believe that the joy of a bedtime story is the key to developing a love of reading in children. My parents read to me from as early as I can remember. I have many of the books they read to me and I would plead with them to read some of them over and over again.
Like me Alexander is showing an early interest in books. He loves magic and fantasy – Princes and Princess, Witches and Wizards anything that takes him there and back again is perfect. So imagine my joy when having placed his Tidybooks book case in his room I managed to spy him dipping into his collection and trying to read his favourite books without Mummy.
Do you children love books as well?
We are happy to offer our readers 15% off the Tidy Books website with the code ENFANTSPARIS15
Choose from alphabet or plain panels, or create your child’s very own personalised bookcase.
I honestly believe children will read more if their books are easily accessible and out on display. For very young children this means having bookcases at toddler height and with the covers facing forwards so they can easily identify their favourites.
Bookcase by Tidy Books – Shirt Alexander by Je suis en CP!
Get 15% off the Tidy Books website with the code ENFANTSPARIS15
