How to instill the habit of reading naturally in children?
As I mentioned in my previous articles, I am an avid reader and I love to read.
This article is not about giving anyone advice or recommending any expensive books or techniques that will transform your child into a Super Kid. This article tries to instill the habit of reading in a natural way in any child by introducing children’s books of interest.
This article is about my journey with my 7-year-old son and how he has a natural penchant for reading. My son thoroughly enjoys reading a variety of books. I am sharing this with all the kind and nice people so they can connect with my experience.
I believe that the roots of learning are found in good habits and quality time spent with your children.
You don’t need to buy the most expensive books to read to your child. There are plenty of good reads available at nominal prices on e-commerce sites like Amazon, Flipkart, Firstcry or you can just walk to the nearest bookstore and pick up anything based on your child’s age. You can buy used books on Amazon or from used book sellers. I don’t mind buying second-hand books from booksellers who sell used books.
I started reading books to my son when he was 7 months old.
I brought the initial books from a 1000 Rs gift card that I received at my office. Some of his early books are used books shared by cousins. Even now, she doesn’t mind reading books lovingly delivered by family and friends.
I brought his starter books from the Landmark Store using the gift card. I have brought two beautiful books, one of which has beautiful nursery rhymes and the other has an alphabet with beautiful pictures. Later, I added a few more books to his collection that I brought from a book stand displayed in my office. I spent about 200 rupees to buy 3 books that were priced between 50 and 90 rupees.
My Son’s Beginning Books
When my son was almost 3 years old, I bought a package of Be Good Stories from Amazon’s Dreamland Publications that was priced at about $500 under Amazon’s lightning deals and started reading him a story every day. After that, he received some used books from his cousins. When he turned 4, I added some books to his library that I brought back from the International Book Fair at Pragati Maidan, New Delhi. One book he could fully recite was Marvel’s Hulk to the Rescue. I was amazed to see how he could narrate the story in exact words like in the book. Some of his favorites are:
Sudha Murty’s Grandma’s Bag of Tales
The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Pretty Stupid Tales
Scholastic Geronimo Stilton Books
Ruskin Bond’s Tigers for Dinner
151 Stories of Akbar Birbal
Disney’s STAR WARS 5-Minute Stories
Megan McDonald’s Stink and the Ultimate Thumb-Wrestling
Vikram and Betaal
Marvel Studios Books
Books from my son’s collection
Books from my niece’s collection
It has an amazing collection of books acquired from multiple sources. He also trades and shares his books with his friends. This habit gives him and his friends access to more books at no additional cost.
This was my trip with my son and the books. I’d love to hear about his son’s favorite book. Mention some little angel favorites of his in the comments section below.
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