Canton Public Library

It’s been well established that children benefit from being read to by the adults in their lives. It helps them build stronger vocabularies, increase attention span, improves cognition, and it promotes bonding. Brain scans have shown that hearing stories strengthens the part of the brain associated with visual imagery, story comprehension, and word meaning.

Once children become fluid readers, they can still benefit from being read to regularly, but they can also gain from doing the reading aloud themselves. It’s a wonderful activity to read with a parent, but why just leave it there? Sharing a story with someone is a great way to stay connected and get your reading practice in.

Who are some other people kids can read to?

Grandparents

Friends

Siblings

Pets

What should you read though? Some books work better than others read out loud, but for kids reading something they’re already familiar with will give them a reading confidence boost. They’ll also enjoy reading books that they’ve already had read to them.

And if you’re looking for ideas, here are Scholastic’s 100 Best Read-Aloud Books.