5 Simple Ways to Increase Reading in Your Home

In today's world of electronics and accessibility to all things distracting, how do you keep your family in the habit of reading? Trust me, I read voraciously and sell children's books and my kids would rather play games. I get it! While it doesn't always work, we do these 5 things to keep it in the forefront of our lives.

Keep Choices Plentiful

We have hundreds of books in our home. Just when I think one topic will be a winner, they inform me they are no longer interested in it. Kids, right? That's why I have books in all age ranges and topics readily available. Sometimes, they hear something at school that encourages them to learn more at home. Sometimes, they ask me a question so we grab a book to find out more. I also keep both fiction and non-fiction books handy. Some of our non-fiction are great for homework helpers. Maybe they include a visual that helps the information stick from their textbook or maybe it includes an example that is more relative to them. It's super helpful to have them on hand instead of looking it up on their phones or tablets.

Keep Books Easily Available

This one is sometimes controversial, even for me. I like my things organized and in a designated home, usually categorized by theme or color. In the case of books, however, we want them handy. When the kids were toddlers, I had books on the bookshelves within their reach. Sometimes, this meant I had to put them back numerous times a day, but they knew they could always look at books. Now, we have an office with plenty of shelves for all of our books, but we still keep some in all of the bedrooms in/on the bedside stand, in the living room, in the basement playroom, some of the bathrooms and in the car. Plus, there is always an audiobook available for the car. I never hear "I don't have a book" any more.

Be Flexible with Types of Reading

This is super important. I often hear parents say their child is reading in the XYZ reading range or Lexile or whatever system their educational institution uses for rewards. This is a guide for the level they are capable of reading, only. If your child doesn't particularly care for reading then it really doesn't matter what level they are at. Think about their interests and find something for them to read accordingly. Dinosaurs, Baseball Trains, Mermaids, Ballet, etc are all perfectly fine topics. If is easier than their level, that's okay, they are still reading. If it's a magazine or comic book, it's okay, they are still reading. If you know or think they have medical reasons hindering their reading it's okay to ask for help. There are books that use different fonts to help break up the pages, for instance. If you have a new reader, ask them to read signs along the road or in stores to get some practice in. When my kids were still learning the alphabet we used those foam alphabet puzzle pieces that are sometimes used as mats in playrooms and played a type of twister with them. I would say a sound and they had to put a foot or hand on that piece. They thought it was just a game even though they were learning. You can also practice spelling words on the driveway with chalk or water guns or in the snow with squeeze bottles of colored water. The ideas are really only limited by imagination.

Model Reading

This is a favorite of mine! I love to read so I generally read every day and I do it in the evening when my kids are home so they see me doing it. When they were younger we read every night at bedtime. This is a great time to read fun stories that seem too intimidating for them to read on their own. A great way to add comprehension in is to read a few pages and then ask questions about what is happening. You can have them predict what might happen next or once something does happen ask them what might have been the outcome with a different action. Our family has read several books that are also movies. When we complete the book we watch the movie for the next family movie night and compare the two. It's amazing the changes that kids can pick up between books and movies and is another good chance for discussion. Asking why those changes might have happened can turn into a great family conversation.

Have Fun

I've given several examples of ways our family reads and has read over the years. You can always search for reading challenges to give you extra examples, but here is a list of our 10 favorites: