Reading is a wonderful habit you should cultivate in your children. Buying interesting books for your children and sharing their experience is an exceptional way for interaction. However, good and interesting books inspire children and make them better learners.

Pre-Schoolers

The books you choose for your children should tempt to read more and typically correspond to the age and taste of children. Pre-schoolers should be introduced to small books with few words on each page, since they cannot recognise all the words and pictures in a book. However, the books are usually patterned with familiar pictures or objects. Shared reading is most important at this stage to develop their cognitive skills and interest in books. Books including 'Brown Bear Brown Bear' and 'o Dog Go' are ideal books for your child's first reading.

Early Readers

Early readers should read simple concept books with pictures that motivate their reading interest. Simple books such as 'Alice in Wonderland' and 'Winnie-the-Pooh' books are more appealing for children for learning playful and exciting concepts. Mostly, Non-fiction books are popular for this age on asserting good behaviour through stunning imagination rather than setting up rules of behaviour. In some ways, a poem or classic can impress an early reader. Poems like 'Goblin Market' by Christina Rossetti, Grimm's Fairytales and 'The Adventures of Brer Rabbit' introduces your child to new words and stories that are beyond their reading limits. Humour and rhyme books and books with limited pages accompanying pictures are popular for beginners

Advanced Readers

Advanced readers learn to read many books with unfamiliar words and increase their quest for vocabulary. The children's emotional maturity must precede when choosing a book, but not the length or size of the book. However, some short stories come with advanced vocabulary and themes. 'Gift of the Magi' by O. Henry is one example for a short story. Some children's book authors reflect the problems faced by children in their works in a motivating way. Books including 'Rules of the Road' and 'Homeless Bird' come under this category. Children should be able to enjoy the concept and writing style and grow as a reader. Forcing children for reading books is not a healthy way, but a child should be emotionally prepared, capable of handling the theme and language of the book. Reading all kinds of books including low grade books is essential for reading practice and to develop reading fluency. Children with reading fluency will finish a 100 page book in an hour or so. Once children develop reading fluency, it increases their reading comprehension skills as well.

Allowing children to choose their own books gives freedom for developing their interest in their preferred fields. Parents should consider appropriate material for the child's age rather than the reading level of the child or book. As beginners, read with your children loudly and if your child does not enjoy a particular book, never force. Reading is fun and do not spoil the pleasure of reading. You should introduce children to all kinds of books, right from simple to challenging books and find books that are appealing to your children. You should make children experience the joy of reading and acquaint them to a new exciting world of knowledge.

You may also be interested in the following book cateogories: