By Mariah Bruehl

    Most of us are aware that reading aloud to our children every day plays a critical role in their development by engaging their imaginations, exposing them to new vocabulary, and opening the door to meaningful family discussions, thus strengthening their chances of becoming better readers themselves. But is there anything beyond reading aloud that we as parents do to nurture our children’s continued passion for reading? I recently had the opportunity to speak with Emma Walton Hamilton, the author of “Raising Bookworms: Getting Kids Reading for Pleasure and Empowerment” (Beech Tree Books), and she offered some insightful and practical advice.

    Focus on the joy: “The first piece is knowing what your individual child is interested in, passionate about, or inspired by, and then looking for ways to feed that passion,” she said. Ms. Hamilton believes that one of the most important things parents can do to foster a love of reading in their children is to support the subliminal connection between reading and pleasure. She advocates reading together as a family as often as possible, and snuggling or cuddling while doing so to underscore the connection between reading and joy.

    She also advises parents to celebrate their child’s interests through reading experiences. “It may not always be a fictional book,” she said. “It might be magazines, nonfiction books, graphic novels, blogs, newspaper articles, and so on. But whether your child loves princesses or trucks, surround them with books about the things they love.”

    This can be challenging, because our children’s tastes may be different from our own childhood favorites, or from what we feel constitutes “good literature.” But it’s important to reserve judgment and tune in to the books that really excite your individual child. One way to honor both your child’s choices and your own preferences is to have two bedtime stories each night — each of you choosing one.

    Another piece of advice that Ms. Walton offers is to make the selection of books a fun and rewarding experience. She recommends that even young children have their own library card, so as to experience the opportunities that libraries offer, as well as the empowerment of selecting books, checking them out, and returning them for themselves. This puts kids in touch with the tactile pleasures of books and strengthens the positive association with books and reading.

    Regular trips to the bookstore are another a great way for families to spend time together, browsing, discussing, and getting excited about books. Selecting books together as gifts for friends and family also sends the message that books are a way to celebrate special occasions and are fun to share with loved ones. Make the book selection process a joyful adventure. Getting excited about one book and then recapturing that feeling by finding and reading similar books can be all it takes to spark a lifelong love of reading.

    Be crafty and creative. We are all ambitious for our children. Yet, often, if they feel our ambition (especially when it comes to reading), they can turn off. Ms. Hamilton has some great suggestions for capturing children’s interest and keeping them engaged in reading without their feeling undue pressure around the subject.

    “It helps to look for what I call ‘stealth mode’ activities that support and underscore the subliminal connection between reading and pleasure,” she said. “These are back-door techniques that encourage reading when you might not even realize you’re reading.” Reading-related activities, such as making a recipe from a book that you have read together, going to see a film, a play, or a museum exhibit, or listening to a piece of music inspired by a book can enrich a literary experience and create the desire to read more.

    Hearing books read aloud is another critical part of building the connection between reading and pleasure. Reading and listening skills don’t converge until the latter end of middle school, and so much can be added in terms of understanding and enjoyment of a reading experience through the tone, nuance, and meaning conveyed by a good read-aloud.  But older readers may resist being read to, so for them it can be helpful to utilize the full array of technological media available today, such as audio books. By listening to an audio book on a CD player or iPod, teens can experience the more subtle elements of a story that they may miss when reading on their own. This is a great way to capture their imaginations and create excitement for a book, without them feeling as if they are being babied in any way.

    Creating an environment rich with books and print is also an important way to covertly encourage reading. “In our house, we’re surrounded by books in every room, which sends a visual message to our kids about the value we place on books in our family,” Ms. Hamilton said. She recommends having bookshelves, or even just a basket of books, everywhere possible. If you have food-related books in the kitchen, building books near the Legos, or art books near the craft supplies, children can turn to books as resources for their everyday lives. It’s also important to keep favorite books handy in places like the car, bathroom, stroller, and by the bed, so that a good book is always within reach. “It’s all about making books and reading attractive and appealing, so that kids will be drawn to it,” she said.

    Set a good example: Get “caught” reading, seeking out knowledge from books, or discussing the latest chapter or interesting fact that you just read. The most powerful parenting tool that we have at our disposal, of course, is to model the behavior we seek to encourage in our children.  With life moving at such a rapid pace, this can be challenging — and sometimes it’s easier just to switch on the TV, check our e-mail one more time, or surf the Internet to unwind after a long day. But children are constantly observing and mimicking our behaviors, and nothing will teach them to value reading more than seeing their parents enjoying it for themselves. All the more reason to slow down and pick up that book, magazine, or article that you have been looking forward to reading — the benefits will be exponential!

Suggested Reading:
“Raising Bookworms: Getting Kids Reading for Pleasure and Empowerment” by Emma Walton Hamilton

Online Resources:
http://raisingbookworms.com/resources/
http://www.readingrockets.org/audience/parents
http://www.rif.org/parents (Reading is Fundamental: Parents)

    Mariah Bruehl is an educational consultant and author of a Web site and blog, Playful Learning. She lives on the South Fork with her husband and two daughters. Questions can be directed to mariah@playfullearning.net.