Tell me a story

It started, several years ago, with the birth of a very close friend’s first child. What started? Well, my storybook buying spree. I had it all planned. I’d started with one of my favourites, Mike Mulligan and his Steam Shovel, and then head off to see what the shelves of Books & Co. had to offer. Although many would say Mike Mulligan isn’t exactly the kind of book you’d think of reading to a newborn, I consider it a classic. The local bookseller didn’t disappoint! It had been a long time since I’d had a chance to read to a youngster.

As a child, one of the greatest gifts my parents gave me was the daily reading of the bedtime story. It didn’t matter where we were—camping, cottage or visiting friends—bedtime meant storytime. The worst punishment for any of my childish shenanigans would be to go to bed without a story. Every night was story night, and often only one or two chapters, but oh the adventures I ventured while I heard about Mike Mulligan or Goodnight Moon and, occasionally, something a bit “grim” from The Brothers Grimm. I loved the stories and I loved hearing my mom’s voice as she read them to me. She was a “mom at her finest” when reading those bedtime stories. When each of my children were only days old, the story reading began and continued until, one-by-one, my kids told me, “it’s okay if you don’t read to me tonight”. Code for “I’m too old for a bedtime story” and sometimes, “I’ll read to you, Mom”. But anyone who grew up with bedtime stories and then became the bedtime story reader knows how sad it is to give up the routine.

What a surprise it was to arrive at my friend’s apartment, books in hand, only to be told “thank you so much for the lovely books but, I don’t believe in reading to children”. No way. No how. I was crushed. Surely, I had misunderstood what she said. Surely, there would be an exception for an old friend-who just happens to be an dyed-in-thewool story reader. Surely for me?

Nope. The books were gratefully received and quickly tucked away, never to surface until “the youngster had learned to read and was capable of handling the stories on his own”. Indeed! I was stunned. Didn’t she know? Had she been raised by wolves?

Children need to hear stories. Don’t they? Of course, they do! Where else would a kid begin to hone their sense of fun and imagination if not by hearing a good old story. What about Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch? And, how about Charlotte’s Web? Or, And to Think I Saw it on Mulberry Street? Aside from the fun of hearing a story, how about the listening and comprehension and critical thinking and all of that other hyperbole? Did I mention fun? When I heard the no-story-reading pronouncement, I looked at LOML to see if he was as surprised. Indeed he was. I made the head-wiggling, eyebrow-raising gesture that meant, “Should I challenge our friend’s, most obviously flawed, reasoning (or lack thereof)?” I couldn’t read his face on that one so, I chose to challenge.

She calmly told us she and her husband had decided they wouldn’t read to their children because they felt a child got nothing out of the experience. She went on to say children who are read to regularly would only learn to parrot the stories, often repeating rhymes and word patterns only because they’d heard them so often. Well, freakin’ duh! Isn’t that what it’s all about? “Quite obviously”, she went on to say, “infants get absolutely nothing out of the story-reading experience and couldn’t be expected to learn to read by having stories read to them”. She fully intended to allow her child an opportunity to look at the books and even play with them, when he was a bit older, and when he was capable of deciding what he wanted to do with them. She was going to teach him to “sign” first—but, that’s another story.

To make a long story short, it’s enough to say I didn’t and don’t agree with Mrs. Stingy Story. Whenever I visit I bring along a storybook gift. (I could be accused of being hardheaded, but that wouldn’t be the truth.) The little fella is now almost four and he knows I’m good for a book or two or three. But, my heart still breaks when his mom “tut tuts” at the sight of the gifts while she gently reminds me of her resolve not to read to her little boy. Many of those lovely books have been languishing on his little bookshelf, often only used as props in his games playing. Occasionally, when I’m visiting, he pulls Mike Mulligan from the shelf and we manage to get a few lines in while Mom is busy elsewhere. He’s a smart kid and he knows it’s our little secret—the story reading. Who knows, maybe he’ll be able to “tell stories” to his new baby sister or brother due in a few month’s time. Wouldn’t that be a hoot, a guerrilla storyteller toddler.

My point is children learn to listen when stories are being read. Children learn wonderful new words and about new worlds when they hear stories. Children can let their imagination take flight on words. Taking time to read to a child, every day, allows a parent (caregiver) the opportunity to be a loving part of a child’s creative and cognitive development. I intend to continue to buy books for LF (little fella) and to read to him any chance I get, because it’s about the magic.

In early years (before four years old), read out loud children’s books that support general knowledge such as books that emphasize types of animals like Charlottes Web, or fun, rhyming books like Dr. Seuss’ The Cat in the Hat. These are entertaining books that allow you to interact with children by acting out the various characters and their roles in the book.

Later, as the child develops specific interests, encourage reading by providing children’s books that focus on those subjects. Young children often find gender specific interests garner their attention, such as sports for boys and fashion for girls. These interests provide a great starting point to further develop a child’s interest in learning. Cultivate these areas of interest because they will lead to an expansion of reading.

The importance of reading to children can be found in the development of fundamental skills. Reading encourages listening abilities and these, in turn, stress comprehension and critical thinking. Taking time to read to children allows you to actively participate in these life skills and provides a barometer by which to measure their development in these areas.As you read to the child, stop and ask questions to see if they are listening and comprehending what they hear.

Capture their attention by being animated in the subject matter. The importance of reading to children must motivate you to be completely immersed in the task at hand and you will find that your enthusiasm will be contagious to your child.

Another area that shows the importance of reading to children is in the area of vocabulary and language skills. Reading to children from qualified books exposes them to proper sentence structure and builds on their word base by introducing new vocabulary and concepts.

The importance of reading to children can be measured by the fundamental foundation it provides for all further learning. To help establish a path for academic and educational success, read often to your child and make yourself available to share this fun activity as much as possible.