Reading is the foundation for learning. Study after study has proven the importance of reading to young children. The benefits of reading to your child are numerous, such as improving concentration, acquiring language skills, and learning about the world around them. It’s also a great way to spend time together.

Here are four simple steps to raising a reader:

Read aloud to your child

If you don’t already, now is a great time to start. Regardless of age, reading aloud to your child every day will make a huge impact. Babies begin to learn early language by hearing a parent or caregiver read. Toddlers and preschoolers increase their vocabulary, which helps them excel in the classroom environment. Elementary-aged children can listen to your voice to learn about fluency, pace, inflection, and emphasis as they begin to read aloud. Even preteens and young teenagers stand to benefit from reading aloud if they’ll still let you; reading together as your child gets older is an opportunity for bonding and to discuss a wide variety of topics.

Make reading aloud part of your routine. Mixing it up can keep reading fun. Explore picture books and chapter books, Caldecott and Newbery winners, or delve into an author or topic of interest. Make sure the books are something you both enjoy and you will both look forward to the experience.

Let your child see you reading
Specifically, let your child see you reading for pleasure. As a busy parent, it can be easy to let enjoyable reading slip to the wayside, but modeling the habit will help instill it in your child.

One simple way to make this happen is to set aside some quiet reading time for the entire family on the weekends. Everyone can get comfy, gather up some books, and sit together while reading their own books. This may be tough to do in the beginning, especially for little ones, but with some practice you may all come to love this special ritual.

Two pro tips: grab some snacks and use a visual timer.

Support their gradual independence
At some point (often around first grade but every child is different) your child should begin reading to themselves for 20-30 minutes each night. As with any other skill, this doesn’t happen overnight, and takes lots of support and incremental steps toward independence.
If your child isn’t reading yet or is resistant to reading, don’t push it. The goal is to keep reading fun. If you have specific questions about your child’s progress, talk to your child’s teacher or guide will be your best resource.

If your child is starting to read on his or her own, consider some of these suggestions:

• Read a familiar book (rhyming books work best for this). Point to the last word on a page without saying it and let your child chime in.
• Take turns. To prevent fatigue, try alternating pages. You read a page, your child reads a page, and so on. A paragraph at a time works too; just time it out for your child’s needs.
• Utilize a combination of read aloud and read alone time. You may read one picture book or a chapter, then send your child off to bed to read to themselves until it’s time to go to sleep.
• Remember that everyone has tired and grumpy days. It’s all right to take a day off if needed.

Another great way to support early readers is to suggest strategies or point out when you notice they are using them. Pictures can help us figure out words we don’t know. Breaking a word into chunks by syllable is another helpful strategy. Asking ourselves, “Does that make sense?” is a good idea. Even the act of noticing when we’ve made a mistake, and going back to reread is the sign of a good reader.

Help them discover books they love
The best way to raise a reader is to surround them with books they love. Some parents may balk at this. After all, do we really want to encourage those books about bathroom humor, or graphic novels that have more illustrations than words? The answer is yes. Many graphic novels today are visually stunning and also great examples of a newer style of literature. The occasional licensed character/fantasy/bathroom humor book won’t be the end of the world either, just make sure to balance it out with lots of options to balance out the others.

What is your child interested in? Nonfiction is often a great place to start. There are books written for all interests and it’s often easy to find them at all reading levels. As time goes on, you may notice your child naturally moving toward a particular genre or author. Their interests will change over time, but we can all remember a time when we couldn’t stop ourselves from soaking up every book we could in a series.

Introducing our children to a wide variety of genres is a good idea. Think beyond fact and fantasy. Try out some realistic fiction, historical fiction, poetry, folktales, myths and legends, or even a play.

There are lots of great ways to keep your collection fresh without breaking the bank. Visit your local library, check out second-hand bookstores, have a book swap with friends, or organize a used book sale at your child’s school. Just keep reading.