Did you know that early exposure to reading to a baby has a long lasting influence on their learning throughout their life?  When you read to your child, you provide them with background knowledge about their world, which helps them make sense of what they see, hear, and experience and also a great activity to help you bond with your kids.

I love reading! It feels therapeutic as it calms me completely and helps me disconnect from the chaos of the day. Reading has always helped me appreciate my life better. So, when I had Mishika I knew from the start that I wanted to inculcate a good reading habit in her routine. Also it is a great activity to do with your kids which helps you bond more and also exposes your little one to new things around them.

Here are eight tips that helped me start a reading routine with my daughter from as early as three months old!

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Reading to a baby

1. Start early

We started reading to Mishika from as early as when she was three months old. Young babies may not know what the pictures in a book mean, but they can focus on them, especially faces, bright colors, and contrasting patterns. When you read or sing lullabies and nursery rhymes, it is entertaining as well as soothing for the baby.

2. Start small

Initially we would spend only 5-10 minutes in a day reading to our baby but with time the duration slowly increased and now we spend good 15-20 minutes reading to our baby before bedtime.

3. Stick to a routine

To the best of our possibility we have always tried to maintain a good schedule from the start with our little girl. We always try to read to her before bedtime. Following a similar routine daily helps them be aware of what's going to come next and helps them form a habit more easily. You can read my blogpost on why routine in kids is so important here.

4. Read to your child every day

This is one of the most important building block in forming a habit. It’s important to read daily to your baby if it's for only 5-10 minutes.

5. Play background music

Playing a background music really helped us create the environment. It helped Mishika calm down from her overly energetic self and helped her focus on the reading activity more.

6. Security

Reading does help your little one get the much needed cuddle time which makes them feel more secure and happy. Through her reading activity she was also able to develop a good habit of sitting in a spot longer and not getting too restless easily.

7. Big and colorful picture book

Start with picture books with big and colorful graphics as that can grab your little one's attention easily and keep them engaged for long Some examples are lullabies, board books (with pictures), cloth books (with various textures), song Books and etc.

8. Mimic characters and sing while reading

Making sounds and singing while reading would always keep Mishika’s attention and keep her more engaged. A small tip try changing the tone of your voice as you read. This makes it easier for your baby to pick up on different speech sounds, which is an important step towards learning to make sounds themselves.

We have been using these tips for quite a few months now and I can say that Mishika has definitely picked a liking towards reading. While she is playing on her own, I do catch her many times, staring at books and flipping through pages.

baby reading books
baby reading books
baby reading books
baby reading books

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