- Image by ruminatrix via Flickr
Reading to your child is just as important to their developmental growth as allowing them to eat the right types of foods, taking them to the doctor, allowing them to interact with other children and even making sure that they get the right type of sleep. Reading can help a child in a number of ways.
Many parents do not realize the importance of reading on a child’s life. It is a gift that only a parent can give by reading out loud to the child at a young age. Reading allows children and parents to bond and interact. It allows the mind to grow and develop in ways that it would never be able to without reading.
A study showed that children who were read to at a young age by a parent for just 15 minutes a day were more likely to go to college and were more socially adapt at dealing with other children their own age.
Another fascinating element of this study showed that children who were read to had better communication skills and imagination skills. Imagination is a part of every child’s childhood so having an active imagination is important to their growth as a child. Reading allows children to become exposed to things that they wouldn’t normally get to do and sparks their brains into thinking about elements and situations that they wouldn’t have done in the first place.
With all the benefits that reading has to a young child it is amazing that children’s books and libraries are not packed to the brim with parents waiting to read to their children. Just remember that it doesn’t take hours to read to a child, a simple bedtime story or small story throughout the day can keep a child’s imagination going for hours and helps aid in their growth as a child.
