What Librarians Want You To Do With Your Kids At Home To Foster A Love Of Reading

Everyone knows that reading is important, but it's still easy to feel overwhelmed by its significance. Whether your kid's a natural bookworm or not, encouraging a love of reading — and hopefully honing some skills — can feel more complicated than it actually is. But before you start buying a bunch of phonics books or stressing about your kid's preference for graphic novels (yes, they still count as reading), it helps to hear what actual librarians want you to do at home to help your kid with reading.

Spoiler alert: No special products needed.

For starters, reading at home is always an easy win. It's simple, it can easily fit into your family's schedules, and it's effective. Vanessa Iris Soto, youth services manager at Hoboken Public Library, tells Scary Mommy that a "bedtime routine of reading before going to sleep is a great way for them to positively connect with books and their grownups." You're modeling reading in a favorable way, sharing it together, and not making it a "chore" or a big task they have to complete each day.

And when it comes to what you should be reading, Soto says variety is key to encouraging a love of reading at home. "Make sure they are topics that would interest your reader. Once they start reading regularly, you can introduce specific topics and subjects of your choosing, but initially, all books should appeal to your child's likes," she says.

She also recommends talking to your child if you want them to get excited about a book they're reading, and ask them what they want.

"When a child is unsure of what to read, I always ask them what they like — animals, vehicles, marine life, etc. Do they like humorous books like Diary of a Wimpy Kid, graphic novels like Dog Man, or mysteries like The Case of the Firecrackers? Finding out their favorite topic or genre usually helps them select something they will enjoy and keep them reading. You want to develop a child's love of reading, then you can challenge them by adding titles and subjects that you would like them to read."

Because no matter how old your kid is, it's never too late to foster a love of reading. Even if they never get into the series you want them to or they prefer reading a book just at bedtime, the act of reading is so important. And Soto says parents should feel empowered to use the library as a resource for their family.

"For littles and babies, attending story time at your local library is key to building a love of books and reading. It helps babies associate books with sitting down, focusing, and engaging with their peers,” Soto explains. But even for older children, she says that story time sessions can teach you how to select your own captivating titles for reading at home, like Pete the Cat and His Four Groovy Buttons, which incorporates counting and singing into the story.

"Librarians are animated readers — they sing, dance, and use finger play; caretakers can mimic their style at home with kids to be more engaging when reading with their little ones," she says. So don't be afraid to get silly, to come up with fun voices, and to really lean into reading out loud with your family.

And finally, if you have older kids who enjoy reading but rarely seem to do it on their own, consider setting aside family reading time.

Mary Beth Harris, a librarian from Arizona, tells me that she finds kids often read more in the library than they will after taking a book home because of the environment and atmosphere there. "So I suggest to parents that they just have a family reading time. Everybody put devices away, turn off TVs, get a good snack, and sit together in a room and read. Nobody has to discuss what they're reading or anything; just enjoy the moment together. You'll have a bookworm in no time."