I have a two and a half year old and an eleven month old, so we do a lot of reading in our house. Some of it is good and some is less than desirable. I have also learned the hard way how different two kids can be. My eldest is my most voracious reader and always has been this way. She used to sit on my lap and read for over thirty minutes when she was six months old, and now at bedtime her favorite phrase is, "One more book." Parents who do not have readers may envy this particular situation, but after you have read for 45 minutes when bedtime was 30 minutes ago, you may change your mind. My eleven month old is not a reader and will twist and manipulate herself away from your lap in order to get up and move around. These experiences have led me to write this post about the good, the bad, and the ugly of reading with kids.
The Ugly: Sometimes when I try to read to my eleven month old she refuses to read. As an English teacher, this is hard for me because I want to be able to read with her. I know how important reading is at a young age, so I want to make sure she learns to love books as a youngster. This is probably my most challenging problem because I cannot find a way to get her to read with me. That being said, I hope she will eventually grow into loving books and reading. The Bad: As I mentioned above, my two and a half year old loves reading books. She loves it so much that she will refuse to go to bed unless we read a sufficient number of books and just the right books she refuses to go to sleep. Again, this may not seem like a problem. That is until you consider that you have been up since 5 am and it's 9 pm. Sure, it's not that bad to have a kid who loves to read, but sometimes it is just tiring. The Good: I have two young children who by and large will sit and read a book. It may not be the best experience all of the time, but reading books with my kids is a pleasure. I cannot imagine not being able to share books with them, and thankfully they comply with my hopes most of the time. Reading is such a cool experience to share, and I hope, if you have kids, that you read with them, too!
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