I’ve been meaning to post this for some time now, but kept forgetting to (sorry Suzanne and others) so finally here it is….

A while back, my cousin Jane and husband Michael sent us an autographed copy of a really great reference book that pretty much changed our perception of reading aloud to kids. These are just some of the topics the book covers….

• Which Books Are Best for Infants?
• What is Normal Behavior by the Child During Reading?
• What Comes After Mother goose?
• How Do You Keep the Child from Ripping Pages?
• Why Do They Want the Same Book Read Over and Over?
• Won’t a Video Do as Much Good as a Picture Book?
• Do the Waldo and I Spy Books Serve Any Purpose?
• What Is the Purpose of Fairy Tales?
• Isn’t the Fairy Tale’s “Prince Charming” a Bit Dated?
• Is There a Natural Transition from Picture Book to Novel?
• At What Age Can You Begin “Chapter Books”?
• Could You Read Chapter Books at Preschool Level?
• At What Age Do You Stop the Picture Books?
• What Makes a Good Read-Aloud
• How Do I Get My Twelve-Year-Old to Sit Still Long Enough for a Story?
• What Results Should Be Expected from Reading Aloud to Teens?
• And the Do’s and Don’ts of Read-Aloud as well as Lists of Recommended Read-Aloud books.

He has a web site which also lists his speaking engagements. Enjoy and hopefully you will appreciate some of the interesting insights his book has presented to us.

Here’s an excerpt quoted from pg. 43-44 of his book:

Is There Something I Could Buy that Would Help My Child to Read Better? — Answer: The 3 B’s

The 1st B is Books: Ownership of a book, with the child’s name inscribed inside, a book that doesn’t have to be returned to the libraray or even shared with siblings. I still have the first book I ever bought, the first I ever won, and one of the first I ever received as a gift. In a study of Israeli kindergarten children, high achieving readers owned ten times as many books as did the low achievers.

The 2nd B is Book Basket (or magazine rack)–place where it can be used most often. There is probably more reading done in the bathrooms of America than all the libraries and classrooms combined. Put a book basket in there, stocked with books, magazines, and newspapers. Put another book basket on or near the kitchen table. All those newspaper and coin boxes aren’t standing in front of fast-food restaurants as decorations. If you sit in your car in the parking lot and watch who uses those coin boxes, invariably it’s the person who’s eating alone. And with more and more children eating at least 1 daily meal alone, the kitchen is a prime spot for recreational reading. If there’s a book on the table, they’ll read it–unless, of course, you’re foolish enough to have a television in your kitchen, as do 58% of parents in America.

The 3rd B is Bed Lamp: Does your child have a bed lamp or reading light? If not, and you wish to raise a reader, the first order of business is to go out and buy one. Buy the lamp, install it, and say to your child: “Elizabeth, we think you’re old enough now to stay up later at night and read in bed like Mom and Dad. So we bought this little lamp and we’re going to leave it on an extra 15 minutes (or longer, depending on the age of the child) if you want to read in bed. On the other hand, if you don’t want to read— that’s ok too. We’ll just turn off the light at the same old time.” Most children will do anything in order to stay up later–even read.