When do you begin reading to your baby?

Some parents begin reading to their children when they are still in the womb. When do you begin talking to your baby? Do you wait until your baby is 6 months old? Hopefully you answered no. The same is true with reading to your baby. You can begin reading to your baby the day he or she is born.

Only half of infants and toddlers are routinely read to by their parents, so when they enter kindergarten they are unprepared to learn.

The information on this page is taken from a library brochure based on ideas found in the Fifth Edition of Jim Trelease’s The Read-Aloud Handbook.

What if my baby doesn’t pay attention?

Don’t get discouraged if it doesn’t look like your baby is paying attention. Here is an idea of your baby’s attention span for his or her first year.

• At four months, your child has limited mobility, so has little or no choice but to listen and observe. 

• By six months, your child is more interested in grabbing the book to suck on it than listening (which your child is also doing).

• By eight months, he or she may prefer turning pages to steady listening. Allow your child time to explore this activity.

• At twelve months, your child’s involvement grows to turning pages for you, pointing to objects you name on the page, even making noises for animals on cue.

• By fifteen months and the onset of walking, your child’s restlessness blossoms fully, and your reading times must be chosen so as not to frustrate his or her immediate interests.

   

And remember, your child’s attention span during reading time is only about three minutes in length. Try several daily readings each day.

It is unusual for a child to sit through 30 minutes of story time. The more you read to your child, the longer his or her attention span will become. Consider this:

• The more you read, the better you get at it; the better you get at it, the more you like it; and the more you like it, the more you do it.
• The more you read, the more you know; and the more you know, the smarter you grow.

Be consistent, reading to your child for at least 10 minutes everyday.

Suggested Read-Alouds

Now you may be wondering what to read to your baby. Here are some suggestions to help you begin. All of the following are available at the Vineland Public Library.

• One Little Spoonful by Aliki
• Moo, Baa, La La La! by Sandra Boynton
• Big Book of Beautiful Babies, The by David Ellwand
• We Have a Baby by Cathryn Falwell
• Everything Book, The by Denise Fleming
• Count to Ten, Piggy Wiggy by Christyan & Diane Fox
• Time for Bed by Mem Fox
• Black on White by Tana Hoban
• Strawberries are Red by Petr Horácek
• What is Black and White? by Petr Horácek
• Hug, Hug, Hug! by Emily Jenkins and Tomek Bogacki
• Where is Baby’s Mommy? by Karen Katz
• Row, Row, Row Your Boat illustrated by Annie Kubler
• Do You Know New? by Jean Marzollo
• I Like It When… by Mary Murphy
• I Can by Helen Oxenbury
• Tom and Pippo’s Day by Helen Oxenbury
• Yummy, YUCKY by Leslie Patricelli
• Baby Born by Anastasia Suen
• Baby Dance by Ann Taylor
• Show Me! by Tom Tracy
• Pussycat Pussycat & Other Rhymes by Rosemary Wells
• Read to Your Bunny by Rosemary Wells

Check with the Children’s Librarian for assistance in locating these books.

What Does Baby Like?

Choose something that stimulates your child’s sight and hearing. Choose books with colorful pictures and exciting sounds.

Don’t worry about repetition. Reading books over and over may seem boring to you, but your baby will love it. Your child will be more comfortable and relaxed with repeated readings and be able to absorb more.

And remember:

Bring your baby to Baby Story Time (ages 6 –23 months) at the Vineland Public Library. For dates and times call (856)794-4244 ext. 4246.

The information on this page was created by the Vineland Public Library in conjunction with a Literacy Grant from the New Jersey State Library with funding from the Institute of Museum and Library Services through its Grants to States program.

If you have comments or suggestions, email Samantha Tai, Children's Outreach Librarian

Last updated 06/08