Tips for Reading Aloud

Be familiar with a book before you read it so you will read it well. If you know what's going on, you can be more expressive and can point out interesting things in the illustrations.

Start by looking at the cover. Be sure to read the name of the author and illustrator. See if the child can predict what's going to happen in the story based on the cover.

Read slowly and be expressive. Using different voices and tones keeps the child interested.

Be sure to give the child plenty of time to look at the illustrations. Talk about what's going on in the pictures.

Ask the children to participate. They like to play an active role by doing things like turning the pages, making sound effects, and saying or chanting the repeating lines.

Don't feel that you have to read every single word. Sometimes the child is too young for long paragraphs or is feeling distracted.

Talk about the story and ask the child to predict what will happen next, or explain why something occurred. Bear in mind that some children will be impatient with this and just want you to read the story straight through. For them, it might be better to wait until the story is over to talk about what happened and have the child relate it to his/her own experiences. You may want to talk about how the story relates to your own experiences as well!

Talking about Books

After you've finished reading a story, it's a good idea to encourage young readers to express their thoughts about what the story was about. Below are some questions that help draw a child out. You don't want to ask all of them; just pick a few that fit the child or the book that you are reading.

Did the story turn out the way you thought it would? Why or why not?

If you were the author, how would you have changed the ending? How would you have changed the beginning? What other events would you have changed?

What made this book interesting?

Is the main character someone you would like to have as a friend? Why or why not?

Is this a book you would recommend to a friend? Which events would your friend enjoy most?

What other events would you like to see happen to the main character(s)?

How would the story change if it took place in our city?

If you were the main character, what would you have done differently in the story?

Have you ever experienced some of the events or feelings that the main character did? Describe them.

If you had a chance to meet the author of this book, what would you like to say?

Would you enjoy reading other books by this author? Why or why not?

What do you think would happen in a sequel to this book?