Top 4 Things You Should Know When Reading to a Toddler

1. Have Repetition and Be Predictable: Do you remember how smart you felt, as a kid, when you figured out what was going to happen next in a story? With toddlers, it’s important to include books that contain repetitions, as they mature, add predictable and rhyming books. Read stories again and again. Your toddler enjoys repetition and it helps them become familiar with the way stories are organized.

2. Use Expressions & Rhymes: The beauty of reading with children is that you won’t be reading to a peanut gallery of harsh critics – release your inhibitions! Read with expression using different voices for different characters. This change in tone can help keep the child engaged and also teaches the art of storytelling – which is one of the benefits of our hands-free video storytelling platform! Toddlers also love rhythms and rhymes in stories, give them opportunities throughout the story to repeat rhyming phrases. Better yet, add a tune to it.

3. Have Child Repeat: Encourage your child to repeat what you say or comment on it and
encourage them to ask questions. Provide models of interesting questions and examples of possible answers. “I wonder where they are going to next? I think the bear will trip in the rock because he is not paying attention to where he is going. What do you think?”. Also encourage your child to make paying attention to where he is going. What do you think?”. Also encourage your child to make up next steps in the story, such as- “what would you like to see happen next”? This is the spark that storytelling causes in an imagination!

4. Make it a Routine/Habit: Make reading a habit for bedtime, after lunch, or after naptime. Research abounds on the benefits of daily reading for a child’s foundation of literacy for life. Combine reading with an encounter with relatives that are distant for uber-enhanced bonding! Bedtime stories happen every night, so pick one night a week and your child will begin to look forward to this reading time on the computer (or tablet) – as will the family member committed to this time with the child. You can even calendar the reading day so that they know when it is coming. Have them put stickers on each reading day so they can see when it is happening. Kids often approach the habit of reading as a chore, so by integrating it with computer privileges makes it cool and the storytelling dynamic teaches them about creativity.that has

Celebrate Read Across California!

Did you know that Be There Bedtime Stories is based in California? Did you know that California just passed a statewide resolution to celebrate the entire month of March as Read Across CA Month? Did you know that the kickoff on March 2nd is in conjunction with Read Across America Day AND Dr. Seuss‘ birthday?

We value the many partnerships that we have with leading literacy organizations throughout the US! So when we heard about the legislation marking March as Read Across California month, we were thrilled about a campaign that was planning to promote reading 30 minutes a day for 30 days. What better way to keep the activity of reading fresh and fun, and to share with others, than to read aloud in front of your webcam!

We’re passionate about literacy and proud to be Californians - which is why we’re celebrating this new holiday month with special discounts all month long. Heck, we even developed the ReadAcrossCA.org website! Here’s how reading with Webtime Stories™ helps:

• A United States Department of Education analysis found that children who were read to at least three times a week by a family member were almost twice as likely to score in the top 25 percent in reading than children who were read to less than three times a week.
• Reading out loud to children increases their interest in mastering reading and exposes children to proper vocabulary, grammar, and phrasing, and enhances the development of their own reading skills.
• The Public Policy Institute of California’s report, “Lessons in Reading Reform: Finding What Works” (2010), highlights the fact that struggling elementary and middle school pupils who are given extra time for reading can make sizable gains in literacy.
• According to the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) 1994 Reading Assessment, 87 percent of pupils who reported reading for fun on their own time once a month or more performed at the proficient level, while 13 percent of pupils who reported never or hardly ever reading for fun performed at the basic level.

Source: Assembly Concurrent Resolution No. 62 (ACR 62) Relative to Read Across California Month 

Reading Webtime Stories™ is a great way to engage with multi media while still reaping the benefits of reading aloud, to build literacy. Take a look around the bookstore and dog-ear books to your account to record during the month of March, so you can take advantage of the promotional discounts we’ll be offering all month long.

After all, a kids college transcripts depend on it!

Research + Common Sense = Opportunity for Improvement

Recently someone shared an article regarding a study from The Coalition for Evidence-Based Policy, a non-profit, non-partisan organization that rigorously evaluates government-funded social services and education programs. It found that annual book fairs providing summer reading materials to students in high-poverty elementary schools gave students  a significant gain in reading levels over a three year period.

"ABC Letters in the Library" - Lobster Press on BeThereBedtimeStories.com

Here comes the common sense part of it. I think this finding easily translates into most any home, anywhere.

This finding makes me think of all the places in our homes where we can have books that entice our little ones to pick them up to take a look. Books are naturally engaging. I have personally witnessed this, time and time again. Merely having a collection of books in the presence of a child, from toddlers to high school students, causes them to open up the book and take a look (at the very least). The research from the Coalition for Evidence-Based Policy reflects this and common sense would tend to fall in line as well. No?

Common sense also tells me that one has to be resourceful if one does not have the funds to fill a home with books. Libraries will provide a regular supply of fresh material, but one has to be organized and diligent about getting to and from the library on a regular basis. I have not always been successful with this endeavor and have paid many a fine for my oversight. Worth every penny, though, I might add. There are also organizations that literally give books away for free. I am lucky enough to have one in my suburban Chicago location. However, I only found out about it through the school I work for. I do believe that there needs to be better networking and awareness of resources available to the public.

So the next time you walk by a bookshelf that is in disarray, look on it as a blessing in disguise. How great is it that someone passing by couldn’t help but reach out and engage with a book!

Emerging Readers

Are you still looking for ways to encourage your young child to read? Would you like to instill in your child a love of books? With your help, kids from toddlers to preschoolers can get a head start on the road to reading, even if they cannot yet read themselves. Here are a few suggestions help get you started from : – www.essortment.com

• Return to your child’s favorite books again and again. Make books available to your child at all times by placing them on a shelf within easy reach. This invites your child to look at books whenever he desires.

• Encourage preschoolers to “write” their own books. Let your child dictate stories or the events of the day to you, and write them down word for word. Allow her to add artwork or pictures cut from magazines. Then, read the book back to your child.

• As your child grows, look for books on subjects that are of special interest to his experiences and expanding knowledge.

Reading to our children can do more than simply help them excel in school; reading to them can instill a love of books that will last them a lifetime.

A Birthday Story

We sent grandma a birthday book recently! My daughters chose a Be There Bedtime Story they each wanted to send. They each started out their own story singing Happy Birthday to grandma. Then they got to read her the story.  Silly Moments by Anna C Morrison is a book about a kitten that gets into plenty of mischief, and was the perfect selection for the girls this time around. Kitty cat books are usually the first choice for the girls, and as soon as my oldest daughter chose it my younger daughter was quick to follow suit. I can only assume that getting a video message including a song and a personally selected story was a bit more exciting to grandma than a  card in the mail or even a phone call. Thanks to Be There Bedtime Stories I suspect a new tradition is forming!