Getting Your Baby to Love Reading
How does reading in infancy contribute to the baby’s brain and motor development?
The living cell that falls into the mother’s womb divides very quickly and reproduces, and this development continues throughout life. While this development is very rapid in infants, it slows down in the aging stages. Brain development in particular shows a very rapid development from the moment of birth to infancy. It is very important to accustom babies to books in the early period in order to keep the brain development of babies at the highest level and to strengthen the connections between neurons and nerve cells. Reading to babies early will positively affect their language development and social-emotional development. In addition to these, giving a book to the baby’s hand and allowing him to touch the pages also contributes to motor development. In addition, reading books from infancy strengthens the bond between parent and baby.
What are the ways to familiarize babies with books?
The first thing to do when introducing books to babies is to make the reading activity fun for both your baby and yourself. If your baby develops positive feelings towards books, he will be excited to see other materials as well. Since the attention span of babies is short, the second thing to do is not to keep the reading time too long. Instead of reading each page, it will be enough to introduce the main color and shape on the page and spell the texts in a way that your baby can hear. The third step to accustom babies to books is to include reading in their daily routines. Ideal times to familiarize your baby with books and introduce them to them; mealtimes, end of day, bath time and before sleep.
What should be considered when choosing baby books?
Visual, auditory and tactile development of newborns and babies consists of a process. For this reason, knowing these developmental processes when choosing a book is compatible with the developmental stage of the baby and is important in terms of passing to the next level in a suitable way.
What should be the features of the books that should be bought for newborn babies?
When choosing a book for newborns, care should be taken that the colors are in high contrast, so that the colors on the page are dark and self-evident, so that the newborn can see and distinguish colors. Secondly, it is very beneficial for newborns to listen to their mothers’ voices for their language development. Therefore, it is very important for language development that the books chosen for newborns contain simple spellings and rhythms.
What should be the features of the books that should be bought for 6-12 month old babies?
After 6 months, babies begin to actively participate in the reading process. In this process, babies begin to chew, point and gurgle. Books made of thick cardboard and not pointed are important for the baby to explore and have fun with. In addition to these, it is important for babies of this age to buy books with activities for their development. For example, books with soft and furry objects, ce-ee games and hidden surprises are important for the child to discover.
What should be the features of the books that should be bought for toddlers?
Activities that involve simple themes and encourage them to talk should be done with toddlers. For this reason, it is important that the selected books have plenty of pictures, introduce animals, include the child’s favorite characters, colors and objects, and guide the child to speak and understand.
What should be the characteristics of the books that should be bought for children aged 1.5-3?
Books bought for newborns and babies aged 6-12 months are generally books that enable the child to explore using his/her hands, mouth, briefly his/her own body, and are very important for the child’s physical and cognitive development. Books with educational content can also be given to babies between 18-36 months. These should be simple books that usually include primary colors, simple shapes, the numbers 1, 2 and 3, and the letters A, B, C, and aim to get the baby to start counting and learning colors, simple shapes, and numbers.