Read Aloud, Read Aloud, Read Aloud!

I recently spent the better part of a sweet day with some soon-to-be-kindergartners and their parents.  Doors opened at 9 a.m. and a line of big and little folk streamed inside to participate in Pullman Public Schools’ Kindergarten Registration.

Such a milestone.  Such a myriad of emotions for all, including me, a once-upon-a-time-kindergarten- teacher turned children’s librarian.  Then, like now, the “bigness” of this moment remains.

I think I had the best job at registration sitting at a table where every kindergartener-to-be got to select a book of their choice to keep.  Yes, keep - thanks to the generous financial support of the Friends of Neill Library who provide these literary gifts year after year to our community’s youngsters.

Included with each book was a Neill Public Library card and information about the importance of reading aloud. So important.  So very important.  Anyone who knows me knows I cannot say or emphasize it enough.  Read aloud, read aloud, read aloud.

There is no shortage of reasons why to read aloud to our children of all ages.  Here are my top four:

1. Reading aloud creates and sustains strong emotional connections.  It provides us ongoing opportunities to talk and share our feelings, thoughts and values.  It also gives us time to listen to each other and reinforce to our child that they matter.

2. Reading aloud dramatically impacts language.  Do you know a child with a larger-than-their-age- vocabulary?  Chances are, they’ve heard many, many books read aloud because the language in books (especially picture books) is different - better, and far richer than the words we use in everyday conversation.  We might say, “The elephant said.” But when we read a picture book, our child hears, “The enormous gray elephant boldly trumpeted.”

3.  Reading aloud teaches your child how to read. Really!  It absolutely does.  Just as our children learned to talk by us talking with them from the moment they were born, so too, they learn to read by us reading aloud to them day after delightful day.

4. Reading aloud allows us to pass on a gift that will continue long beyond our own lifetime - the gift of family literacy. Your child will read to their child and your grandchild will read to your great grandchild and on and on - generation after generation, because you read aloud and made those times so memorable.

So, let’s all say congratulations to the incoming graduating class of 2032.  May the world we give them be teeming with peace, love, wonder, kindness, laughter and hundreds upon hundreds of delicious read aloud times.

Kathleen Ahern
Children's Librarian