Reading to babies
There has been a campaign by some speech and language therapists to encourage parents to read to their babies. One may wonder, “of what benefit is reading to a baby?”
Growing up, the saying “Reading makes a full man” by Sir Francis Bacon was one of my mother’s favourite sayings to encourage my siblings and I to read frequently. We were in primary school then. Some of the books we read included Ananse stories and Cinderella.
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There are a lot of story books about Ghanaian folklore, in addition to other popular children’s books that you can read to your child. Reading has a lot of benefits and therefore babies must be read to, and children must encouraged to read.
In fact, it is even more beneficial when parents start reading to their babies as this will further help them to develop the habit of reading.
Benefits of reading
Reading to your baby has a lot of benefits. These include:
• Attention skills: Although babies have limited attention skills, reading to them helps develop their attention. Attention skills is one of the foundational skills for language development. Regular reading to your baby increases their attention span and helps with the development of their memory. While one may wonder what an infant may understand from what you are reading, simply sitting together and reading to your baby helps with their early interaction skills.
• Bonding: Sitting together and reading to your baby offers an opportunity to bond with your baby and fosters a connection. This helps you to build a strong relationship with your baby. The early interaction you have with your baby through reading further develops their communication. Responding to their coos and gazes while reading to them is a form of reciprocal communication required in our everyday interaction.
• Language development: Reading daily to your baby offers them the opportunity to acquire language.
Exposing them to vocabulary and sentences through reading helps them develop their language over time. As they hear words through the books read to them, they are exposed to a lot of vocabulary, some of which they may not hear in their everyday interactions. Language acquisition is necessary for literacy skills (required for academic success) and social interaction, as well as preparing them for school.
• Cognitive development: Reading helps with a child’s ability to think. This involves their ability to problem-solve, make decisions and to recall situations. Reading exposes children to different situations that involve thinking. As they grow, these learning opportunities help them to understand and make sense of the world.
Tips for reading
• Remove all forms of distractions when reading to your child. Turn off the TV, radio, etc.
• Offer an opportunity to respond intermittently when reading. Your child’s response may be through babbling, smiling, pointing, etc. Acknowledge their response by repeating what they say, adding onto it with an extra word or two.
• Read books with bright or simple colours, have pictures, and of different textures that your baby can see, hear and feel. Babies find these interesting.
• Talk about characters in the book and try to relate it to something in real life. For parents who may not be literate in English, they can talk about the pictures in the book to make a story.
• Repeat the same book a few times, which may be beneficial in helping to expose your child to the same vocabulary over a period of time. Move on to a new book just in time to avoid boredom and disinterest. You can always come back to a favourite book from time to time. More importantly, enjoy the reading experience!!
The writer is Speech & Language Therapist/Clinical Tutor, University of Ghana.
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