Raising Readers: Tips for Dads on Nurturing a Love for Books

One of the greatest discoveries for me as a first-time dad was finding out that there are books tailored to children from age zero. I know for people like myself this makes no sense at all. How and why should one be reading to a little person who can’t pay attention let alone understand anything at all? So, at first, it seemed like a chore and every time my wife would bring these baby books with only shapes and colours without text I would simply smile but in my head, I was like “Is this necessary right now? The baby needs milk not books”. Well, my perspective has really changed over the years, and with our second child Wane aged 1 year and 7 months, we always have fun reading storybooks every night. Wila, our firstborn daughter aged 3+ years literally can’t go to bed without being read a book. Whenever we tell Wila to go to bed she says “but I haven’t read a book” and she will quickly go and grab a book and bring it over. It’s amazing to see how reading books has become a good habit for our two little children and I am happy to share a few tips that have worked for me with my fellow dads about raising children who love books and reading.

Tip #1 For the first tip, I will start with a warning: Some nights you will be tired from a long day of work and your little one(s) will want to get into the reading activity so brace yourself and get ready to indulge. First of all, introduce your child(ren) to books as early as possible. For the expecting dads, get books and start reading to your unborn baby or babies and continue after birth while introducing new material as your child(ren) advances. Remember also that this is not a lone activity so be sure to work with your partner where possible so that even in your absence there is always someone to read with the child(ren).

Tip #2 Make books easily accessible for the little one(s). I remember calling my wife after seeing our youngest daughter at about 1 and a half years bringing a book from the bookshelf for me to read to her. At first, I thought it was a fluke so I sent her back and said go and bring book Zella (her other name) and she went and came back to the living room carrying a book while repeatedly saying “book”. The best way to do this is to buy a front-facing child-size bookshelf or if you are handy like me and you have some time you can simply make one. You can also find them at Wilawane Store. This allows the child(ren) have access to books easily, quickly and also draws their attention.

Tip #3 Clear all destructors during reading time, things like television, mobile devices, and anything that can disturb the attention of the little one(s).

Tip #4 Reading should be fun so make it fun! Remember that you are not a newscaster reading a script in the form of a story in a book. Make sounds, sing, act out characters, anything to make it fun for your big audience. They will love it! By the way, one of the most enjoyable stories to read and act is “Five Little Monkeys” when you do it on the bed provided your bed is strong enough. LOL

Tip #5 And for my final tip; Incorporate local books. Back in the day, we had “Kalulu” stories and it was always fun and exciting to listen to those stories because as children we could relate with the environment, and characters and even visualize the stories. I recommend Suku Books, they have storybooks tailored to the local context with local illustrations that are captivating to young readers and I also enjoy these books a lot. That’s it from me, I would be happy to hear from other dads experience on experiences or additional tips so please leave your comment below.