Reading aloud to children is a wonderful family experience! The winter is the perfect season to incorporate family read aloud sessions. Whether you have a reluctant reader or a voracious one, everyone can join in to share a delightful story together. It’s a healthy, screen-free way to enjoy purposeful time as a family. Together, you’ll encounter characters, adventures, and resolutions right in your own home. These moments create special bonding time that your kids will always remember. Here are 6 practical read aloud tips to help your family get the most out of family read aloud sessions:
Create a Cozy, Comfortable Spot
Pick a spot where everyone feels relaxed. Make sure there’s plenty of room for all your children to snuggle in. When kids associate books with closeness, safety, and security, they grow fonder of reading.
Bring Characters to Life with Your Voice
Kids love it when you change your voice to match the characters! Show emotion, emphasize key words, and even add sound effects. This models expressive reading and voice inflection for them.
Mix in Fun Poetry Occasionally
Reading books with catchy rhymes encourages children to repeat lines with you. Poetry nurtures a love of words and exposes kids to different storytelling styles.
Explore Your Family’s Heritage Through Books
Choose stories about your family’s background. Your children will enjoy learning about their culture, struggles, and history together. It might even spark a fun unit study on genealogy!
Spark Conversations About the Story
If time allows, throw a special party based on the book’s theme! For example:
- After Madeleine, bake croissants and madeleine cookies with red, blue, and yellow decorations.
- Old Yeller could inspire a country western BBQ with cornbread or chili.
- Pride and Prejudice might call for a fancy costume ball.
- The Cricket in Times Square ends perfectly with New York–style pizza and cheesecake!
Start a Family or Friends Read Aloud Book Club
Team up with like-minded families for a shared worthwhile book. Set a reading schedule, plan meetups, and prepare thoughtful discussion questions. Finish with a themed party for extra fun!
Family read alouds are incredibly rewarding! Instead of a TV series, choose a book series everyone can enjoy. Even with kids of different ages, most stories work well—children’s listening vocabulary often outpaces their reading level. The more they hear you read, the better they get at understanding spoken information.
Some of my kids’ favorite memories are our family read aloud times. In fact, when my adult son faced health challenges recently, he asked for evening read aloud sessions—it warmed my heart! What are you waiting for? Clear distractions, grab a good book, find a cozy spot, and enjoy the journey together. ~ Gina
“A children’s story that can only be enjoyed by children is not a good children’s story in the slightest.” — C.S. Lewis
