This was a brilliant project and one that we all really enjoyed taking part in.
-How your child responded to you spending time reading to them, and if this changed as the weeks progressed?
My dd(6) already loves being read to, but she felt more of a sense of ownership because she had chosen the books herself.
My ds(11) prefers to read to himself and choose his own books. He was sometimes happy to read together and we co-read some books, including with his sister. It did normalise reading together more though and I noticed he asked me to read with him a couple of times before the project ended. I just asked him if he enjoyed being read to and he said 'not really'.
- Any changes you noticed as a result of, or anything that surprised you about reading to your child?
I knew they are both good readers for their age, but Dd surprised me with her reading stamina - e.g. insisting on reading 3 pages solid of Land of Roar. She became very good at asking what words meant during the project. I was also surprised how much she enjoyed funny books, like the naughtiest unicorn.
Ds is less keen on reading aloud, he did it because he 'had to', but his reading expression improved as he competed a little with his sister. I was surprised he mispronounced a couple of words that he clearly knew from reading, but hadn't heard pronounced - or had, but hadn't cross referenced with the written word.
- Any impact you felt reading to your child had on their (and your) wellbeing?
I think we all enjoyed the snuggly time, especially at a stressful time like lockdown.
- Whether you intend to continue reading to your child now that the project has finished?
With dd yes. Ds less so, as its hard to persuade him to, we do occasionally read 'project' books together though that I think would be improving for him (this could be why he doesn't want to read with me!).
- Some of you will also have received a magazine, if your child was in the relevant age group. If so, how did your child respond to the magazine and what are your thoughts?
Ds got a fortnite one, which we donated, as he doesn't play. Both kids loved the free bow and arrow though!
Dd got 2 lol comics, which she disliked as she thought they were ugly and a my little pony one, which she didn't really enjoy. She liked the free stuff on them all though.
She got a Disney princess one which she really enjoyed, having recently learned about through disney+.
I think all the comics showed that unless you like the focus characters then there isn't anything intrinsically worth reading /doing in them - e.g. any stories that are interesting even if you aren't a fan of lol/mlp.
- Whether you intend to replicate the new book part of the project by allowing your child to choose a new book regularly?
Yes, definitely. I was pleased that they enjoyed choosing their own books.
Thanks for letting us take part, we all really enjoyed it and looking forward to the books coming was a fantastic part of the week.