Share your tips for encouraging kids to read at home to win £100 worth of books from the Reading Ladder

[UrsulaMumsnet]

Reading Ladder is a brand new reading series which provides quality stories for a wide range of readers. Featuring well-loved authors, classic characters and favourite topics we’ve got something for everyone! Perfect for parents and great for teachers too the series has been developed with leading literacy consultant Nikki Gamble!

Parents told us that they wanted a simple system for choosing the right book for their child and we think Reading Ladder is it! Our system of three levels is easy to understand and every book features clear, appealing level branding. Each title includes guidance for parents and carers and tips for shared reading and they are all branded for use as resources in school!

Read the catalogue

Share your tips for encouraging kids to read at home for a chance to win 20 books from the Reading Ladder series worth £100

This discussion is sponsored by Egmont and will end on 9 May

[nerysw]

We read a lot at home and my children have been going to the library since they were tiny, having their own library card and being able to choose their own books makes them feel quite grown up. We always read a bed time story and have plenty of books to choose from. My daughter is 7 now and has a little reading light on her bed so is allowed to read at bedtime which she loves. Reading school books can feel like more of a chore (I'm sick of Biff, Chip and Kipper!) but I've found reading with my 4 year old son is much better before school than in the evening when he's tired after school.

[Lunar1]

Finding anything that isn't a dreary school reading book is a good start!

Comics with their favourite characters, menus in restaurants, and ds1 has just discovered the beast quest books which he it racing through.

I also read a bedtime story to my boys (7&4). The 7 year old reads a few pages as well and my 4 year old will read a few easy words.

Anything with minecraft on will get read too so we have lots of strategy books!

[StuntNun]

I encourage my older children to read to the younger ones. My DS2 is dyslexic but he loves reading to DS3, especially if it's a book he knows well so the reading part isn't such hard work and he can make the most of the storytelling.

[StillNoFuckingEyeDeer]

We have had bedtime stories from a very young age and try to make sure that the stories are varied and interesting. We let the DC chose the books we read to them. I buy a lot of books and we visit the library regularly.
I am very enthusiastic about reading and make sure the DC see me reading too.
I started reading books with DD1 together, so it was a combined effort. She read the words she could and I filled in the gaps, getting her to sound out more and more of the words as we progressed.

[prettybird]

Don't worry about "good" English. Ds loved the "Captain Underpants" books. If they enjoy them and want to read more, then you can work on grammar and spelling later

Use anything that they're interested in to get them interested. Even before ds learnt to read "properly", he was getting the sports pages of the weekend papers so that he could look up the results of "his" teams .

[EDisFunny]

Early and Often! Start early, i.e. as soon as baby is born, and work reading into the dsily schedule. Start library visits early too to get them involved in choosing their own books.

[Teladi]

Going to the library is key... seeing how many stories are out there that she hasn't read yet keeps mine really keen.

[MrsRedWhite214]

We don't do bedtime reading as it can feel like a chore. Instead we choose quiet times in the day where we have some time to relax as a family and read a few books. He is always allowed to choose which ones to read and it helps him calm down after a more energetic activity.

[Lovelongweekends]

We do all the standard library visits from an early age and bedtime stories every night, we also buy magazines as a weekly treat rather than sweets etc. However, the two things that the dc love the most are writing stories together (they dictate, I scribe) which we then read together as a bedtime story and street name treasure hunts - who is first to find a street name with a colour / animal name in it etc.

[FoxInABox]

My younger daughter adores reading and it comes naturally, whereas my older daughter struggles a lot more and so doesn't enjoy reading to herself as much. The best way I have found to get her to enjoy it is to buy age appropriate book, new ones often, and to try to read some to them each night before bed. My older daughter then likes to see if she can work out where I am upto. We read school books every day unless we are exceptionally busy, but I try not to push her too hard or read too much in one go.

[SerenityReynolds]

We have always read books daily with our DC, from when they were a few months old. As they got older, letting them choose which books they wanted to read and going to the library regularly (though that may have been to save my sanity from reading the same books all the time!).

I love the streetname treasure hunt idea lovelong!

[nushcar]

Reading begets reading. Being interested in books yourself and making story time fun, reading with expression and enthusiasm, pick exciting stories with illustrations. I also explain stories and question their understanding now and then to keep them engaged, not too much or it interrupts the flow. When you're interested and view story time as a treat, they will hopefully develop the same interest themselves.

[Bebelala21]

Read a story or a picture book with your children every night. It doesn't have to be long but get them involved. That way they will know the joy of reading and want to learn themselves. When they do start reading independently, do t push them too much as it can stop the enjoyment.

[BellaVida]

I believe that if a child sees you reading, has plenty of books around them and understands the wonder they can unlock from them, they will love reading.
Since my 4 DC were little, we have:-

• given them soft books and bath books as babies.
  
• read bedtimes stories individually or to all of them
  
• given books as gifts and asked that others did the same
  
• given each child a bookcase in their bedroom and rotated the books
  
• sent them to bed early for quiet reading time before lights out
  
• spent lots of time at weekends in bookshops
  
• I sometimes write the children little letters, for comfort, to offer encouragement or just for fun.
  
• let them choose their own books (within reason and according to age suitability!)
  
• more recently we subscribed to a special children's weekly newspaper, which is amazing!
  

Any reading is positive and to be wholly encouraged!

[TheCookingMonster]

Loving books, talking enthusiastically about books, filling your house with books and being seen reading by your Dcs helps them to develop a love of reading. Reading books to them at bedtime is great as well as going to the library together. My Dcs love reading and I am so happy with that.

[loosechange]

Start early. We have read with the DC since they were babies. When reading time starts with school we try to ensure we don't do it when the children are too tired, or when I was cranky when I had toddlers and a school aged child.

Reading time now is also one in one time for the children. To encourage them to read alone we have books in their bedrooms of a suitable level also.

[CopperPan]

Our local library is great and we go there every week, but often we also go to other branches or in different boroughs altogether. It's good to have a change of scenery and we're lucky to have the choice.

When we visit museums or other attractions, I often check the gift shop first to see if there's a children''s guide, which can be really fun to follow while looking around the place.

[kate234]

From a young age find a book your child loves to look at. Read this book until you both know it off by heart. Then the love of books begins. Your child will know them off by heart before they can even speak.

[Lullabullacoo]

I have read to both my children from when they were a couple of months old. They both started with the 'That's not my...' books which encouraged them to interact. My 8 yr old now reads by himself at night. I have always bought them books when we are on days out rather than toys. They view them as a treat. Also my son preferred fact books to fiction- some boys do- best to get them books that hold an interest for them. Finally the adults in the family are always reading around them in our leisure time so it is seen as what you do.

[WowOoo]

Reading from a young age with great enthusiasm is vital.

Also important is that your children see you reading often. My eldest asked his uncle recently: 'Why do you go on about me reading when i never see you reading a book?' Have to admit he had a point!

I support my local library. I can't keep up with my eldest who gets through bout three books a week.

[missytilley]

I like acting out the characters in funny voices Sometimes grabbing teddies pretending they are speaking too. They soon want to join in with the fun of reading

[Mummy2aRockstar]

My tip would be lead by example and make it part of the daily routine and a fun time. I've read to my 3 year old son since he was a bump and every night since coming home from the hospital, he often requests 3 or 4 bedtime stories and knows most of the stories off by heart.

If it's bedtime we make the stories calming so he is ready for sleep but if we read during the day we talk about what's happening in the story and sometimes act it out.

I'm an avid reader myself and my son will often see me with my nose in a book which prompts him to get a book out himself. I also try to have free access to his books so he can read when he fancies and have books on lots of different topics from stories to educational books.

[Alidoll]

I encourage my 6 yr old to read signs (shop, driving) then tell me a little story with the the word in it. We read together and I'll ask her the small words and to guess / spell out the longer words if I think she'll be able to work out what it is. I use funny voices for characters so she can see what an exclamation mark means or a question mark. She's also got a good imagination that I try to cultivate by getting her to write a short story and illustrate it with graphics which she loves.

Like others I hate Biff and Kipper but try and make it fun getting her to think about what each of the characters are thinking, what happens next in the story and how she would react in that situation.

Easier than sum dog which she and I both hate as its so repetitive and boring - not the best software package for learning maths / arithmetic.

[Booklover123]

Start your children reading with them as early as 3-4months old.
Have bed time reading as a nightly routine.
Let your children see you reading and enjoying books.
Let the whole family join the local library and encourage regular visits.
From the onset let your children see you handle books with care , and this will encourage them to treat them as precious and cherished belongings.

[BearAusten]

From when my son was only a few months old, I ensured there was a section of the day devoted to reading to him. We bought and borrowed books on a regular basis and tried to cater to his interests, whether it be lego monsters, dinosaurs, trains, owls etc. In terms of getting him to read, we read anything when we are out and about: leaflets, signs, menus (chocolate was a word that he was able to identify earlier on interestingly).