A Taste for Books

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Babies are never too young to be introduced to books. When you first start they may just want to stick the book in their mouth, but that's ok! Letting your baby explore books in the way that interests them will allow the reading experience to be more meaningful for both of you. When you begin to introduce books to your baby, start with short books and recognize that you don't have to finish the whole story.

Zero to Three is a child development website that has awesome tips on how to make reading with your baby fun. By starting young, you can encourage and motivate your children to develop a love for reading that will last a lifetime! 

Here are few reading tips from Zero to Three:

• Babies cannot yet turn pages on their own, an 18-month-old will want to give it a try, and a three-year-old can certainly do it alone. Remember, it's OK to skip pages!

• Talk or sing about the pictures: you do not have to read the words to tell a story.  Try "reading" the pictures in a book for your child sometimes.  When your child is old enough, ask him to read the pictures to you!

• Show children the cover page: explain what the story is about. If you have an older toddler, ask them to guess what the story might be about.

• Show children the words: run your finger along the words as you read them, from left to right.

Books are great tools for teaching children; from potty training, to heading off to kindergarten, to all the transitions in between, children books relate to kids in a way adults cannot, so get reading!

Have any favorite books? Let us know below so we can add to our own libraries!