Skip Navigation
We use cookies to offer you a better browsing experience, provide ads, analyze site traffic, and personalize content. If you continue to use this site, you consent to our use of cookies.
Celebrate a nation of diverse readers with these recommended books, authors, and teaching resources.
Join us
Advice

Tips for Reading to Infants and Toddlers

It’s never too soon to start reading to your children! If your child learns early to associate reading with pleasure, she is more likely to enjoy reading on her own when she is older.
A man reads to a toddler sitting in his lap
Published: January 28, 2021

Try these successful reading tips for reading to infants and toddlers:

  • Snuggle with your child with her favorite blanket or toys as you read.
  • Read with expression using different voices for different characters.
  • Emphasize rhythms and rhymes in stories. Give your toddler opportunities to repeat rhyming phrases.
  • Use pictures to build vocabulary by varying objects and their colors.
  • Use pictures to develop speaking vocabulary by talking about what is shown.
  • Encourage your child to repeat what you say or comment on it. Encourage your child to ask questions. Provide models of interesting questions and examples of possible answers. “I wonder what is going to happen next? I think the rabbit will get lost because he is not paying attention to where he is going. What do you think?”
  • Look for books that are about things that interest your toddler. For example, does your child like cars, insects, or animals?
  • Make reading a habit for bedtime, after lunch, or after naptime.
  • Give your child a chance to choose his own books. If your toddler chooses a book that is too long to hold his attention, read some and skip some, discussing the pictures and how they relate to the story.
  • Read stories again and again. Your toddler enjoys repetition and it helps him become familiar with the way stories are organized

 

Celebrate a nation of diverse readers with these recommended books, authors, and teaching resources.

Are you an affiliate?

Jump to updates, opportunities, and resources for NEA state and local affiliates.
Librarian leans over seated students at the library who are reading a book

Education News Relevant to You

We're here to help you succeed in your career, advocate for public school students, and stay up to date on the latest education news and trends. Browse stories by topic, access the latest issue of NEA Today magazine, and celebrate educators and public schools.
National Education Association

Great public schools for every student

The National Education Association (NEA), the nation's largest professional employee organization, is committed to advancing the cause of public education. NEA's 3 million members work at every level of education—from pre-school to university graduate programs. NEA has affiliate organizations in every state and in more than 14,000 communities across the United States.