Reading is a vital skill for kids to develop. It builds cognitive stamina, develops empathy and self-awareness, and improves mental health. But unless reading is fun for your child, they may resist it.
So, how do you help your child find joy in picking up a book and losing themselves in a story? In a lot of different ways!
Here we’ve collected 10 easy ways to make reading fun for your child. Choose a few of these ideas (or all of them!) to get your child excited to pick up a book and read.
Key Takeaways
- Make reading fun for kids by building a book nook, creating a cookbook, making bookmarks, drawing story highlights, and starting a reading club.
- To further encourage reading, keep books near toys, start a series, share the reading experience, talk about books, and bring books to life by tying them into real experiences.
- Reading for fun leads to higher scores on reading achievement tests, as well as better sleep and mental health.
Table of Contents
- 5 Easy Activities to Make Reading Fun for Kids
- 5 Tips to Encourage Reading
- Why Fun Is More Important than Perfect
5 Easy Activities to Make Reading Fun for Kids
1) Build a Book Nook
Entice your child to read by creating a cozy space perfect for curling up in with a book.
What You’ll Need
- Books
- Space to hold books, like a bookcase, box, or basket
- Lamp
- Pillows
- Rug
- Stuffed animals
What to Do
- Choose a place in your home to set up a book nook, such as a section of your living room, space in your child’s bedroom, or even a corner in your kitchen.
- Use a rug to define the space.
- Put a bookcase against the wall, or a basket or box on the floor.
- Add a lamp for concentrated lighting.
- Use pillows to create a comfortable seat for your child.
- Ask your child to bring a few of their favorite stuffed animals into the book nook so they have someone to read to.
2) Make Bookmarks
Reading a book that will take several days to finish is more fun for your child with a homemade bookmark to keep their place!
What You’ll Need
- Tissue paper
- Cardboard
- Glue
- Scissors
What to Do
- Cut a piece of cardboard into a 6” x 2” rectangle.
- Cut the tissue paper into small squares.
- Spread glue across the cardboard.
- Place a variety of tissue paper squares onto the cardboard. They can hang over the edges of the cardboard.
- Let the bookmark dry.
- Cut the excess tissue paper.
3) Create a Cookbook
After you cook with your child, work together to make a cookbook with some of their favorite recipes.
What You’ll Need
- Various recipes
- Cooking utensils, like mixing bowls, pans, spatulas, and spoons
- Ingredients
- Paper
- Hole punch
- String
- Markers
- Optional: found images and glue
What to Do
- Choose a recipe you and your child can make together.
- Gather ingredients and cooking utensils.
- Ask your child to read the portions of the recipe instructions they can. See if they can match written amounts (2 teaspoons of baking soda) with the actual objects (finding a teaspoon and measuring two of them into the bowl).
- If the recipe is a keeper, write it on paper or an index card. If your child is learning to write, let them write some of it.
- Give your child the opportunity to illustrate the recipe. They can draw a picture or cut out images from magazines or online.
- Add a cover page for the cookbook.
- Repeat the whole process!
- Punch holes in the recipes and attach them with a string. (Tie bows so you can add recipes to your cookbook easily.)
4) Draw Story Highlights
Focus on your child’s favorite part of a story, and give them a chance to be creative. Bonus: this activity will help your child learn sequencing and plot structure!
What You’ll Need
- Paper
- Markers
What to Do
- Read a book with your child and discuss their favorite parts. For instance, this could be a specific character they love or a particular scene in the story.
- Give your child a piece of paper and markers and ask them to draw their favorite part.
- Hang the drawing in their book nook!
- You can also do this activity together. After you read a book, each of you can choose a favorite part and then, without telling each other, draw it. Take turns guessing which part of the book you both drew!
5) Start a Book Club
Creating a book club is a great way to inspire reading.
What You’ll Need
- A few copies of the same book (check your local library)
- Time set aside for reading and/or discussion
- Snacks
What to Do
- Choose a book to read with a group of people, like your family, your child’s friends (and their caregivers), or even just you and your child.
- If you’re reading a shorter book, like a picture book, you can all read it in one sitting. If it’s a longer chapter book, you can read it over time.
- Come together to discuss the book. It’s a great idea to bring questions to the discussion, such as “What was your favorite part of the book?” and “How would you change the story?”
- Add some snacks to make the discussion more festive.
5 Tips to Encourage Reading
In addition to the above activities designed to spark your child’s imagination and curiosity about reading, here are some tips to encourage your child to pick up a book. Or ask you to pick one up!
1) Keep Books Near Toys
Keeping books near your child’s other toys makes it easy for them to include reading in their play time. They might read to their stuffed animals or build a school out of blocks and pretend to be a teacher. Their imagination will automatically make connections.
2) Start a Series
Revisiting the same characters is a great way to hook your child on reading. They’ll want to learn more about the characters’ lives, anticipate adventures, and get that unique feeling of “coming home” when they read a familiar story.
3) Share the Reading Experience
Take turns reading. You can read a page, and then your child can read a page. Or you can each take on specific characters. Don’t be afraid to use different voices or speeds. Animating a book will draw your child in.
4) Talk about Books
Encourage your child’s books to live off the page. Talk about characters when you’re not reading. Ask questions. Wonder together about what might happen next in a story you’re reading.
5) Bring Books to Life
You can take the idea of your child’s books living off the page even further by doing related activities. If you read a book about a zoo, for instance, take a trip to a real zoo.
Why Fun Is More Important than Perfect
The equation is pretty simple. The more your child finds reading fun, the more they’re going to do it. And the more they do it, the more their reading skills will grow. Helping your child fall in love with books is a foundational piece of their literacy development.
Studies show that kids who read for fun score higher on reading achievement tests than those who don’t. And reading for pleasure by the time kids are nine years old leads to better mental health and even better sleep.
More Ways to Make Reading Fun!
When your child runs up to you with a book in their hand, or when they sit down at the dinner table and can’t stop talking about a story they’re reading…well, it doesn’t get much better than that! We hope we’ve left you with some effective strategies for making reading fun.
If you need more exciting ideas, consider trying one of Begin’s award-winning programs.
Our HOMER app uses personalized stories and games to boost early reading. Little Passports sends monthly boxes for hands-on learning that complement reading, and our codeSpark app inspires kids to read as it teaches them coding. Talk about fun!
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it OK to ask my child questions as they read?
Kids typically love being interactive as they read! You can let your child take the lead and stop you to talk about the book, or you can ask them questions as you go. Asking questions can help with reading comprehension.
What are the ABCs of active reading?
The ABCs of active reading are:
- Asking questions (see above!)
- Building vocabulary
- Connecting the stories you read to your child’s world.
How can I incorporate creativity, like acting or drawing, into reading time?
Getting your child up and moving while reading allows them to absorb what they’re reading in a different way. This makes all the difference for some kids.
Ideas to try include acting out scenes from the book, creating a puppet show, extending the story by coming up with what happens after the book ends, and drawing favorite parts of the story.
Are audiobooks or online read-alouds good for children?
Yes! Audiobooks and online read-alouds are a great way to expose kids to literature. And just like incorporating creativity into reading time, listening to sentence rhythms, vocabulary, and word usage can help your child’s reading comprehension.
