Children's Health

Reading and Language Development

Reading books with children helps develop their language skills by:

• Increasing their exposure to language. Stories that rhyme are very helpful for teaching speech and language skills and can help children discover a love of language.
• Engaging children's imaginations, stimulating imaginative play (a primary way children learn about the world), and introducing children to things and places they may not have a chance to learn about otherwise, such as oceans or dinosaurs.
• Helping children work out their feelings about the world. Many children's books are on topics that can open up valuable discussions between a parent and child, such as books about sibling rivalry, nightmares, or dealing with difficult emotions.