Hey
ya! I am excited that so many of you have made a fantastic effort to read aloud
to your children every day. Moving on with our endeavor, I am putting down few
tips and tricks to make reading aloud interesting and interactive.
Be a storyteller!
When you read, add life to the characters by creating great character voices.
Doing this is simple. Focus on the main characters and see what makes these characters
special. Look for personalities like loving, thoughtful, witty, happy, sad, funny,
sarcastic, brave, cowardly, nervous, confident, demanding, rude, calm,
dangerous, proud, humble, naughty, curious etc. etc.
Now,
use the basic tools of pitch, volume, pacing and attitude to create character
voice. For example, a higher pitch for a brave boy, a lower pitch for a humble
boy. Louder voice for a demanding character and a softer voice for sad or
nervous character
Speed
up a bit to show excitement or slow down to show calm character. Another great tool is attitude. You can tell
if somebody is happy or sad or angry or curious when you read with the right attitude.
More importantly, read with
expression. Read at a pace that is not too fast or too slow. Stop at
appropriate intervals to allow the child to look at the illustrations and
reflect upon the story.
Ask questions! Research
has
established
that the most effective read aloud are those in which children are actively
involved asking and answering questions and making predictions rather than
passively listening. Gear your questions towards a meaningful conversation.
“I wonder why the character said that."
"Who
is going to be the hero in this situation?"
"This
story reminds me of another one we read…"
"What
do you think the author is trying to say on this page?"
“How
do you think is character x different from character y?”
“Who
do you think is the most (courageous, kind, loving, thoughtful, rude, sad,
happy….) character in this book?”
Let your child doodle
while you read! Read aloud
times not necessarily means children being quite and still while you read to
them. Some children listen and retain better when their hands are busy. So, to
make read aloud time enjoyable, find quiet activities for your children to do
while you read. You may be surprised how much better they pay attention when
they have a quiet activity to keep their hands busy.
Drawing and
colouring
is the simplest way to keep them active while you read. Always keep some plain
or colouring sheets, pencils and colours handy.
Simple art and
craft
activities are also a great idea to keep your child engaged. Stickers, foam
art, woolen strings, origami etc. provide endless fun during read aloud time.
Toys like puzzles,
blocks, train set, dolls, cars, legos will keep the child quiet and busy while
listening to the book.
You will be
delighted by how much more enjoyable your read aloud time becomes and how much
more your children will listen and retain when they have something to do while
you read aloud.
Remember,
reading aloud is all about enjoying and living the book.
Some of my favourite chapter books that will make a good read aloud-
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