4 years old children want to read and write. How to encourage them? 

Opening a book is like travel to another world, helps children to stimulates their imagination and expands their understanding of the world. That’s why many parents encourage their children to learn how to read and write on early stages.

Unfortunately learning to read and write is anything but natural or easy for children. On the contrary, it is a very complex process, so as your 4 year old child starts to show the desire to read, a new and exciting challenge comes for parents. We’re here to help you to face it!

You’re probably asking: “how can I encourage my kid to learn how to read?”

If you wonder if there is any trick to make things a little easier, then you should first know that children have their personal wishes and sometimes need different times to learn. So, don’t push too much, if you see that your child is not yet ready for this.

However, we hope the following tips can be very useful in order to teach kids how to read and turn this experience in a rewarding and exciting one.

First of all, nothing is more efficient than leading by’ example: most of things children learn and do come from imitation of adults’ actions, so if you want your son to read… read yourself! Try to have a daily reading session together and ask your children to tell the story you are reading asking them how the story ends.

One thing you can do to encourage your toddler to read is making a reader-friendly set at home, in order to create daily opportunities to read. For example you can stick on walls or objects some printed letters and introduce kids to the letter sounds by asking “What sound is that letter?” or “what other words begins with this letter?”. As they become confident with letters, you can print and stick entire words, so that they can start to see connections between signs or symbols and start understanding their meaning.

This is a simple way to let them see reading as a fun game they can do at home with family and perfect to learn alphabet.

As always, music can be a good help for parents, and can be used to build phonemic awareness in kids.

Children’s songs, in fact, are not just fun and happy but can be a good companion in the mission of teaching kids how words sound and, therefore, how to read. Clap your hands rhythmically and recite songs with kids, this playful activity helps them develop the literacy skills.

Not only music but play as well is the best  tool of learning for kids and some educational toys can be a good help. Hape letter magnets, for example, help kids recognize and memorize the alphabet in an enjoyable and fun way, thanks to its different coloured letters to stick on the magnetic surface. That’s a cool way to learn new words!

Beyond all this, make it fun!

Learning how to read is not easy for kids and every child learn at they own pace, don’t forget this, and be patient always trying to make it fun and enjoyable through play. Also try not to force children to anticipate the time if they’re not ready yet, because they’ll learn when their moment comes! Just wait and let them naturally grow surrounded by your love and your caring!

Are you ready for this new challenge? Great adventures are coming!