5 Exciting Activities To
Encourage Early Reading
Skills

April, 13 2022

If there is one awesome gift you can give your child early on that will sort them out for life, it’s a love of reading, which is why developing early reading skills are so important.

It also happens to be great for parents. See, readers are super-duper quiet – they tend to disappear into cosy nooks and behind couch pillows to visit their favourite worlds. All you need to do is supply the snacks ;)

All kidding aside, reading is one of the most amazing activities in which any person, big or small, can willingly engage. Just from a very basic point of view, it’s actual magic.

Think about it this way – by staring at little squiggles on a page or a screen, your brain turns it into words and pictures that create a whole world of things, people, and encounters that actually took place in someone else’s brain – that of the writer. This is just pure WOW. And it’s happening right now as you read this.

The amazing benefits of reading for kids

Moreover, reading does all sorts of wonderful things for the brain.

It increases concentration and discipline, stimulates imagination and creativity, improves language skills and supports cognitive development in preparation for future academic work. When you are a parent reading to your child, this also creates pockets of regular bonding time that is invaluable in making them feel safe and secure.

Interestingly, reading also boosts empathy. See, when you read stories about different types of people and animals in different situations, you learn to step into someone else’s shoes.

It’s an incredible opportunity for people of all ages to see the world from angles they would not necessarily experience in their own lives and learn to be tolerant towards people whose lives, environments and ways of understanding the world differ from their own.

“A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies. The man who never reads lives only one.” – George R.R. Martin (author of Game of Thrones).

This brings us to the list you’re here for – 5 exciting activities that will help you to encourage early reading skills in your smallies:

Exciting activities to encourage early reading skills

Photographer: Paul Hanaoka | Source: Unsplash

 

1. Get them talking about their favourite stories

Even at an age when kids can’t read for themselves yet, they are able to retell their favourite stories – often with super entertaining add-ons and embellishments that are just wonderful. Of course, it’s also a great memory and information retention exercise. Plus, it could win your smallie two tickets to visit Wonderdal!

The Wonderdal Book Club was created to not only encourage a love for reading and learning early reading skills but also to celebrate all the wonderful stories there are to discover in the fantastic world of books.

To help your kiddo win a set of double tickets to Wonderdal, be one of the first 100 creators to upload a video of your child reading their favourite story or retelling it. Just remember to keep it to under 15 minutes, tag @wonderdalworld and use the hashtag #thewonderdalbookclub when you upload it to Facebook or Instagram.

This way we build a wonderful social library of kids reading and telling stories for other kids!

 

2. Make library outings a thing

Going to the library is one of the very few outings you can have with a kid that does not have to involve spending a single cent. This alone is a good enough reason to visit your town, suburb or city burrow’s local library as often as possible. Plus you get new stories without having to buy new books… #WINNING

Many libraries also have regular story hours, and might even host puppet shows and other entertainment for younger children now and again. Visit your nearest library to find out what they have on offer and get involved. It’s a fantastic way to become a part of a reading community and to encourage your kids to develop early reading skills.

 

3. Embrace different kinds of books

You may not always have time to read a story but that doesn’t mean your smallie has to go without their fictional fix. Audiobooks are a great tool to get kids into non-AV stories even before they can read for themselves. Plus, you can even download or stream some for free.


At Wonderdal, our Story Caves from part of our Edutainment Centre’s 7 Interactive EduZones. Age-appropriate podcasts are on offer for listening in cosy nooks – encouraging a calming, yet interactive space for some seriously fun storytime.

 

4. Lead by example

Yep, that’s right – if you want your kids to read, it helps to lead by example and do so yourself. Much in the same way you can’t expect your tykes to reach for the crudites and hummus when you tend to snack on Lays Salt & Vinegar, you can’t really expect them to be super stoked about reading when all they see you do is scroll your phone.

Sure, you may technically be reading on there but a lot of it is just scrolling (and you know it). So, do your own psyche, data bill and kids a huge favour, and get off your phone for a bit and read a book. Bonus points – it does not require any charging so it’s perfect for when loadshedding hits ;)

 

5. Play with your words

Make words and language fun in your family. Rhyme, sing, find words in other words (fun in functional, pot in potato), tell silly stories and jokes, make up wild tales. It all comes down to introducing your young ones to the magic of storytelling and encouraging them to go looking for more of it between the pages of books.

There you have it! 5 great ways to encourage early reading skills. Remember, the Wonderdal Story caves are also home to a 700-book library, where visitors can flip between technology and old-school story-time alternatives. Story Time book reading also takes place at the Story Caves every half an hour, read by one of the WonderPals – the stories are adapted to fit the specific age groups.

Now you know! So, off you go – go turn your kids into little superheroes in their own right by encouraging them to develop early reading skills and become lifelong readers. It’s such a fun way to learn, and you never know how your jaunts into kiddie and tween literature might change your thinking and challenge your viewpoints as well!

If you would like to treat your kiddos to an outing that is bound to fire up their love for reading as well, consider a visit to Wonderdal! Aside from all the ways in which literature is promoted throughout the edutainment experience, there is a fantastic selection of books available for purchase at the Wonderdal shop as well. Contact us on 021 205 5624 for more info, or make a booking here.

WRITTEN BY

The Amuki and Wonderdal Team

We look forward to sharing the wonders and magic of Wonderdal with you and your children. Wonderdal is a space where kids can explore, discover and experience a world of wonders in science, biology and nature. We hope this blog inspires you and your kids to be curious, to play and to discover the wonders of our world, together.