[Halfasianmomma]

My DD is 13 months old and I just started noticing that she's into books, probably due to the influence of her awesome daycare. She'll go fetch a book on the shelves, bring it over to me and sit in my lap. That's all though; if I start reading to her, she tries to take the book away from me or she screams at me. I think she just wants to see the pages turn and perhaps look at the pictures. In fact, she took a chapter book from her big brother's room and spent a good 20 minutes just flipping the pages over and over.

I'd like to encourage the interest she's shown in books, but right now, she doesn't let me read more than 1 page to her.

Should I insist and try to keep reading to her even though it causes a fit? I'm an avid reader myself and I would love it if DD became one as well...

 

[Chloe'sMama]

That is awesome she is interested!!! My dd (14 months) loves books too and also doesn't really want to read through the pages. We just point out the pictures and talk about what is on the pages and let her turn them when she wants and try to turn them after we talk about everything on the page. I think the stories really don't have interest to them at this stage. I would say just keep encouraging it and don't make her do anything she doesn't want. She will get more interested in the stories as they make more sense.

Hurray for books!!!

 

[Cavy]

Reading is for fun, don't try to force her.
DC3 was completely uninterested in books until long after his 2nd birthday. DC-18months just likes to look at a page or two.

 

[dollyanna]

I am curious if anyone has a baby who actually wants to be read to at this age. I see pictures of my friends reading with their kids, and people keep asking me if she likes being read to, but I think we've got a while yet before she wants to be read to.

My DD has always loved to turn the pages in books (since she could do that), but has never really wanted to sit through being read to. Maybe I've noticed slightly more interest in the last month or so (she's 15 months) as she seems to understand more language. She's more likely to sit through a book that just has 1 word on the page - you know - duck, cow, horse, etc.

 

[kcstar]

We've been reading to DS since before he was born. At 13 months, he usually liked to look at the pages. I think I caught him "reading" once or twice. I have heard a word per year on the page, but we've read all sorts of things to DS that don't always meet that criteria.

At 24 months He usually looks forward to a few books at bedtime. Sometimes he'll pass the book from DH to me or vice versa. Sometimes he'll jump ahead pages, or close the book and say "All done". And sometimes he likes to "read" to us.

 

[kcparker]

Our DS went through a long phase where he devoured books - literally chewed the spines off them - and I despaired of having a little reader because he treated them as objects, not receptacles for facts and stories and pictures. Then he started getting more interested in lift-the-flap books and those DK picture dictionaries and very simple books like this one (not my cuppa tea, but he LOVED all the flaps and learned the names of the shapes in it...). We spent a lot of time just talking about the pictures, naming different animals, discussing what colors things in the pictures are, how big or small they are, etc. Gradually, he started letting us read half a book before he'd push it shut or say 'all done,' but then he started bringing us books, asking us to read Where the Wild Things Are, In the Night Kitchen, Eric Carle books, Dr. Seuss books (he LOVES rhyming stories). Now we can make it through a shorter Beatrix Potter book, Virgina Lee Burton stories, and others that are longer and have more and more words...and sometimes we catch him 'reading' to himself on the couch, very intently looking at pictures and turning pages, sometimes with the book upside down.

Don't worry, it will come when your LO is ready. For now, just keep it fun and interactive and don't worry about the written content.

 

[aramat]

Eventually she will understand that you can do EVEN MORE with books! And she will bug you to read them to her all the time. Be patient; she's quite young yet!

Dr Seuss' ABC has been the big hit for both of my girls, as well as any books that rhyme.

 

[simplemama32]

As many of the others mentioned, my DS likes to interact with books more so than read them at this point. He loves Goodnight Moon because there are a lot of familiar objects he can point to and name (lamp, moon, stars, cat, bunny, cow, etc.)...he'll point to the lamp in the book and then point to our bedside lamp, so I'm thrilled he's making that connection!

He also likes lift-the-flap books like Peekaboo Bunny. In general, the less words the better for him right now, so I look for books with good illustrations. One of his favorites is I Am a Bunny...beautiful, rich colors in all the pictures.

Totally off topic...but does every book I get lately seem to have something to do with bunnies, or is it just me??! LOL.

 

[slgt]

Just go with it. We've experienced that DD has different interests in books at different ages. Now, she seems to be really into the silly books with real-ish drawings, and enjoys those stories. For a while, she just wanted to flip pages. Sometimes, she just likes to identify the things that she knows in the books. Sometimes, it's clear that she is really into the empowerment of choice, and bringing books to us. DD also enjoys taking books off the shelf and then just putting them back on.

I think that books are a great outlet/tool for whatever developmental stage your kiddo is at. Don't force a specific interaction...better yet, you can use your DD's interaction to figure out what skills she is working on!

 

[SparklingGemini]

My DD is a bit different. She's LOOOVED to be read to since she was 7 or 8 months.

But I started when she was very teeny. I would read to hear even when she was across the room playing. And when she was in her high chair eating. And when I was sitting next to her in the car on a long drive. And so on.

I think the biggest mistake people make when introducing books to children is expecting them to sit still and listen to the book in its entirety.

If you want to foster an interest, keep reading, even if your LO wanders away. And if your DD wants the book you have, give it to her and then pick up another one and read that one aloud.

And I want to point out that pointing out pictures and giving things their names IS a great intro to literacy. This helps build the connection between the spoken word and the written word as well as linking objects with their categories.

Singing to your DD, speaking nursery rhymes, attending a group story-time are all also good ways to grow that love of books and reading.

 

[ChetMC]

Our oldest liked to be read to as a baby and would sit patiently and little to books. Lots of babies do this, but honestly, I think it's more common for babies and young toddlers to just want to play with books. DS is 15 months and he's liked books for a long time, but his favourite thing is to just turn the pages himself and look at the pictures.

 

[betsyj]

My son loves his board books but regular books are still a bit tricky because he is so rough with them. When he doesn't feel well we may get through a book without him attempting to rearrange the pages but that is not often.

I think it is more important at his age (15 mos) to simply model that we are a reading family. We have books everywhere.

 

[kirstenb]

At that age DS just liked to look at pictures as well. It wasn't until about 16-17 months where he started letting me read him the stories. Now at 27 months he loves to be read to.

 

[Lynn08]

My 13 mo dd loves to "read"! But it's only been within the last few weeks that she will climb up next to you and sit while you read the whole book. Before that, she would try to turn pages, take the book away, etc. But she also sits quietly by herself (in a shoebox if the cat isn't in there

) and turns pages while chattering - it is the cutest thing to witness!

It's funny though, because I have been the one to read to her from an early age (I am the avid reader in the family), mostly just reading aloud whatever book I was reading for my own enjoyment. But now daddy (who has dyslexia and ADD, and hates to read for enjoyment) is her "book buddy"! She will bring him book after book, sometimes the same one, all day long! He is a good sport about it, but sometimes after 45th reading of I Love You Through and Through, he gets a little tired of it.

 

[averlee]

here is one good technique: read out loud while your kid plays with a pile of books. or read while they play with a favorite toy. my daughter loves when her dad reads to her while she nurses.
some tiny board books are just one little nursery rhyme or song. we have this one that goes "little jack horner" then you turn the page, "sat in a corner" new page etc. it's a big hit.
also, a little photo album, with pics of family & friends & pets, or pictures of fun things cut from magazines, is often a baby/toddler's favorite book.

 

[blind_otter]

I will give DS a children's book or a magazine with pictures, and I will sit a bit away and read out loud from whatever book I'm reading. I don't particularly care if my book is child oriented or not, we have read "Gulliver's Travels," "The Power of Now," and "Anne of Green Gables".

Now we are working on Patanjali's Yoga Sutras.

 

[Eresh]

DS only really got into being read to around 17 months. Before that he would bring a book and sit in my lap but wouldn't last more than a few pages, kind of like you describe. Now, at 19 months, he would be happy to read non-stop for (what seems like) hours. He clearly has favorite books (loves Dr Seus "Hop on Pop" for example) and some books he won't sit all the way through. He also "reads" to himself sometimes. So cute!

Just keep doing what you're doing and don't force the issue. Their little brains are developing so fast at this age, it seems to change overnight!

 

[*MamaJen*]

My ds got into books literally overnight. It was right after he turned 18 months old. One day, a book was an object like any other object --the picture might be marginally interesting, but he was more interested in throwing the book or chewing on it or whatever. And then bam, all of a sudden, he was crazy about books and he wants me to read to him non-stop.
I've been a huge reader all my life, and I firmly believe that reading should be pleasurable and low-stress. Keep books around, try reading to her some, let her interact with the books as much as she like, get board books so you're not concerned about her tearing the pages, and just let her love of reading develop organically. Also, if you google "early literacy", there's a bunch of good info out there.

 

[elmh23]

You might want to try one of these books with her:

http://www.amazon.com/Big-Animal-Boo...d=W0NJOEV6ZQH3

My ds was a lot like her. Liking to look at the book, but not be read to. We have one of these books (they have several different subjects) and he really liked pointing to a picture and me telling him what it was. I think he just liked being in control.

 

[not_telling]

My DS is 13 months and does enjoy books a lot. We've been reading to him since he was about 3 months (sometimes whatever we were reading...newspaper, magazine), but usually board books. He has times when he just wants to flip through pages, or hear one page read aloud, or just point at things, but more often he seems to like having the whole book read to him. This has been true for several months, but it's only been about 3 months that he's been bringing over books for us to read to him. He does this a lot (!!) and sometimes I think that one motivation is to get our undivided attention. For example, if I'm busy making food in the kitchen or doing some other household chore, he'll grab a book and try to entice me to read it to him.

He has a bunch of faves...the Sandra Boyton books, Mem Fox, Eric Carle, Margaret Wise Brown...to name just a few.

I've pretty much taken my cues from him. If he hands me one book and I read a page and then he hands me another, I just switch books. Or I read while he's doing other things.