What is the practice?
While reading together, the child is encouraged to ask questions, to talk about the pictures, to talk about what’s going to happen next, or to relate a time that he or she experienced something simila to what is happening to the story’s characters. The adult emphasizes the words in the book and may even use real objects to represent the words in the story. Interactive reading helps a child build vocab- ulary, become aware of story structure, become familiar with language patterns, and strengthen his understanding of the reading process.
What does the practice look like?
A child sits with his parent while the adult reads a book. The child makes a comment about the story and the parent responds to the child’s comment in an encouraging way. The adult continues with the story, occasionally pausing to ask a question about the plot (such as, “What do you think he should do now?”) or to point out something in the picture (“The girl looks really excited!”). When the child responds to the parent’s question or comment, the parent answers with another comment or question. The back-and- forth dialogue between the child and parent keeps the child actively engaged in the story.
How do you do the practice?
To engage a preschool child in interactive story reading, you can do the following:
How do you know the practice worked?
- Is the child staying interested in the story until the end?
- Does the child ask questions, make comments about the story, and answer questions posed to him?
- Does the child demonstrate a larger vocabulary or better conversation skills?
- Start by choosing stories with topics and characters that are interesting to your child.
- Read during a time when you are not hurried, so that there is plenty of time for your child to think about and respond to your questions and comments, and to make comments or ask questions of his own.
- Pause periodically and ask open-ended questions to make sure the child is following the story and understands its meaning. For example, ask, “What do you think that word means?” or “Why do you think the character did that?”
- Expand on the child’s answers, making it part of a con- versation, not demanding a “right answer.”
- Suggest alternative possibilities starting with “What if ...” or “Suppose” to see where the child will take the conversation.
- Pose more and more challenging questions.
- If a child uses picture symbols or an augmentative com- munication device, have messages available that let him communicate about the story. For example, pro- gram a communication device with words such as turn page, more, read, stop, yes, no, and common phrases that can be used to discuss the story.
Take a look at more reading together
What Might Happen Next?
Four-year-old Eduardo chooses a picture book for his mom to read to him before bed. “What book is this?” asks Eduardo’s mom, showing him the front of the book. “Roly puppy,” says Eduardo hap- pily. “Yes, it’s Roly Poly Puppies,” says his mother. She opens the book to the frst page and points at the picture. “What are these puppies doing?” she asks. “They’re playing” says Eduardo. “That’s right. They are playing together.” She reads a couple of pages, then before turning to the next page she pauses and asks Eduardo, “What do you think is going to happen next?” Eduardo sits up excitedly and says, “Oh! They’ll roll way down the hill!” as he makes a tumbling motion with his arms. “Let’s see” says his mother. “Turn the page for me.” Eduardo turns the page and his mother exclaims, “Look, you’re right!” Then she asks him, “Why do you think they did that?” “To go home,” answers Eduardo. “You think they want to go home?” asks his mother. “Yeah, they’re tired,” says Eduardo. “You might be right, let’s see,” replies his mother as she continues reading the book.
Magazines Too!
Three-year old Benton looks intently at a garden magazine he has found on the coffee table. His father notices that Benton is inter- ested in photos of birdhouses. He motions for Benton to sit next to him on the couch and tell him about the birdhouses. Benton climbs up beside Dad and points out one he likes. His dad asks him why he likes that birdhouse. “I like blue,” says Benton. “If you made a birdhouse, what would it look like?” asks his dad. “Big and blue and have lots of holes for birds!” answers Benton excitedly. “Tell me about these birdhouses” says his father, pointing at the pictures. Benton looks at the pictures in the magazine and “reads” about the birdhouses. He and his father talk about the birds in the pictures and Benton points to ones that he has seen in their yard.
The Right Touch for Reading
Five-year-old Tim has a visual impairment. He sits with his grandmother as she reads his favorite story about animals, using a book with tex- tured pages. As Granny reads, she lets Tim and feel each textured animal on a page. Tim’s grandmother reads the frst part of a sentence, then pauses to let Tim say the rest. Tim smiles as he helps Granny “read” the book by saying the words that he knows come next. When they get to a part about cats, Granny reminds Tim about petting the neighbor’s cat that morning. “How did Tiger feel?” asks Granny. “He was soft and fuzzy,” says Tim. “What other animals do you think would feel that way?” asks Granny. “Bunnies and hamsters,” says Tim. “What animals do you think would feel different?” Tim thinks for a minute, then answers, “Bears and snakes.” “I think you’re right,” says Granny and she continues to the next page in the book.
