# Tips to encourage reading > One of the great challenges for parents in the field of learning is getting their sons and daughters to take an interest in reading, but... - **Author:** mireia-navarro-vera · **Category:** Adultos - **Published:** 2020-09-10 · **Updated:** 2020-09-10 - **URL:** https://elteuespai.com/en/tips-to-encourage-reading/ - _Translation pending clinical review._ --- ## They don't want to read! One of the great challenges for parents in the field of learning is getting their sons and daughters to take an interest in **reading**, but it is not always an easy task and, like all **habits**, it has to be cultivated with as much **creativity** as possible. The development of reading is not only based on getting them to finish a book, but it is a process in which factors related to **writing**, **spelling**, **attention**, **comprehension** and the acquisition of **vocabulary**, among others, come into play. For that reason it is so important that they acquire the habit and manage to establish a **good relationship** with it, since its benefits will be reflected in other **areas of learning**. To that end, below we provide some simple but effective tips to introduce reading in a creative and attractive way. ## Tips to introduce reading ### Let them choose and play - **Let them choose!** Going to a bookshop and being able to **see and touch** the books awakens an extra **interest** in them, and we will be letting them choose the type of reading that most **catches their attention.** It does not have to be a novel; a short story, a comic or a book about some topic that is interesting to them is enough. - **We don't only read with a book in our hands**. There are different **fun and educational games** to play as a family in which we develop **language, spelling, creativity and, in addition, we encourage reading** without realizing it: - **Scrabble.** A game that promotes linguistics whose objective is to accumulate the highest score by creating words. - **Stop game.** We invent several themes by columns, we choose a letter of the alphabet and in 1 minute we have to complete each of the columns with words that begin with the chosen letter. - **Question and answer games.** There is a lot of variety depending on the theme and age, for example Trivial, Brainbox or Preguntados. ### Take advantage of family moments - **Take advantage of family moments**. Enjoying a movie session at home can also be a good opportunity to introduce reading. We can encourage them to read the synopsis of a film or of an episode of your favorite series. Another idea is to write the shopping list together; we can dictate the food items so that they write them down, or we write them and they read them. ### Find the right moment and place - **Find the right moment**. **Involving the children** in choosing the moment for reading is a way to create a **commitment without imposing** the task. ![child choosing when to read]() - **Less is more**. The children do not need to read for an hour a day or five pages in a row. Starting by reading **paragraph by paragraph** is a great step and will allow us, little by little, to increase the time and amount of reading without it being seen as a punishment. ![girl reading a book](/images/blog/2020/09/Imagen-2.webp) - **Look for other spaces.** Associating reading with homework time is often a trigger for **rejection** of reading. One way to gradually introduce **interest** is to look for **spaces different from the usual ones**, such as a quiet park, a calm moment in the living room at home, or in their beds before going to sleep. Creating an **environment of calm** to begin reading will also facilitate **adherence** to the task. ### Accompany them and show interest - **They do what they see.** Dedicating small moments to reading as a family can create an atmosphere of calm and comfort that makes whatever **reading** we have in hand something **attractive and relaxing.** - **Interest in what they read. Showing interest** by asking about the theme, the characters or the events that take place will make them **feel accompanied** and they will also discover that a fun and interesting space for communication can be created. ![parent and child discussing a reading]() ## Reading, a habit that is cultivated Like any other **habit**, it has to be **taught and cultivated** day by day, however little it may be; this way we will get the little ones at home to start developing an interest in something that perhaps, in the future, becomes their greatest hobby. ![family reading a book](/images/blog/2020/09/Imagen-3.webp)