“The bedtime story is a genius invention. A tiny gift of wonder before you fall asleep.” ― Carolyn Watson Dubisch
A good storytime is a ‘gift of wonder’ because it leaves a long-lasting effect on a child which is considered crucial for their growth and development.
A study to investigate the effect of story time and reading stories on the development of toddlers’ social and emotional skills between 24 and 36 months of age indicates that social and emotional skills for toddlers have improved positively after storytime sessions. It also states that story time in toddlers’ daily routines affects their social skills significantly.
Storytime and reading stories in early childhood can be an effective routine. In addition to early literacy, it improves social and emotional skills for toddlers. Reading stories also helps to enhance the arts in educating and motivating toddlers to connect with their environment.
Researchers emphasize the importance of story time in toddlers’ daily routine and its effects on all young children’s developmental domains, such as language and literacy, cognitive, social, emotional, and physical skills.
Why is story time important?
- Early literacy skills begin to develop between the ages of 3 to 5 years, which is known as the preschool period. Children develop three important literacy skills during this time: phonological awareness, print awareness, and alphabet knowledge. Early literacy skill is a predictor of later school performance for the child; the stronger their skills are when they begin school, the better for their overall development. Reading to children at an early age can give them a head start in literacy and have a positive effect on their future academic achievements as well.
- Storytime has many other benefits for children other than language development. It can help develop their concentration, social skills, communication skills, and encourage their imagination and creativity. It also instills the love for reading and books.
- Storytime allows your child to experience situations from someone else’s viewpoint, hence helping in building empathy. As your child hears different stories, they have the opportunity to identify with different characters, and their empathy grows. Different stories help them to understand different situations and emotions. This will also help them start identifying more emotions in real life. This helps to boost their emotional intelligence.
- A dedicated story time where your child sits and listens can help improve their active listening skills. Asking questions and participating helps them to prioritize listening. A good story time is also a great idea to bond between parents and children evoking love, care, and trust.
You might not have realized but your young toddler is truly absorbing from the story read to them. When you read and they are listening, it makes a big impact on their learning. The earlier you begin reading to a child, the more beneficial it is for their early language and literacy development.
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