5 ways to make children enjoy reading

Building a good reading habit in the early years of schooling is one of the most impactful ways to support lifelong learning. For classes 1 to 4, schools play a crucial role by actively shaping an environment where books become both enjoyable and meaningful. Every child’s brain has billions of neurons, playing about and actively seeking connections. These connections, once formed, become pathways or information highways through which many skills pass. In an interview with Zarafshan Shiraz of Times Of India, Reeta Ramamurthy Gupta, author and reading coach, suggested five strategies that parents and teachers can implement to cultivate a reading habit during these foundational years.

Every teacher must create games in their classroom that are associated with reading. The idea that ‘reading is fun’ and ‘not a chore’ is extremely important from the get go. For eg; while discussing a book, the ‘guess what next?’ games can work wonders. Teachers can invite students to predict what happens next after reading a paragraph. After receiving a few versions, the teacher can reveal how the story plays out in the original book. This way, every child is involved in the story. They are now invested in reading the next few pages and it makes them active participants rather than passive listeners. This can be followed by another game ‘Act it Out’ where the teacher reads out a scene and asks children to act it out. The children are now fully involved in the book and offer their own take in it. Towards the end of the book, a third game, ‘What if’ can be played. This is about asking ‘what if’ the character had made a different choice. How would the book end? The children then read the complete story. Working with books in this fashion and identifying lessons from it, is a much more involved way to read.

Young learners often develop a love for books when stories are brought to life through read-alouds. A family of four that shares a book and read-aloud time, has fun in the book itself. As they modulate their voices and tones, reading can be a very rewarding experience. Teachers too can play a central role by modelling fluent, expressive reading and showing that books are sources of joy. Every classroom must have a daily read-aloud routine- even if for five minutes, that rotates among the children. Reading should not remain confined to language periods or story time. Schools can strengthen the habit by making children read across different subjects. Whether mathematics theorems or scientific explanations, reading is a skill common to all subjects. Further, when it comes to fiction, reading or acting out dialogues helps children overcome self-consciousness about mistakes and makes language fun. Reading aloud should include fairy tales, folktales, humorous stories, poetry, and informational books. Exposure to multiple forms introduces children to the breadth of what reading offers. Beyond language development, such sessions foster imagination, empathy, and improved attention spans. When children experience joyful storytelling, they naturally want to explore books themselves.

Every class should have its own ‘Reading Monitor’. This monitor is to be identified via library inputs- number of books borrowed, summaries submitted etc; This ‘Reading Monitor’ must get a badge and a recognition along with other academic achievements during the annual day. The ‘Reading Monitor’ will have a say on which books must form the basis of cultural programs in schools. They can be asked to bring pictures, comics and articles related to the specific lesson themes being discussed in class. This widens their exposure to varied text types and develops curiosity-driven reading. The ‘Reading Monitors’ will also share inputs with the librarian about five books to be bought at the end of the year.

Every child is unique and has a different potential. The books that they read indicate what their interests are. Their level of reading indicates how complex their thought process is. Teachers can divide students with similar reading levels into groups based on that. Using levelled texts, they help children practice phonics, sight words, or comprehension in manageable steps. Having a ‘reading level score’ in the report card should be as important as scoring A’s in subjects. This is a sign that a child who knows how to read can teach themselves anything they want to. Reading is the skill on which any other mental skill can be built.

It took us 600 million years to learn how to read but we are in threat of losing it in the next 600 years! We are in danger of losing many of the skills we have learnt along the way. So, whatever the size of the community- residential societies/ buildings or interest groups - local champions must run book clubs. Prescribed reading on topical festivals, cultures, or historical figures can incorporate child-friendly stories that deepen understanding and harmony. Pairing younger children with slightly older peers encourages both mentorship and confidence. Similarly, when an older child mentors a younger one, they feel responsible for something beyond themselves. This fosters a sense of community. When reading becomes part of every subject, children see it as a natural tool for discovery rather than an isolated academic requirement.

The biggest freedom every child has is the one to choose- which book they want to read. So instead of telling children what to do, let them pick. This is the best way to make them readers.