The
Benefits of Reading to Babies
By
the time a baby reaches their first birthday, they will have heard almost all
the sounds needed to start the basis of language. This is why most babies begin
talking around 1-2 years of life. Even when babies don’t exactly know how to
process the words when they are born
and can see and focus on pictures, they can learn things from them. They can
learn about patterns and faces and colors. Reading is also a soothing and
bonding time for you and your baby. After about 5 months, your baby will become
more interested in books. This is when buying books with rhyming text and
bright colors are important, because they may realize the patterns. After 6
months, your baby will start to understand what pictures may represent and if a
book makes sounds they will realize what they represent.
Reading
is a great thing because it only takes a book and you and your baby. So how can
you make reading the best experience for your baby? It creates bonding time buy
cuddling and pending fun time with your baby.
When
you read with expression by giving the different characters in the books
different voices this can help your baby understand expressions and
emotions. You can ask your baby
questions about the book while reading. Make your baby be observant by asking
questions not about the text, but about the pictures. Reputation is always good
and baby’s love and learn from it, so reading the same book twice is more than
okay. Make reading very fun for your baby by creating a safe, happy
environment. 
So how does reading benefit your
baby for a lifetime? Kids health brings up a good point, “But you wouldn't wait
until your child could understand what you were saying before you started
speaking to him or her, right?” http://kidshealth.org/parent/positive/all_reading/reading_babies.html#
That is right! You want to speak to your child from the moment you see
him or her. Reading is a very important part of early brain stimulation. It
teaches a baby about the world around them and communication. It also
introduces numbers, letter, colors, and shapes, and builds listening, memory,
and vocabulary skills. Also, the baby could learn various artistic skills from
certain types of picture books which can be a valuable emotional tool.
Babies want to learn, this is true. However,
sometimes a baby may reject reading! Scholastic.com in the parenting section on
reading to your baby states, “Your infant may have seemed relaxed and ready to
settle in to "read" with you, but after one page he starts squalling.
Just put the book aside; he or she will have a better moment again soon.”
Babies can be difficult, and I know some adults who still don’t like reading
(probably because they weren’t read to as babies). Know, that it is okay when your baby mouths
or chews on books, eventually they will know what the book is actually for. For
now, however, this is just how they explore things. Sometimes they may get
distracted and crawl away when you’re reading but don’t feel bad. It’s normal
for babies to get distracted with things and they will probably come back around
and start listening again. Sometimes, reading to your baby takes a large amount
of patience. Remember, even though he or she can’t show you everything she’s
learned yet, you will certainly see the fruits of your labor in the future. 
I hope by reading this you have a
better understanding of what kind of benefits await a child who has been read
to throughout childhood. The highly important reading comprehension and
memory skills will prove a great asset to your child in the future of school, college,
jobs, and life in general. I am a product of a baby that was read to. I have good
reading comprehension skills and it has helped me a lot in college and beyond. I remember being read the classic Whinnie
the Pooh stories, Pat the Bunny, and Goodnight Moon. And now I am very successful in subjects like English
and Political Science. Reading however, is entirely useful in every subject,
even math and especially science. You will not regret reading to your baby. 
