When Reading to Children …

Survey the book: Show the book’s cover, read its title and the name of the illustrator. Make sure you hold the book up so everyone can see the pictures.

Make personal connections: Ask about the book’s subject matter. What do they know about beaches, beekeepers, thunderstorms, or whatever the content is? Have they seen a real bee, or been in a real thunderstorm?

Make predictions: At the beginning, ask: What do you think the book is going to be about? As you read, pause occasionally to show the pictures and ask: What is going to happen next?

Get the children to be active: Encourage them to ask questions. See if they can imitate the sounds of the book’s animals. Ask what sound does a bear (dog, duck, frog) make? Or see if they can imitate the way the animals move.

Be expressive: Emphasize important or interesting words. Use facial expressions to represent a character’s feelings, or movements to mimic what’s happening in the book.

Retell: At the end, ask if the book turned out the way they expected. Ask what parts they liked best.

Reread the parts they liked.

Be attentive: If possible, learn the children’s names. Also, be aware of their attention spans. If they start fidgeting, get them to participate. Ask them a question or get them to imitate what’s happening in the book.