The Importance of Reading Out Loud With Your Children for Speech and Language Development

How Reading Out Loud Supports Your Child’s Speech and Language Development

Reading with your child is a great way to develop their understanding of language, speech, and expressive language. It develops their early literacy skills, enjoyment for reading, and increases bonding with parents and caregivers. Reading books out loud helps children learn sounds and words and develop their listening skills.

How does reading out loud build my child’s receptive language and listening skills?

Reading books exposes your child to a wide range of words and sentences that they might not have heard or said directly to them. Research has estimated that a child who is read five books a day will hear about 1.4 million more words than a child who is never read to (Logan et al, 2019).

Reading to your child boosts their vocabulary development and helps children:

• Follow a simple story
• Learn new words and their meaning
• Understand how the word is used in a situation

Research has estimated that a child who is read five books a day will hear about 1.4 million more words than a child who is never read to

How does reading out loud help my child’s expressive language?

Books, particularly rhyming and repetitive story books, have simple sentences that teach children how sentences are formed. It will also help them to:

• Communicate and use new words
• Learn and use grammar
• Develop their sentences
• Effectively express themselves

How does reading out loud support my child’s speech development?

Children hear how words are frequently pronounced in books. This helps them learn how the sounds are formed, and also early literacy skills as they:

• Listen to the pronunciation
• May imitate new sounds they hear
• Start to develop letter sound knowledge

How does reading out loud help my child’s social and emotional development?

Reading helps foster a shared enjoyment between children and parents/caregivers. Hearing stories about character’s experiences and feelings help children to:

• Learn about different emotions
• Be familiar with everyday situations e.g. going to the zoo
• Take turns and share ideas in conversations

Frequently Asked Questions

How many books should I read to my child every day?

Research has recommended reading five books a day, but any number is helpful. Your child enjoying 15 minutes of reading one to two books is more important than getting through five books.

📚 Not sure what to read?

Our speech pathologists share their favourite books for supporting speech and language development at every age in this related blog post: 5 Must-Have Toddler Books Recommended by a Speech Therapist

What if my child wants the same book again?

Offer choices, but it’s okay to re-read the same book multiple times. Repetition helps with learning new information.

Should I still read out loud if my child can read?

Yes! Reading out loud with your child helps them to read books above their reading level.

How do I make my child interested in books?

Let them choose books about their favourite activities or topics. Use sound effects and different voices to keep them interested and engaged in the book.

Sources:

When Children Are Not Read to at Home: The Million Word Gap – Logan et al, 2019