5 Christmas Reading Tips to Inspire your Little One’s Love of Books

The Christmas holidays are the perfect time to get your little ones into reading. Cooler weather means more time indoors, perfect for getting cosy with some good books. 

Whether they get new ones as presents or you have a shelf full ready and waiting, now’s the time to spend some quality reading time together. 

To help inspire their love of a good book over the festive season, here’s 5 top tips.

1. Incorporate Christmas 

For many children, Christmas is magical - so what better time to focus on developing their love of reading. Why not choose a few Christmas classics to really get them into the festive spirit? From ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas to How the Grinch Stole Christmas, there’s plenty to choose from. 

For younger Children, incorporating Christmas can really help bring books to life. ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas is a great Christmas Eve read to get them even more excited for Santa’s impending arrival! 

Here’s a list of some other Christmas classics to give you some inspiration:

• A Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens 
• Letters from Father Christmas, J. R. R. Tolkien
• The Polar Express, Chris Van Allsburg
• The Snow Queen, Hans Christian Andersen
• The Snowman, Raymond Briggs 

2. Encourage siblings to read together 

Whilst on school holidays, the chances are, your little ones are spending a lot more time together. Why not make the most of this and encourage them to read together. This can really help develop reading skills, particularly in older children who are able to read aloud. 

For more confident readers, encourage them to put on voices and bring the characters alive for their younger siblings. This can often turn into role play, which again helps to develop their ability to read aloud. 

3. Gift books 

Whilst children may be preoccupied with asking for the latest toys and gadgets, the gift of a book can be just as special if it inspires their love for reading. 

Amidst the mayhem of toys, board games and gadgets, a good book can instil calm and tranquillity. Collections such as Harry Potter or The Diary of a Wimpy Kid are ideal for getting older children to enjoy reading. 

For little ones, entertaining books such as We’re Going on a Bear Hunt and The Gruffalo are ideal for bringing to life and providing some fun reading time. 

4. Make the most of Christmas crackers!

When you’re sat round pulling crackers on Christmas Day, ask your little ones to read the jokes aloud. Help and encourage them with any words they don’t understand to build their confidence. This is a great way to show how they can be entertaining and improve their reading skills. 

Whilst the jokes aren’t exactly side splitting, be sure to give them a good laugh as a great confidence boost! 

5. Introduce them to poetry 

This is a great way to help young readers understand the connection between certain words and phrases. As children begin to understand the rhythm and rhyme between words, it can really develop their ability to read aloud. 

Memorising poems like songs will also help children to recognise words as they become more familiar, further developing their reading skills. 

We hope this helps to provide a little added inspiration for developing a love of reading in your family over the festive season. From all of us at Books4Us, we wish you and your families a merry Christmas and Happy New Year. 

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