How to Help Young Children Love Chapter Books

One of my most consistently popular posts is a list of chapter books to read aloud to preschoolers. That thrills me because it means loads of parents are interested in reading to their younger kids.

I am beyond excited that Amy from Sunlit Pages accepted my plea invitation to share her thoughts about reading chapter books to young kids with us! I have been stalking following Amy's well-written, intelligent posts for a while now. Amy writes careful, thoughtful reviews of the books she shares with her kids (I'm a bit jealous of her eloquent style), how she incorporates picture books into her cooperative preschool, as well as discussing the books she reads for herself. If you've never visited her blog do so right away  after you've finished reading this article.

Helping Young Children Love Chapter Books

I am thrilled to be a guest here at What Do We Do All Day. For over a year, Erica's posts have been a staple in my daily blog diet, and her book lists have given me some great ideas for new books to read with my kids.

I have three boys (ages 5, 3.5, and 2), and books and reading have been a natural, even vital, part of their days since birth. We read morning, noon, and night, and by the end of the day it is not uncommon to see our entire house overrun with books.

So with all that exposure to words and pages and stories, you might assume that the transition to longer works with fewer pictures (i.e. chapter books) would be a natural and completely effortless process.

For some, I'm sure it is. (I was talking to a friend just the other day whose five-year-old son sat through the entire audio version of The Great Brain in one sitting.)

With my own sons, our journey into the world of chapter books has been a little bumpy at times, yet overall it has been a positive experience. I read our first chapter book (The Mouse and the Motorcycle) to my oldest son when he was three-and-a-half years old.

Let me insert right away that I was and am and will continue to be a devoted reader of picture books. I did not begin reading chapter books as a way to replace picture books. Rather, I was excited to enhance our reading experience in one more way.

Chapter books do require children to have a slightly longer attention span as well as the ability to follow a story and create a mental picture of events. To that end, here are a few tips that have contributed to our successful moments and given my kids the tools they needed to enjoy longer books.

Begin with something less daunting

Try Kate DiCamillo's Mercy Watson or Else Holmelund Minarik's Little Bear: they're divided into chapters, many of the pages are text-heavy, but you can read them in their entirety in 20-30 minutes. There are many picture books that fall into this category as well (Robert McCloskey is one of our favorite long-winded picture book authors). If your kids handle books of this length without a problem, they're probably ready to give chapter books a try.

Listen to a variety of audio materials

I let my children listen to audiobooks, audio programs that have music and a story (the Classical Kids Collection, Standin' Tall series, etc.), or just music. Many libraries also have stories that can be downloaded right from their websites. My husband will often tell them bedtime stories instead of read to them. He lets each one choose something, and then he weaves the story out of those three objects. I found that when I gave my kids more opportunities to listen and more options of what to listen to, their comprehension and attention span grew by leaps and bounds.

Change the setting

Be creative with where you read. My personal favorite place is snuggled up together on my bed, but sometimes just changing the venue helps my kids pay attention. We have been known to read in the kitchen during lunch, on the couch, in the car, and outside. Sometimes it helps them focus if they can occupy their hands while we are reading--either drawing or building with Legos or something quiet like that. Recently, I have let them listen to audiobooks or music while they are going to sleep. This has worked like a dream: they feel like they are getting away with something (because they are having fun while going to sleep), but I couldn't be more pleased to have all three of them lying quietly in their beds and listening.

Stop and define

My kids will stop listening faster than I can shut the book if they don't understand what I'm reading. I can usually tell if they're not getting something because they become a little bit restless. Recently we've been reading Homer Price. The book begins with a description of the tourist camp that Homer's father owns. I could tell I'd lost my kids before we'd even made it through the first two pages, so I stopped, defined "tourist" and "filling station" and related it to something they're familiar with, and then we were happily on our way. Sometimes, I just stop and define one word, and other times it's more of an explanation about a few pages. Either way, it reinforces what we've read and also gives them a chance to ask questions.

Review the characters and plot

When we were reading A Cricket in Times Square, I always began our reading time with a little review: "What is the name of the boy? What is the cat's name? How about the mouse? And the cricket?" This did so much to help them enjoy the book. They were well-acquainted with all the characters, and it became a matter of pride for them to be able to rattle off all the names in quick succession. Often we also review what happened when we finished the last chapter, or we talk about something we loved or laughed about when we last read. Since we're not able to read a whole book in one sitting, I think this review provides an important sense of continuity.

Quit while you're ahead

We try to read one whole chapter each time we read, but sometimes, that's just not possible. (When we read Half Magic, I'm pretty sure we split the chapters into three or four sessions each; those chapters were just so long!) I have found that it is always best to stop reading before my kids are begging for us to be done. I want them to feel like reading is something that they never get quite enough of, so they always want to come back for more.

Choose wisely

Not all chapter books are created equally. My kids have their own tastes, and some books just don't interest them. I have to admit, I'm a stickler about finishing things, but there have been times when I've regretted it--times when we just haven't achieved that golden connection with the stories. So my advice is: don't follow my example! It's okay to give up and move onto something else. I guarantee there's something out there that you and your kids will love.

Speaking of books to love, here is a short list of some of our favorite chapter books to date. These were the ones my kids wanted to keep reading and wanted to hear again. The characters in these books were so loved they became surrogate members of our family. (But if you try one of them, and your kids aren't loving it, don't think there's something wrong. Just choose something else!)
{Note from Erica: click on the titles below to read Amy's thoughts on each book.}

• Charlotte's Web by E.B. White
• The Cricket in Times Square by George Selden
• Winnie-the-Pooh by A.A. Milne
• The Enormous Egg by Oliver Butterworth
• Henry Huggins by Beverly Cleary.

I always try to remind myself that listening is a skill and that I can't expect my children to be perfect at it on the first (or 97th) try. We have days where there is more tumbling on the bed than reading, but then we have moments where we are all 100% engaged and hanging onto every word. And it's during moments like those that I know that any time or effort put into developing this skill is more than worth it.

Chapter Book Lists for Young Children:

• Chapter Books for 3 Year Olds and Preschoolers
• Chapter Books to Read Aloud to 4-6 Year Olds
• Family Read Alouds for Every Season
• Gentle Read Aloud Chapter Books

Amy is an avid reader and the mother of three rambunctious boys. Her life goal is to make them as obsessed with books as she is. (Judging from the seven books her two-year-old insists on taking to bed every night, she has been successful so far.) She blogs at Sunlit Pages where she writes about a variety of books--from what she is currently reading to her kids' favorite picture books.