Read with Intention

Children are like sponges. I knew that, but I didn’t really know that until about a year into reading with my toddler. 

Early on, and naturally, he developed an affection for animals.  As many of the popular children’s books involve animals, I didn’t think much of it.  Soon, every nook and cranny was home to a book about animals - farm animals, jungle animals, forest animals, you name it.  It wasn’t much longer before those same places housed little animal figures and little animal magnatiles. 

He would match the animal to the books.  “Giraffe, giraffe!” He’d point.  Then he would have the animal act out what was happening in the books.  “Giraffe sleeping!” He’d lay down his giraffe figure to sleep.  Eventually, he started to attribute emotions to the animals.  “Giraffe sad.” He’d pretend to be sad. 

One day, a panda bear showed up in one book and he went and found another book that had a panda bear in it (matching).  Another day, he told me the cheetah was the fastest animal (memorizing).  A third day, he told me birds fly where it’s warm when we were out in the cold one day (applying to real life). 

Proud parent that I am, I started to quiz him in front of family and friends - enjoying the admiration for my toddler.  Then, what felt like overnight, he started to explore his boundaries - throw, make demands, you know…the usual. 

I searched every nook and cranny, but I didn’t have any books to help me help him (and myself) with navigating these emotions and traits.  I went online to search, but it was difficult to find books that he would relate to and be able to process sharing, inclusiveness, listening, patience, etc. 

We eventually started to go to the library and read less popular books on these topics (and that started an entirely new journey for us).  But, I also decided to write some books for my toddler - on topics that I want him to learn now while he’s a sponge.  And while he’s still into books and not glued to a screen…just yet.

The more I focused on books and reading with him, the more I realized how to get the most out of reading with him.  If doing the same act, but intentionally, helps your child grow better, why not give it a try?