How to read story to children

Stories can inspire many emotions in children - wonder, excitement, trepidation, joy, to name but a few. Story-telling can be rewarding to both the listener and narrator.

Reading stories can be a magical shared experience. There is nothing to beat the intimacy of such moments – snuggling together, the hush as the book is opened, the anticipation and expectation as the first line is read. Children of all ages enjoy being read to, but very young children are particularly responsive.

Setting the Scene

It, therefore, pays to put in some extra effort and really bring the story in question to life, building the drama and tension as much as possible. One of the most delightful attributes of young children is their ability to suspend their disbelief and immerse themselves in story worlds. There is no need to cajole them into making that leap of faith – their imaginations are invariably already chomping at the bit.
Early years classrooms are often bubbling with noise and activity, so it can be difficult to find a quiet corner in which to read a story (unless the whole class is sitting down at a group story-time). However, it pays to move to a location that has a certain amount of peace and quiet, so that there are fewer distractions and adults and children can concentrate.

The current approach to early years education encourages children to build their independence and autonomy, taking responsibility for choices and directing their own time. There is nothing worse than an eager child asking a practitioner to read him a story – only to be refused because it is the wrong time of day or the teacher is too busy. Not only is this frustrating for practitioners who would dearly love to oblige, but it also sends a damaging message to the child – that reading is somehow less important than other curricular activities.
Adults should be available and enthusiastic – ready to respond to children’s interests and build these into meaningful learning opportunities. Although picture books are often very short (1,000 words or less), this does not mean that they should be skipped through hurriedly. Picture book texts are written to be read aloud, each word and phrase being chosen for its lyrical, rhythmical quality as well as its ability to move the story forward.

Tone of Voice and Expression

As children suspend their disbelief, so, too, should adults be prepared to waive their self-consciousness (perhaps even their dignity!). Characters come to life when they have a voice, and sound effects are more compelling if they are convincing and audible. Think of the character of the wolf (dressed up as grandma) in Little Red Riding Hood – what story-teller could resist putting on a “wolfy” grandma voice to say “all the better to see you with, my dear”?
As children listen to stories, they are building up a repertoire of characteristic story language, rich in vocabulary, phrases and intonation. This is an extremely important foundation for literacy and will stand them in good stead for their own future reading and writing development.

A key early reading skill is that of “reading for meaning” and prediction. The reading process involves making sense of print by gleaning meaning form various bits of information, including the relationship between pictures and texts. Children need to learn to make informed guesses about what the print might say on the basis of what the story is about (the context) and what is likely to happen next.
Little Red Riding Hood provides a good illustration of how adults can encourage children to engage with the text and anticipate what might follow. For example, when Little Red Riding Hood’s suspicions are aroused by the less than convincing wolf in grandma’s clothing, an adult reading the story could slow down at the key part: “all the better to …” (eat you with). This enables the child to understand that this is a critical part in the story – the listener can empathise with Little Red Riding Hood and engage with the text at a very deep level, sharing the knowledge that something terrible might be about to happen.
Reading stories is a pleasure that should be savoured – a precious, spine-tingling joy, for the reader as well as the listener(s). It is much more than merely decoding the printed words on the page – it is about a shared, literary experience rich in learning potential.