Recently, I was approached by a really lovely couple who introduced me to their wonderful concept which they’ve called ‘WILF Books’.
WILF Books, in short, are a monthly children’s book subscription service which deliver your child personalised and relevant books, but it includes the opportunity for them to share their own. It’s no secret that not every child loves every book and it seems like such a shame for them to go to waste when another child could love that book so much more.
It’s WILF Books’ thought process that the shelves full of unread children’s books, or even old favourites, can be recycled and redistributed around the UK to children who will love them the most. I absolutely love the idea that a child somewhere else could benefit from an old book on our shelf that the boys may have outgrown, or not longer love. Reading is one of my passions, although I don’t get lots of time to do it anymore, and as a kid I couldn’t imagine being without a book. I’d love for more kids to get into reading or be read to, it seems to be one of those things are fading out in place of other things, but there’s nothing so good as picking up a real book and turning those pages.
One of WILF Books’ key values is to make the world a whole lot friendlier. Callum and Amelia really believe big businesses should exist to serve a greater purpose, and by introducing a way to share with others, they hope to do exactly that. Both of them have lots of children in their families and each of those have provided their own unique inspiration for WILF Books. Amelia is a teacher at a London school where her class is made up of four and five year olds and Callum, alongside his kids-focused role at Unilever, co-partners on a few different YouTube channels delivering animated children’s nursery rhymes. Clearly they are both passionate about children and together they’ve come up with five ideas for reading with your child this summer.
Reading with your child is just a wonderful thing, isn’t it? There’s something, particularly in today’s digital age, that just feels so right. It’s that time where they can fuel their imagination for the next day’s play, foster their creativity as they lose themselves inside an amazing story and it gives us those moments where your heart just melts as your child starts to read those words back to you. They make us smile, they make us laugh, they make us cry, but best of all, they bring us together in those moments that can define our children’s. So, just how can we best enjoy those moments that matter?
Well, first and foremost, we think it starts with you. Children learn so much just from watching what their parents do. You’re their role model, and when your body language and attitude is positive towards reading, it gives children a really great example to follow. You, as a parent, can always facilitate and encourage reading in everyday life at the right moment, and here are five more ways through which you can foster a culture of reading within your family:
1. Talk about what is happening in the story
Ask your child questions about the story and develop your child’s comprehensive skills without them even knowing it. “What was your favourite part of the story?”, “What would you have done if you had been stuck on the moon”, “Who was your favourite character?”, “What do you think would happen next in the story?” You needn’t overkill with questioning your child but one or two questions per book will certainly help your child’s imagination to run wild.
2. Capture your child’s imagination and interests
Talk with your child about the type of book they think that they would really enjoy. Picture books, character books, story books, books with morals? Whatever their choice, Personalise their book choices so that the one you choose is a guaranteed winner, a book that is based on something your child loves will immediately ensure that they are happy and excited to engage in reading time. W ILF Books can handle this for you, delivering you a customised, relevant selection of books every month.
3. Read often
Capture their imagination whilst it’s running wild! Building and developing a reading pattern will help your child become familiar with stories and also allow them to get excited about the next book instalment. Let them know when you’ll be receiving new books to prompt their excitement. It will also help them realise the importance of books, realise that reading books equals happiness and build that sense of curiosity and excitement.
4. Read aloud together
It’s never too early to start reading to your little ones. Even if they’re not able to read just yet, just hearing your voice can be soothing and bring happiness. For older kids, take turns reading each page of a favourite book. That’s a great relationship builder and you’ll find happiness in it too.
5. Inspire that inner author or illustrator
Take time with your child to summarise the story or work with them to create their own by making marks on a folded piece of paper or if older they would write or draw their own story. Perhaps they would enjoy writing a book review, and take it into school to share with their friends? Champion their love for reading by celebrating success.
You can register your interest with WILF Books ahead of their upcoming launch.
You can also stay in touch and keep up with WILF Books on Twitter and Facebook.
*Part of this post was brought to you by WILF Books.
We usually read most nights with the kids but over the summer holidays I want to include some reading time into each day.