Many experts believe that children who are read to from a young age tend to love reading when they grow up and can continue reading to their children when they become parents - Illustration from The Guardian
British writer Horatio Clare shared a memorable memory with The Guardian about the nights he spent listening to his father read stories in his small London apartment.
As a radio announcer, his father did not simply read but delivered stories with a rich, loving voice. His mother also often read stories to him and his brother.
"The way my father read to us made me feel like I was hearing the story for the first time even though I had known it or heard it many times," Horatio said.
That's when all the worries subside
As an adult, he continued the ritual of reading to his son, Aubrey. During his years as a lecturer, often travelling between his home in the Pennines and his university in Liverpool, he realised that the most peaceful, sacred moment of a parent’s day was when he read to his child before bed.
"That's when all my worries subside. Like my father in the past, I also find joy and peace in every word I say to my children."
According to Horatio, reading stories to children is not only an act of love but also a way for parents to listen and connect with their children.
It is also “a team sport ,” where both reader and listener create a world together.
Sometimes, the goal of reading a story is not to inspire or educate, but simply to help children… sleep. Horatio even practiced switching his voice from “fascinating” to “lulling” as he read the last paragraph, so that his child would gradually fall asleep.
"There is a special moment when you look up and see your loved one slowly falling asleep to your voice, a sacred feeling. The atmosphere in the room seems to calm down," Horatio confided.
British writer Horatio Clare with his works Heavy Light, Running for the Hills... - Photo: Compassionate Mental Health
The rate of parents reading to their children is at a record low.
The Sydney Morning Herald cites a new study from HarperCollins UK that found less than half of parents with children under 13 in the UK said reading to their children was “fun”. For children aged 0-4, even fewer were read to every day.
In Australia, data from the reading platform ABC Reading Eggs shows that: 30% of parents in New South Wales, and 22% in Victoria admit to being too busy to read to their children every day.
Professor Robyn Cox, an education and language expert at the University of Tasmania, said the decline was due to a number of factors: increasing economic pressures that are causing burnout among young parents, the increasing proportion of both partners working, and especially the growing presence of electronic devices in family life.
Ailish Woodhill often reads to her children before bedtime - Photo: The Sydney Morning Herald
According to Professor Robyn Cox, reading to children helps form groups of skills that will follow them throughout their lives, such as: letter recognition; vocabulary development, expression skills, understanding context...
And the bigger meaning is emotional. "When you take the time to read to your child, it's a moment of connection," says child and adolescent psychologist Deirdre Brandner. "It's like a message: 'You're the most important thing after a busy day.'"
Experts also give some advice so that parents can read to their children even when they are busy: spending a short time, even just 5 minutes regularly every day is better than doing nothing; making reading a habit; not just stories but also poems, newspapers, as long as it creates interest for the child...
Precious 'break time' for both parents and children
Ailish Woodhill (27 years old, living in Sydney), mother of 6-month-old Mackenzie, told The Sydney Morning Herald that she and her husband share the task of reading stories to their child every night:
"When I was a child, my mother read me stories every night, which made me love books. Now I read those same books to my children. We read about 3 or 4 books every night. Being a parent is so busy, but the moments of reading to my children make me feel relaxed and connected to them."
Source: https://tuoitre.vn/doc-sach-cho-con-nghe-truoc-khi-ngu-la-khoanh-khac-thieng-lieng-nhat-voi-ba-me-20250711135202421.htm
Comment (0)