bedtime story

 In parental guidance I meet quite a few parents who are not led to bedtime at home. Parents usually turn up due to emotional or behavioral difficulties in their young child - separation difficulties, difficulty sleeping, outbursts of anger, disobedience and more. One of my first recommendations would be to start by reading a bedtime story, as a way to strengthen the parent-child bond and hence a contribution to solving the difficulties with which they came.

A must read! In less than a quarter of an hour I will explain here how a quarter of an hour of a "bedtime story" contributes so much to the relationship with the child.

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The importance of reading a bedtime story

When there is a regular story time (recommended before bed but not mandatory if there is a lot of difficulty in it) - it means that no matter how intense and busy a day was, or easy and fun, whether the relationship was good or complex - there is a special time in the day . When this also happens towards bedtime, then we have a magical moment that closes the day in a warm, pleasant and relaxing way.

During the story, the parent sits comfortably with the child (if before bed then in the child's bed), devoting this time only to him, giving of himself and listening to him. The child knows how to look forward to this time, and especially gets the message that he is valued and important.

The book read can only be for interest, fun and shared enjoyment. Sometimes he also opened a conversation, the child remembers various topics from everyday life, small moments of joy or sadness and can share or ask. He has a parent available to listen, share and address concerns.

There is also no need to add the importance of reading books to language development, concentration, thinking and the social and emotional development that can be read about in other articles on the site.

A quarter of an hour a day with so much meaning, emotion and contribution.

 

So I apply?

It is recommended to start at a very young age, even with a baby several months old. Optimally the baby / toddler sat on or next to the parent / caregiver.

With babies and toddlers it is advisable to start with books with little text and a nice rhyme, use a few books and come back to them again and again.

Permanence is as important from an early age as possible, in terms of time, location, and duration.

If there are two parents in the home, it is important that the parents alternate between them on different days so that everyone has the opportunity to read a story to the same child. This is in order to strengthen each parent's connection with the child.

If there are several brothers and sisters in the family, it is advisable to introduce story time for each child. If this is appropriate and does not create friction, the siblings are invited to listen to the story, but the child whose time it is chooses the book and sits close to the parent. Most of the attention is paid to him.

If one parent does this, it is advisable to read the story to the young child first, put him to bed and then vacate for the older children when the older one is the last.

Like any habit once formed it is difficult to eradicate - so if it happens that one day it is not possible to tell a story, it is fine, but it is important to try to do so the next day.

It is recommended to continue this habit, the purpose of which is to strengthen the parent-child relationship even in grades 1-2 and when the child begins to read on his own.

The time can be divided for the parent to read and the child to read. Adult children's books are inherently longer, and can be divided into a chapter or two a day.

Reading the story, especially before bed, is an important experience that should be pleasant. It is recommended to avoid asking questions about the story for the purpose of "learning" and "testing comprehension". For some children, the feeling that they are being examined creates a reaction of disgust and avoidance of numbers.

One last tip

Sometimes parents say "the child is not interested" or "the child refuses the story". First, this can be avoided if you start the habit from a very young age. But when it happens - it is recommended that the story time be before bed. So you can ask "Do you want a story or will I turn off the light and go to sleep?" It is very rare for a toddler / child to give up the opportunity to be with his parents for a while longer and answer "no" to the bedtime story. Even older children will often be happier to read on their own at this time than to go to bed… Make sure that this is indeed a pleasant time for everyone in terms of parent inquiries, choosing the appropriate book and how to read it.