Make sure that early reading is fun!

Being able to read is essential for sucess in modern society and learning early reading skills should, most of all, be enjoyable for your toddler. It's one thing to be able to teach a child to read, but it's something quite different to teach a child to love reading. Early reading therefore doesn't simply involve teaching your toddler to recognise letters, sound out words and put them into sentences, but must also be concerned with nurturing a love of books, words and literature. Here are some ways to nurture this love:

Be selective - For very early reading choose books with large, clear, bright and happy illustrations and short, simple stories. Lots of toddlers enjoy rhyming books as they particularly like the rhythms in poetry, but now is also a good opportunity to start introducing some very easy stories in prose.

Be determined - Lots of toddlers do nothing but squirm the first time they're read to, but repeated attempts are generally rewarded. Introduce a regular time for reading, bed-time is the usual favorite, but if you are able in the morning a cuddly story-time session in bed can be nice too.

Be imaginative - You know what your child enjoys better than the book's author. So don't feel you must read the words exactly as they're written. Permitting your imagination to improvise along the way can enormously enhance your child's enjoyment of the story and help encourage early reading.

Let your child participate - Long before your child is able to read, they can participate in the reading process. Ask them to point out the different characters in the illustrations as you go along, or later get them to fill in some blanks in sentences or rhymes in books they're familiar with. As they get older try asking them questions like, "What do you think will happen next?" Participation is part of the fun experience that early reading should be - your child loves to have your attention and will actively look forward to these sessions together.

Be animated - Remember - early reading should be fun - and no one likes to listen to a tedious monotone. A toddler who is still developing language skills will find an animated reading style not only more enjoyable, but also easier to understand.

Be repetitive - Toddlers love to hear the same story over and over. It can drive you to distraction (believe me I know!!) but it's immensely satisfying to their young ears - and will encourage those early reading skills too.

Keep it short - Your young child hasn't developed a long attention span yet, so keep those early reading sessions brief. Go from page to page quickly to keep them from getting fidgety, and be prepared to end story time after just a few minutes if they're really not in the mood.

Be cuddly - Children who associate reading with the comfort of curling up on a much-loved parent's lap almost always enjoy reading books later on.

Set a good example - If your toddler knows you enjoy reading, even occasionally, they're likely to believe it's a good, grown-up pastime and will probably begin to start to their early reading sessions themselves.

Finally, cut down on the amount of television that's watched by your toddler and the rest of the family. Research has shown that families who watch less read more.