Polly Logan-Banks is an experienced editor with a keen interest in producing evidence-based content. Polly is passionate about ensuring that every child gets the best start in life.
Parents-to-be often ask me: “When should I start reading to my baby?”
And my answer is always: “As soon as you bring them home from the hospital.”
The truth is that it’s never too early to start reading to your baby. The bonding that happens when you’re reading to your baby is priceless. And it’s super important for brain and language development in children.
Babies are born ready to learn. Reading is an activity that encourages infants to use their senses to explore the world. What does Mom smell like? What does the book feel like? What’s that blurry shape in front of my eyes? What are those funny sounds that Dad is making?
Even if your baby doesn’t understand the words you’re saying, the process of reading engages all their senses. So, it’s no wonder that reading to babies early and often stimulates brain development and actually helps their brain grow!
Reading is good for childhood development in so many ways – helping a baby develop communication skills, form listening skills, build a vocabulary and test their memory. Plus, books introduce your child to the world they live in and concepts such as numbers, colors, letters and shapes.
Reading to your baby also helps with language development. During the first year, babies will hear all the sounds they need to speak their native language. So, the more books they read during their first year, the better they will be able to talk.
The weeks after your baby is born will be a whirlwind of feeding and diapers, so take time during your pregnancy to start collecting books to read to your newborn.
But, when it comes to which books to read to newborn babies, what exactly should you be looking for?
Early on, the best books for newborns are those with black-and-white illustrations. According to research, these types of images send the strongest visual signals to your baby’s brain. Also, try to keep the book within 8 to 12 inches from your baby’s face. That’s all the farther a newborn can clearly see.
This is because the back layer of your baby’s eye (the retina) that detects light isn’t fully developed at birth. A newborn’s retina can only see big contrasts between light and dark. That means books with light pastel illustrations aren’t ideal early on.
Your baby’s sense of sight will gradually get stronger over the six to eight months after birth. What’s really developing is your child’s brain and its ability to process all the visual information they’re taking in. As your baby starts seeing, touching, smelling, hearing and tasting more, nerve cells in the brain multiply and connect. So, it’s important to be intentional about stimulating your baby’s brain with sensory input.
As any parent will tell you, there comes a time when your baby starts putting everything in their mouth. When it comes to books, this is how babies “read”.
It’s developmentally appropriate for babies as young as three months to chew on books. Their attention spans are short. While bold illustrations can help, you shouldn’t expect a young infant to concentrate on even the best baby books for longer than about 90 seconds. At least, not if your baby isn’t chewing on them.
When it comes to choosing books to read to newborn babies, picking something you wouldn’t be heartbroken to see get destroyed is important. Chewing helps babies strengthen their tongues, which is important for their speech development. But if baby is going through board books faster than diapers, there are also some more durable options.
When enjoying a book with your baby, make the story come alive by changing the tone of your voice or using sound effects and motions. Point out pictures that match your words and elaborate. Have conversations about the numbers, letters, colors, shapes, objects and characters that show up in the book. Find books about your culture and explain why your family heritage matters. All of this keeps the book exciting for your child and helps hold their attention.
During story time, having fun and interacting with baby are just as important as the letters on the page. That’s why being able to read isn’t necessary for sharing a good book with baby. So, encourage big brothers and sisters to tell stories about pictures and books, even if they are still learning their ABCs.
This is important too: if you think a book is annoying, don’t read it to your baby. You must be engaged to effectively nurture your baby’s brain development. And that means the best baby books are the ones that you like and that encourage you to be interactive.
By the time your baby turns one, they will have learned all the sounds needed to speak a language. Reinforce these sounds and how to use them by reading books with rhymes.
Rhyme showcases the common inflections we use while speaking. So, reading rhyming books will help prepare your baby’s ear, voice and brain for language, which is a key part of a baby’s brain development.
You can point out which words rhyme and emphasize that they do. This will give your child a chance to hear and fully process different sounds. The repetitive sound of a rhyme can also help teach your child to predict what comes next, which can build their memory skills.
Reading your newborn baby rhymes doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll be an early talker. However, when starting to talk, it’s more likely your child will be able to string together words.
Clinical evidence shows that by the time your child starts kindergarten, their brain will have grown to 90% of its adult size. Maximize brain growth and your baby’s brain development by starting to read to them right away.
Story time is a great way to maximize the amount of snuggle time you have with your baby. And when you’re wondering how to get baby to sleep, a calming, rhyming story can be a really good option.
A baby can never have too many books. The above recommendations are just a few to consider for your new baby’s library. There are so many good choices out there. Ask friends and relatives for recommendations – they may even be able to remind you of a book that you loved as a baby!
Of course, the costs of baby books can add up, so don’t hesitate to ask people with older children if they have books that their kiddos have outgrown – just be sure they are clean before offering them to your baby.
There are also quite a few organizations that offer free books for babies. Depending on where you live, some options may be The Free Book Buggie, Imagination Library or the Network for the Development of Children of African Decent (NdCAD).
Reading is just one of the wonderful things you can do to support your baby’s brain and language development. To learn more about the importance of reading and other brain-boosting activities, visit the Little Moments Count website. This site is filled with tips and resources to help encourage healthy childhood development.
If you have any concerns about your baby’s development, talk to your child’s doctor.