As part of the Essex Year of Reading campaign, Essex County Council (ECC) is sharing some top tips to help families get excited about reading in 2023.
Throughout 2022, the campaign, which will now continue until April, has been helping families discover a lifelong love of reading and the benefits it can bring.
Councillor Tony Ball, ECC’s Cabinet Member for Education Excellence, Lifelong Learning and Employability, explains: “Reading regularly can help children and young people in lots of different areas of their education. It will also support them as they grow and eventually enter the workplace.
“It’s been a pleasure to see how the Essex Year of Reading campaign has helped so many families engage in reading in different ways throughout 2022. I look forward to seeing this continue into the early part of next year.”
Essex Year of Reading top tips:
1. Encourage children to make a New Year’s resolution to read more. January is the perfect time to refocus and get into good habits. You could even start a reading competition between family members!
2. Make reading part of the bedtime routine with ECC’s ‘Tell Me a Story’ series. Snuggle up under a blanket and listen to well-known faces, published authors and local heroes.
3. Use fun resources to improve children’s reading skills. The Essex Year of Reading app has plenty of resources, from ‘Home Learning’ foundations and strategies to phonics help for parents and carers. There are also lots of short stories to enjoy and read together.
4. Make time to read together. Reading is a lot more fun when you do it together, so why not set aside some time to read together to make sure you achieve your New Year’s resolutions?
5. Read out aloud! Take it in turns to read aloud which will show children how to pronounce difficult words and can help improve speaking skills.
6. Make reading fun. If your child finds reading difficult, you could give them something shorter to read, like a comic, or read a recipe whilst making chocolate cake, which will help build their confidence.
7. Choose books that your children will enjoy. No matter what your child’s interests are, there will be a book about it. Buy or borrow a book from your local library and watch their love of reading grow!
To find out more about the Essex Year of Reading campaign, visit www.essexyearofreading.co.uk or download the free Essex Year of Reading app from the App Store or Google Play.
