Ugh, Read a Book…

The way kids get their literary fix these days looks different from when we were growing up. PBS was life then, exposing youth to books from Reading Rainbow to Wishbone. Reading was incentivized and celebrated with the Pizza Hut Book It! Program and D.E.A.R. (Drop Everything and Read). Scholastic Book Fair day was the BEST!!! It was a great time to read.

Then it kinda changed. This may be purely anecdotal, but reading for fun stopped being a thing. Outside of Harry Potter and Twilight, academic and athletic achievement took precedence. Then loud TV shows from Disney Channel and Nickelodeon, then smartphones and social media entered the chat. I have five younger Gen Z cousins and all of them pretty much bemoan reading.

As Millennial Moms, the thought of our kids not loving to read actually hurts. So how do we cultivate the love of reading outside the classroom?

Nowadays, children have more access to multiple literary mediums. Audiobooks, for one, is a major gamechanger on top of physical books and visual stories via internet and streaming services. The field of literary consumption is vast and can be a bit overwhelming to navigate the right way. Are we giving kids reading options or just shortcuts?

Here are our standout picks to help children get into the reading game.

YouTube

This comes with a big asterisk. My kids love YouTube Kids, but it’s still kinda trash if let them watch it unchecked. Check out these channels and watch alongside your kids. If you can get your hands on the physical or ebook afterwards, that can get your kid excited to “re-read” the story.

Storyline Online – This SAG-AFTRA produced literacy website streams videos featuring Hollywood celebs reading children’s books alongside animated illustrations. Bonus: Each story includes a free activity guide to talk about the story with your child on their website.

CBeebies Bedtime Stories – Yes, this is similar to Storyline Online, but with Tom Hardy and other celebrities from Tom Hiddleston to Mel C from the Spice Girls. The storytelling is calmer, and the accompanying images aren’t animated, allowing your child to settle down for the night.

Vooks – Vooks’ digital library of children’s storybooks keeps kids engaged with subtle animation and calming-paced narration, similar to a parent or teacher reading aloud. The highlighted read-along text lets your child follow along, helping them with word identification. They also have a subscription service app that offers activities to complement their stories, the ability to record your voice as you read a book, and accessibility to their audiobooks.

TV Shows

We think that books based on kids movies and shows can be a bit of a mixed bag. On one hand, chances are they already know the story and book isn’t going to reveal anything new. In most cases, the books are abridged. On the other hand, they already love the characters and they’re excited to read about them. This familiarity can lend itself to reading more, especially if it gets your kids invested in a book series.

Super WHY! (PBS Kids) – This preschool series is designed to help children learn to read through interactive story adventures. Each episode features a team of fairytale superheroes who soar into classic storybooks and use their unique reading-based powers to find answers to everyday preschool problems. With curriculum guidelines established by the National Reading Panel, Super Why! teaches preschoolers key literacy skills, including letter identification, decoding, encoding, spelling, and reading comprehension.

The Book of Once Upon a Time (Disney+) – This anthology of short stories uses both animation and live action to tell Disney inspired tales, like Frozen, The Lion King, and Cars to name a few. What’s fun about this series is that the narrator is not only reading the story but acting out parts as the characters in the book.

Wallykazam! (Paramount+) – This literacy focused show helps boost word identification and reading comphrension. The premise centers around a young troll named Wally Trollman who can turn words into physical objects or occurrences. With this power, he can transform his world to solve problems, help friends, and deal with his resident troublemaker named Bobgoblin.

Audiobooks/Podcasts

I started audiobooks with my kids this summer and it went surprisingly well. Luckily, most kids library audiobooks (using the Libby app) aren’t in high demand and you can pretty much download them instantly. Just like for younger kids and TV, I did pause the track several times to ask context questions about the story. These are great options in the car or doing chores; times where they are doing things pretty passively. We also think audiobooks are great options for summer reading, when there isn’t accompanying teacher instruction.

Notable Children’s Recordings (2024) – Updated annually by the American Library Association, the Notable Children’s Recordings list includes audiobooks for kids 14 and younger. These audio recordings are chosen based off their sound quality, the promotion of imagination, if they exhibit venturesome creativity, and if “reflect and encourage the interests of children and young adolescents in exemplary ways.”

Toniebox – These things are popping up everywhere, including your local Target store. Toniebox is a soft, yet durable, audio-storytelling machine for ages 3-8 years. It requires a collectible Tonie character to play up to seven hours of stories and songs when placed on top of the box. We like to think this is the equivalent to Teddy Ruxpin. However, it does require buying the box itself as well as the individual characters.

Circle Round – This storytelling podcast focuses on folktales from around the world. Each episode ends with an activity meant to open discussion about the themes covered in each story, from kindness to persistence.

Story Seeds – Rather than tell stories, this podcast is about kids creating stories. Each episode pairs 6–12-year-old kids with a children’s book author. Together, the two collaborate to write original stories that start out with a kid’s idea.

Subscription Book Clubs

Pretty self-explanatory. This gives kids something to look forward to each month. We like to think kids get excited to receive actual mail.

Bookroo – This monthly subscription service offers a Board Book Subscription (3 board books for ages 0-3), a Picture Book Subscription (2 hardcover picture books for ages 2-6) and a Chapter Book Subscription (2 chapter books for ages 7-10). A sheet comes in each box that talks about the books, discussion prompts, and complementary online activities to do with your child.

StoryCaptain – This monthly book club is geared towards kids 0-7 years of age. Each curated literary package pairs 2-3 books and play-along activity guides that are centered around a theme of a particular place, culture, or time.

Ourshelves – Designed for children ages 0-8 years (Sunshine books: Ages 0-2, Rainbow: Ages 2-5, Treehouse: Ages 5-8), Ourshelves features racially/ethnically diverse and traditional underrepresented characters and families, covering topics like equity, anti-racism, and social justice.

Online Apps/Games

If you ask us, we’d still prefer Reader Rabbit and Word Munchers…

Starfall – This reading program, meant for children pre-K to 3^rd grade, teaches phonics basics by utilizing animated characters, songs, and interactive games. It’s great for helping kids with reading challenges, such as dyslexia as it’s untimed and uses frequent positive reinforcement to help build up reading confidence.

Epic – Epic gives kids unlimited access to books in their digital library. This online tool recommends books based on your child’s reading level and interests. It offers a selection of “read to me” books which allows kids to follow along with the text while hearing the words as well as an easy-to-use dictionary feature to help with reading comprehension. The program also incentivizes continued reading via achievement badges.

Prodigy English – Talk about gamifying to improve reading and language skills. Players must gain energy by practicing and answering language questions. Once they have enough energy, they can use it to gather resources from an open world, craft items, and earn coins while building their very own village.

Circling back to the thesis, all of these are good supplements to help your child get excited about reading and make it more accessible. They expose your kids to stories and storytelling in general, engaging their imagination and helping to make reading become habit.

Looking for more? Refer back to the tried and true:

Take your kids to the library or bookstore.
Read yourself and talk about it, even if it’s just reading articles or ebooks on your phone.
Nerd out with your favorite characters.
Talk about your favorite books growing up.
Have books out in the open and accessible in every room in the house, books aren’t just for decoration.
Go a step further and have them carry a book with them always. Stephen King said he always has a book on him to read while he’s waiting in line, etc.
Experiment with graphic novels/manga.
Don’t forget nonfiction. Piggyback their interests with an age-appropriate biography or natural history title.
Instate your own Book It! or D.E.A.R time at home.

To quote my Latin Teacher, you never know what book is going to turn your kid into a reader.

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