In pondering what I should blog about, I decided to talk about some specifics in how to approach reading with your newborns. Notice I said "with" and not "to." In my opinion that makes all the difference in understanding why you should read to your infants. I would guess many new moms have heard it said that they should start reading to their babies right from birth. But many dismiss it, believing their babies are too young to get any real benefit from it, so they wait until their child is a year or two old to get serious about reading "to" them; when their baby can "get something out of the experience."
But, babies enjoy hearing the sing-song rhythm in your voice as you read nursery rhymes or stories that rhyme. At a few months, they enjoy seeing brightly colored pictures. But keep it simple; just one or two objects per page. You can point to the objects and talk about them or describe them. For example, tell your baby the color of the "thing;" what it's made out of, etc. as well as what the "thing" does. It doesn't really matter, just so long as you are snuggling them in and talking soothingly to them. You could even sing songs while looking through books. The songs don't have to match the pictures. Just so the baby connects the comfort they feel while you are reading with he/she. But, when using nursery rhymes, many of them do have tunes you can readily sing: Mary Had a Little Lamb, London Bridges, Jack and Jill, etc.
It's the importance of your baby's time spent with you that is important; not the subject matter. Time spent cuddling, listening to your voice and seeing something with color and movement. Yes, infants even enjoy the movement and sound of the turning pages!
Next time, we'll discuss the types of books you should get for your baby's first books - of his/her own!
Doreese
