Unison Parenting #5: Modeling Reading to Your Children

Listen, my son, to your father’s instruction and do not forsake your mother’s teaching (Proverbs 1:8 NIV).

This is an actual conversation that occurred at a physical therapy clinic. Intern “Sun-Lee” and patient “Leila” are talking. Intern “Doug” and patient “Amira” are listening at the next table.

Sun-Lee: “I see you brought a book with you. Do you like to read?”

Leila: “Yes, I’ve always been a reader. I was reading by age four. By age six, I was reading at a sixth-grade level.”

Sun-Lee: “That’s amazing! Were you a prodigy?”

Leila: “Ha, no. I think it was because reading was important in my house. I saw my father and mother reading frequently, and I wanted to do the same. Also, they would read to me regularly.”

Sun-Lee: “How about your kids? Do they like to read?”

Leila: “They’re grown now, so I don’t know how much they read as adults. But growing up, my husband and I read to them and modeled reading. They were avid readers as kids, and I think they can handle anything thrown at them as adults.”

Amira (joining in): “I’m realizing that perhaps I didn’t read with my kids enough. I mean, I did read to them. But I didn’t read much myself. I didn’t model reading for them.”

Leila: “How old are your kids now?”

Amira: “They’re all teenagers. None of them like to read, and all of them struggle with reading. I’m feeling like I should have modeled reading better. Now I’m wondering if there’s anything I can do to fix the situation this late in the game.”

Doug: “To be honest, I have a hard time with reading as an adult. Here as an intern, I sometimes must read new instructions. I do better if there are pictures. If there are a lot of big or technical words, I don’t understand well. It takes me a long time to read anything. Growing up, my parents never modeled reading. It was something to do at school.”

The takeaway from this conversation: It’s beneficial to read to your kids. The benefit doubles if they see that you are reading, too, showing that it’s important and enjoyable to read.