1,000 Books Before Kindergarten: Reading and Re-Reading Favorite Toddler Books

By: Krystal Keagle

One of the things I love most about reading books with my 2-year-old daughter is seeing her develop preferences for books.

Maya is 2 years and 3 months old as I’m writing this blog. Last summer, she often brought a book to me and sit on my lap to read it, but it was usually just whatever book was near where she was playing.

Now, Maya is very specific about which books she wants to read, and often, re-read.

She’s always gravitated toward sound books or anything musical. I attribute that to her dad and grandpa both being musicians — music is in her blood. When we went to the library for the first time, we borrowed the book version of the children’s song “Baby Beluga” by Raffi. We read (sang?) that book every single day that we had it checked out.

We returned the book to the library over a week ago, yet we are still singing the song and talking about the book regularly.

“A little white whale on the go!” she’ll sing out of nowhere. When I sing “Baby Beluga” with her, she recalls the animals that she saw on pages that correspond with different lines.

“Seal!”

“Mama beluga!”

“Narwhal!”

“Puffins!”

I played the song for her on my phone, and now she asks for it while we’re driving. “Mama, whale song in the car seat!” she’ll say as we’re walking out the door of our house.

While “Baby Beluga” is the favorite right now, she’s gone through phases of other favorite books and series.

Eric Carle’s “The Very Hungry Caterpillar” is a favorite we read daily for a few weeks and still return to now often. Maya also loves the spin-off adventures of the caterpillar, like “A Day In The Snow With The Hungry Caterpillar.”

Other favorites have been “It’s Nice To Be A Narwhal,” “Chicka Chicka Boom Boom,” and “You’re My Little Pumpkin Pie.”

Reading the same books over and over again may not be helpful as we aim to complete the 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten program at the Elkhart Public Library, but it’s incredibly beneficial for Maya.

People learn through repetition. That’s especially true for babies and toddlers, who form more than a million neural connections every second. Reading and re-reading the same books, songs and nursery rhymes helps strengthen language development.

It also helps children build anticipation and gives them a sense of security in knowing what comes next. When they know something is going to happen and then it does, they develop a sense of security that helps them build confidence.

When we went through a period of reading “Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?” every day for a few weeks, I noticed that Maya would get really excited about the next animal and turn the page quickly. She was anticipating the next animal and loved getting to the last page where we would see every animal together.

As much as I love reading with Maya, I am human, and it can be a little boring sometimes to read the same book every day — let alone multiple times a day. In case it helps other parents, here are some techniques I’ve used to make re-reading more fun and engaging (for both parent and toddler):

• Instead of reading the words on the page, point out different details about the pictures on the page. I’ll find different colors on the page or point to animals and make their noises.
• Sing songs about the pictures or read the book as a song, if possible. Picture books are particularly good for this.
• Let your kiddo turn the pages, even if it means turning pages in the middle of a sentence.
• Ask questions about the pictures or characters.
• Choose books with flaps to open or touch-and-feel opportunities, which can be more engaging. Talk about that experience rather than reading the book.
• Open the book and let your kiddo’s attention guide the experience. If they point to something, talk about that.
• Tell your kiddo to read the book to you. This is especially fun when they’re talking a lot more and you’ve read the book several times — you get to see what they remember and they get a great opportunity to show off what you’ve been practicing during your reading sessions.

What books are your kiddos reading over and over again? What tips do you have for making reading more fun? Share your thoughts in the comments on the Elkhart Public Library’s Facebook page.