1· Because when you hold them and give them this attention, they know you love them.
2· Because reading to them will encourage them to become readers for life.
3· Because children's books today are so good, they are even fun for adults.
4· Because illustrations in children's books often rank among the best, giving children a life long feeling for good art.
5· Because books are one way of passing on your values.
6· Because books will enable your childs imagination to soar.
7· Because until they learn to read themselves, they will think you are magic.
8· Because for that short space of time they will stay clean and quiet.
9· Because if you do, they may let you read in peace.
10· Because every teacher and librarian they encounter will thank you.
1· Make regular trips to the library. Help each child acquire their very own library card. Keep a special place at home especially for library books, so they are easy to find on the due date!
2· Set up a bookshelf in your child’s room or in a corner of another room to keep their own books.
3· Play Scrabble, Boggle and other word games.
4. Model yourself as a reader. Curl up with a good book today.5· Remember the TV has an off button too. Discuss TV programs with your child.
6· Give books as gifts for Birthdays, Christmas and other holidays.
7· Keep lots of drawing and craft materials readily available for the budding author/artist.
8· Plan a trip together -- read maps and travel brochures etc. Have your child keep a diary of the trip.
9· Read aloud alot and encourage quiet alone reading time every day (like 5 to 10 minutes after you tuck them in bed they can read quietly).
10· Discuss the books you and your child read. "Would you like to live during those times?" "Would you have chosen him as a friend?" "What would you have done?"
11· Provide an unlimited amount of reading material... Magazines, newspapers, comic books, Usborne books, encyclopedias, story books etc.
1· Books don’t need to be assembled before being given.
2· Books don’t need batteries.
3· Books never come in the wrong colour or size.
4· Books don’t need to be serviced by a dealer.
5· Books don’t need spare parts.
6· Books are easier to gift wrap than footballs.
7· Books don’t bite, scratch or kick.
8· Books don’t need watering or fertilizing.
9· Books don’t irritate your allergies.
10. Books don’t go out of style.
11· Books look good with any decor.
12· Books don’t get aphids or draw ants.
13. Books don’t bark or need to be walked in the middle of the night.
14· Books don’t shrink, stretch or fade.
15· Books don’t need extension cords.
16· Books won’t scratch the coffee table.
17· Books don’t get stale before they arrive.
18· Books never need ironing.
19· Books don’t have zippers that break.
20· When you are finished with a book, it is not empty