Research* by the National Literacy Trust shows that nine out of ten parents would like to spend more time developing their child’s literacy skills, yet a shocking one child in three does not own a book.
Help is at hand with a new video featuring tips from mums on how to make reading a fun and effortless part of the everyday routine. The fly-on-the-wall-style video captures the conversations of a group of mums as they debate the joys and challenges of reading with kids.
The video was created by McCain Smiles in conjunction with the National Literacy Trust to mark the launch of a massive book giveaway hitting supermarkets from 18 June. The film also features advice from National Literacy Trust’s Words for Life expert Abigail Moss.
The campaign invites parents to revisit a set of ‘Treasured Tales’ with their children, as more than 100,000 Ladybird books are given away for free with packs of McCain Smiles this summer.
The exclusive set of six Ladybird books include Cinderella, The Three Little Pigs and Little Red Riding Hood and are great to read with younger children or for older, more confident readers to tackle themselves.
To take part in the promotion, look for unique codes on the leaflet inside all promotional packs of McCain Smiles, sold at major supermarkets. Simply collect two codes and head to www.mccain.co.uk/smilesfreebooks to choose from six fairytales on offer – your choice will be posted to you free of charge.
*One Poll survey of 1,000 parents, February 2012
Smiles of fun! Top tips for reading together
Read yourself
Your kids copy you all the time so make sure they see you reading. By copying they will gain confidence and get to be great readers too.
Make time to read
Make sure you have a regular slot in which to read every day. This makes sure you don’t forget and stops everyone forgetting the storyline.
Be positive
Praise your child for their efforts reading – it’s fine for them to make mistakes. It’s supposed to be fun!
Point with a finger
Encourage them to follow the words with their finger.
Give them time
Let your child make a guess before you tell them the word. Help them to get the first sound or try breaking the word up into smaller sections.
Get them to read aloud…
…to you, friends, pets or even their toys. Hearing their own voice helps your child practice their speaking and builds confidence.
Let them read their favourites
It’s good to read the same books over and over again as repetition helps to build your child’s language.
Involve the whole family
Get older children to read to younger ones – not only some valuable time off for mums and dads, but younger kids will follow their example and practise their own reading.
Don’t just read books
Encourage your child to read newspapers, TV guides, comics, cookery books and magazines too.
Do the voices
Liven up story time by making each character talk differently – this makes the story come to life for your children.
Competition: – (closed)
To win a Ladybird book, just answer the following question:
How many Ladybird books are being given away for free with packs of McCain Smiles this summer?
All correct entries will be put into a draw. All entrants will receive our free newsletter
