On the occasion of Book Day, we have recently shared with you in Babies and more diverse articles with recommendations of children's books for children of all ages. Some time ago we told you some of the benefits of reading them aloud, such as encouraging their imagination and creating emotional ties.
Now a recent study adds one more benefit to reading aloud to our children: it helps in their socio-emotional development. We tell you what it is about.
Published in Pediatrics, the official journal of the American Pediatric Association, this new study analyzed the relationship between reading aloud and play with their parents, with the socio-emotional development of children.
According to this new research, in addition to the benefits of reading aloud to children who already knew each other, sharing that activity between parents and children has the potential to help evade or curb behavioral problems such as aggression, hyperactivity or difficulty concentrating and paying attention.
The study involved 675 families who had children from newborns to five years of age. They were divided into two groups: one of control and another that received an intervention project.
The families that were part of the intervention group received books and toys, in addition to meeting with a coach for parents, with whom they talked about the development of their children, what they noticed in them and what they expected in terms of their development. Subsequently, they were taken video in which they appeared playing and reading with their children for a few minutes, of different duration according to the age of their children.
At the end, he met with a study interventionist, to watch these videos and analyze the response of his children. The fact that parents can see themselves helps them realize how their children react to certain of their actions.. "We try to highlight the positive things about that interaction, maybe they feel a little ridiculous, but by showing them on video how much their children have fun when they do those things, it can be very motivating for them"says Adriana Weisleder, one of the authors of the study.
This type of project began as a program for children from low-income families, and consisted of clinical visits from the birth of children to three years. Children who participated in interventions like this, they had shown improvements in their behavior, and had been less aggressive or hyperactive than those children in the control group who did not receive such interventions.
The children who participated in this new study were analyzed again a year and a half later, and it was found that the effects of such activities with their parents still persisted. Children whose families participated in these interventions during that time, they were still less likely to manifest behavioral problems.
Some of the children participated only in the second stage of the study, receiving toys and books for their parents to read aloud, attending clinical visits from three to five years. They found more effects between activities and children's response, and more exposure to positive parenting, which meant a stronger positive impact on their behavior.
When to start reading to our children
It may surprise you, but you can start reading to your children since they are days or weeks old, according to recommendations of the American Pediatric Association. You just need to find a book that is suitable for their age, and today you can start reading them out loud, if you have not already done so.
In Babies and more you can find various recommendations of children's books, from a special selection for the little ones, feminist books for boys and girls, as well as books for children with special needs, such as stories adapted for children with autism.
Reading is a great activity to share with the family, and as we can see with this and other studies, it is something that brings benefits for everyone: parents become more involved in the growth and education of their children, while children receive a positive and close parenting.
