For The Love of Books

A love of books is a lifelong asset, but in the digital age, it can be hard to keep kids' eyes on the page amid the distractions of Xbox and YouTube.  So, in the April 2011 issue of Good Housekeeping , they asked parents, How do you nurture a love of reading in your kids? Below are some of the ideas and answers parents gave:

1. "I let him pick a new book instead of a toy every time we go toWalmart.  It's something he gets excited about, and we read it to him before bed." - Sarah Hunt-Martinez (mm of one, age 19 months)

2. "My son loved cars even before he was a year old.  I began with colorful, simple car-story picture books till age2, followed with longer car stories, and then gradually introduced him to lots of varied stories.  We started with a theme, and the rest all fell in place!" - Anushi Batra (mom of one, age 4)

3. "I've taken them to the library since they were babies.  They'd pick any kids' book they wanted, even if it looked weird to me.  Now that they're in school, their teacher require them to read at least 20 minutes a night, but I make it 40 minutes.  Sometimes we forget to check the clock, and they end up reading for an hour." - Becky Lee ( mom of two, ages 9 and 10)

4. "Continue to read to them after they can read on their own.  Kids still love to be read to." - Janice Cammarata (mom of two, ages 27 and 29)