The King of read-aloud is most definitely Jim Trelease. His most famous book is "The Read-Aloud Handbook" and it came about when Jim started volunteering in community classrooms at the same time he and his wife were raising two small children and reading aloud to them every day. (Oh that all children, everywhere had that love and support of reading from their parents!) In his visits, he noticed differences in the amount of reading children did and started to wonder why some kids enjoyed reading and some didn't. He examined the research and found reading aloud to your child daily could make a huge difference in his/her life and future. The Read-Aloud-Handbook was published in 1979 and Jim dedicated the next thirty years travelling and talking to parents and teachers about the importance of reading aloud to kids.
Like Mem Fox he believes reading should be lots of fun, and to achieve that goal the kids should be read to every day, starting as early as possible. (I think the womb is good.)
Jim retired from public speaking in 2008 but maintains his website that is brimming with info about literacy, reading, books and the effects of TV on kids. His approach and vision is both encouraging and inspirational. Be sure to connect with this guy as he is one of the greatest voices in kid's literature today.
Read on.
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