2 Daily Habits That Build Lifelong Readers

As an educator with over 20 years of elementary literacy teaching experience and the mother of three successful adult sons, I’ve long believed that the earliest years—ages 0–4—offer the most powerful window to shape children’s lifelong reading journey. Here are the two most important things you can do with your little ones every day to give them a wonderful start on their literacy journey.

First: Ensure they know their ABCs. Research shows that early alphabet knowledge (letter names and sounds) is one of the strongest predictors of future reading success. For example, the report by the National Early Literacy Panel (NELP) observed that alphabet knowledge was “the #1 predictor of future reading success.”  Giving toddlers and preschoolers playful, consistent exposure to letters and letter sounds helps them understand that printed symbols map to sounds, a foundational step toward decoding words. 

Second: Make it a daily habit to read aloud to your child. Engaging in storytelling with your child boosts their vocabulary and narrative abilities. It also nurtures the parent-child connection, helping children link reading with comfort, relaxation, enjoyment, and parental affection. A meta-analysis on shared book reading revealed that parents who regularly read with their children enjoyed significantly more child and parent conversations, along with high-quality language interactions. The American Academy of Pediatrics also highlights that shared reading "contributes to the foundation for healthy social-emotional, cognitive, language, and literacy development." 

By combining these two practices—alphabet familiarity and daily story-time—you give your child a strong foundation in reading readiness and lifelong literacy. From my own journey of raising three sons and guiding hundreds of students, I know that consistency, warmth, and a love of stories make all the difference.