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reading rituals & VTech VReader Giveaway!

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Reading aloud as a family has been important to me.   In the past it has sometimes fallen by the wayside of crazy schedules, general fatigue and my own forgetfulness.   I decided to start the Little House on the Prairie series with the boys with the goal of getting through the first two books before school starts.   With the occasional help from grandma, we are making good progress and should finish Little House in the Big Woods this week.

I learned something from this recent reading quest:

If it is a book that I enjoy, I am much more likely to read it to the boys.

It seems obvious, but I used to look for books that I thought they would like.   Many of them didn’t interest me and it was hard to keep my reading momentum going.

For me it has been easier to get a family ritual of reading to STICK if it is fun.

And now for some more fun…

VTech is helping families make reading fun through the VReader and I am giving one away!

Yep. It is the new VTech Animated VReader (your choice blue or pink) and a surprise book/game cartridge.

To enter:

  1. Leave a comment below about how your family reads together or ideas you have to encourage a family reading ritual.
  2. Additional entries   (please leave a comment below for each):
  • Tweet this contest
  • Facebook this contest
  • Follow @VTechToys on Twitter
  • Subscribe to June Cleaver Nirvana

THIS CONTEST WILL CLOSE WEDNESDAY JULY 14 at MIDNIGHT (CST).

So hurry and enter!

I will notify the winner on Thursday via email to obtain their mailing address to forward on to VTech who is sponsoring this giveaway.

Thanks VTech!

About Holly

Kids Activities Blog is Holly's blogging home.

She is the co-author of 101 Kids Activities that are the Bestest, Funnest Ever! and The 101 Coolest Simple Science Experiments.

She is the mom of three boys ages 13, 15 & 17 who partially homeschools. She believes that you shouldn't have to buy stuff to have fun when there is a kitchen junk drawer full of possibilities.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Beth

    My boys love reading, so they’re always eager to read. We read throughout the day and before bed. I read to everyone while we are in the car. We read in the dr.’s office, dentist office, everywhere.

  5. melissa

    Reading.. havent we had this conversation like 1000 times. 🙂
    I think this is cool. wonder if my boys are too big.. but very cool

  6. Rachael

    I am an avid reader, and am so happy that my 4 year old likes to read books together. We read every day, he just brings me books he picks out from his collection. My favorite thing is when I find him “reading” a book – telling the story from the pictures. It’s so cute! But I REALLY can’t wait until he’s old enough for us to read big books at bedtime – my stepdad read us “The Phantom Tollboth” and “The Hobbit” and I can’t wait to read them to my kids.

  11. Lynley

    We found a series that the whole family enjoys reading together (Magic Tree House series). We read a chapter or two before bedtime. Because we all enjoy the storyline and the books are well-written, it is a win/win for the entire family.

    There are some books that I just cannot tolerate reading aloud (mainly because they are not written well) and those always mysteriously end up in the back shelf of the closet 🙂

  12. Therese

    We have reading time every day this summer. My oldest is enjoying reading to his youngest brother, so I let him…good times for them together!

  13. Kim Chance

    We read every day before a bedtime whether it’s naptime or nightly bedtime. But we also read during the day. Sometimes it’s fun to bring books with us on a picnic, or bring some to the top of the fort to read, or just huddle under a homemade tent in the living room with a big stack of books.

  20. Laurie

    My boys and I read books (almost) every night before bed. Each of them gets to pick a book, we all sit together and read. Then I tuck them into bed and tell them a story – they pick the subject and I make up a story about it. Sometimes one of them will ask if THEY can tell the story. I love listening to their creative little minds.

  24. Rena Lawrence

    We’ve been reading to Evan since he was an infant. Every night he gets a “night night” book before he goes to bed, and he’s always had at least 2 shelves full of books. He has his favorites memorized! In fact, he’s always the kiddo at preschool in the book corner “reading.” It’s an important part of our lives!

    Take care…
    Rena Lawrence

  27. Britta

    I love reading to my grandson, i’ve always been an avid reader and hoping to pass it on to him. He loves being read to and i love having him sit on my lap and we both enjoy the time we get to spend together. I’m hoping one day he’ll look back and remember those times.

  28. Brandi Long

    Our family LOVES to read, we have acquired so many books that we now have three library’s in our house. This would so help my 4 year old with his reading skills. He always wants to do it himself. Thanks for the chance.

  33. stacey@Havoc&Mayhem

    We read together every evening just about, or I try to get in a half hour of it during the day. Now that both boys can read fairly well, we take turns reading to everyone else

  35. Nichole Seiler

    We read 2-3 stories every night as a family. The girls pick the stories. My girls and I also go to the library once a week to get new stories to read. I love reading and I hope my girls will really love it someday too. Thank you for this giveaway.

    mommy.n.girls@gmail.com

  38. Amber

    Reading is a huge part of our family time. My older boys are reading more on their own, but still love to crawl up on the bed when I read to little man or read to them on their own. This would be PERFECT for Reed!!

  42. ShootingStarsMag

    I would suggest making it more fun. Have a craft or a snack that relates to the book. Or read a book that is a movie and promise to show them the film if they read the book first.

  44. Shannon

    My husband and I are both bookworms! And we hope someday our toddler will grow up to be excited over books too. Right now she is two- so we have board books easily available to her when she plays. She regularly grabs them and pretends to read! My husband also reads her 3 or 4 books before bed each night- and she is always excited to go to bed for just that reason. We swap out books as seasons change- but the last book always stays the same “Goodnight my Duckling” – it’s the signal that bedtime is next:)

  48. MamaTech

    My kids are grownups now but this was what I did to get them into reading / reading rituals:

    Reading them nursery rhymes / Dr Seuss / simple stories (one or two sentences per page and if there were more, condense if the pictures were fun) from the time they were born. At naptime, at bedtime, any time there was a quiet time, reading aloud.

    From the time the first one was born, there was a bookshelf in our main room that was just for her – and later all the kids’ – books. Even now, there are no less than THREE bookshelves in Lovey’s house with all the children’s books the kids collected over the years that they haven’t taken with them. There are even some on those shelves from MY childhood.

    My older two had several “turn-the-page” books with little 45 records or tapes with someone reading the stories – I even made tapes of myself reading their favorites. They both were reading on their own by the time they were 4.

    SO the VTech version of the “turn-the-page” books are what I want for my grandchildren. Having downloadable stories will be AWESOME especially if they are free. I figure my grandkids will get one for Christmas whether I win one or not.

    One other thing that we did back in the day before in-car DVD players (heck we didn’t even have a VCR in the HOUSE), I used to listen to tapes (oh yeah I’m old) of classical and instrumental music in the car and tell made up stories to go along with the music. The downside of that was I could never tell exactly the same story twice.

  49. ... and baby makes five!

    We are a constantly reading family around here! We read first thing in the morning while we rub sleepies out of our eyes before breakfast. We read after stumbling in the door from the monring full of running and playing. We read cuddled up togetherin the big boy bed before nap time. We read with daddy after dinner when he comes home and daddy reads to them — alone — before turning out the lights at the end of the day.

    ~kelly

  50. Alison@StretchMyCheck

    We read a lot in our home. My husband is a kindergarten teacher, so we have a lot of book to switch out with his classroom library. We read at least 2 books before bed and he keeps 2 in his crib to “read” to his stuffed monkey.

  51. KateB

    We read every night before bed and each day before nap. I LOOOOVVVEEE to read so this has always been an easy one for me. Now, brushing teeth? Not so much.

    Thanks, Holly! =0)

  59. Claude

    Oh, I really hope this is open to Canadians!

    We have been reading to our kids every single night since birth. I am not kidding you: even before their eyes could see clearly, they had stories read to them. Now, I still read every night and more stories during the day. They read by themselves a lot too, they really enjoy it!

  73. Andrea

    We are enrolled at the Summer Reading Program at our local library and it has really helped in encouraging to read more.

  77. Heather Smith

    We don’t have a “ritual” family reading night, but we read to our children before bed every night… it’s part of our “tuck in” process. Maybe making a reading night would be fun… a tent, the kids favorite foods, finger snacks? Sounds like fun!

  82. Jill Myrick

    When the weather is nice we spread a blanket outside, gather some snacks and drinks and have fun reading in the sun.
    When the weather refuses to cooperate we spread the blanket indoors in our familyroom.
    Everyone gets excited and gathers everything quickly. And as my children get older they participate in reading.
    Thank you so much for the giveaway.

    jweezie43[at]gmail[dot]com

  85. Marci

    Hubby reads to our children every night at bedtime. My 7yo daughter reads a chapter everyday and I help my 4yo daughter read everyday.

  88. Sheila Hickmon

    We encourage reading by having a book exchange once a month with family and friends! Thanks!

  90. Lori S

    We read everynight. No exceptions. It is our routine. the kids look forward to it.

    Thanks!

  91. joanne major

    we read a book everynight. one of the tree granchildren picks it out. it is a lot of fun. we throw pillows on the floor and lay around.
    jmajor4870(at)aol(dot)com

  93. Darcie K

    Every night my daughter and I take the last 30 minutes before bed to read. We get all comfy on the couch. Sometimes we read a book together out loud, and other times we each read silently. It is a very relaxing way to end the night!
    dmkayes@gmail.com

  97. Vanessa

    We take our two daughters to Storytime at the library each week. We also enroll them in a fun summer reading program and really work on reading to them each day!

  98. Owen's Mom

    We all pile into our bed and read as part of our nighttime routine. Books area also available around the house so we can read whenever the mood strikes!

  106. Lydia's Mom

    I read Highlights High Five magazine to my daughter. We go to the library and check out 10-12 books. I will sometimes read to her during the day and my husband reads to her before bedtime at night. I also download Tumble Books off the Arlington Public Library website and choose the books that I want to be read to her. These are books that are read by the computer and are animated. They are cool and my daughter loves watching them!

  108. Brett

    We read together all day long. Look and find books, lift the flap books, silly books, classics, science books

  111. Holly

    This was the winning comment! Congrats Jill. I have sent you an email to get your contact information.

    Thanks everyone for playing along!

    Thanks VTech.

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