6 Tips for Making Reading Aloud a Family Habit

Reading aloud as a family has been a Christmas tradition in my house for as long as I can remember. Every Christmas, we gather in the living room and work on quiet activities while mom reads aloud devotionals, fiction stories, and our annual advent readings. Some of the stories are so familiar to us that we can quote whole parts by memory. It’s a tradition that we love.

But that’s not the only time we read aloud. Every Sunday on our 35 minute drive to church, mom reads Scripture. When I was younger, mom read the Chronicles of Narnia aloud during school. Reading aloud was a common occurrence in our home.

So maybe you are looking to get into a good reading routine, or maybe you have one, but want to approach it in a new way. Either way, here are 6 tips for making reading aloud as a family a habit:

1. Choose the Best Time to Read

If you want to make your family reading time happen at 5 am every morning… you’re probably going to face trouble. Most likely, half of the family will fall asleep on you and the other half will be trying to begin their day. Choose an accessible time of day. Are your kids homeschooled? Then work reading into school time. My mom usually had reading in the early afternoon. Does dad want to join in on the fun? Then choose the evening when he’s most likely off from work!

For my family, reading time is in the evening around 7:30 or 8:00. That gives at least a solid half an hour before the littlest two go to bed at 8:30. School is done (homework too), the dishes are finished, and almost everyone is ready for bed. It’s a calm time of the day when not much else is going on.

Choosing an accessible time of the day for reading aloud as a family will be important if you want it to be consistent. And that brings us to our second point…

2. Read Consistently

Now, I understand that reading aloud isn’t the only activity in your life. With school, work, household chores, etc, reading aloud as a family could easily drop to the bottom. But if you want to make reading aloud a habit, then you need to be consistent.

We don’t read aloud every night as a family. For us, it has become a Christmas tradition. We have specific stories that are read aloud, usually structured around the days of Advent. Maybe you want to make reading aloud a year-long habit, or maybe you’re like us and want to transform this into a Christmas tradition. Either way, you’ll want to make sure that it’s a time that works best for the whole family, and that you can maintain easily!

3. Practice Reading Aloud

There is nothing more boring than a boring narrator. You might fit reading aloud perfectly into your schedule, create a consistent, daily routine, but no one is going to love this if you don’t have a good narrator.

In my family, that’s my mom. She does the voices for the characters, acts out some of the motions, and even lets us chime in with questions and additional remarks. She pauses at the right parts, inflects the dramatic phrases, and ends the chapters ominously when applicable.

So how do you achieve “reading aloud” perfection? (You’re going to hate this answer.) It’s practice. Practice. Practice. The way to get good at something is repetition. Now, there are some other tips to becoming a good narrator, and that’s that you have to be invested in the story yourself.

When I was younger, my mom made me read a bunch of old historical documents out loud so she could help me through the tough words and truly understand them. One day, the sentences seemed longer than normal, the topics seemed duller than usual, and the words were fusing together into chaotic mush. I wasn’t even pausing at proper punctuation by this time and mom finally told me that we would continue it later. I was not reading aloud well.

Becoming a good out-loud reader is something most of us are still working at. But one of the best tricks in the book is that you are actually invested in the story. If you are excited about the story, your voice and inflections will show that. Which leads us to the next tip…

4. Read Books You Love

Don’t spend time on the books you don’t like. If you’re not invested, your kids probably aren’t invested, and everyone is generally bored. So then move on to the next fiction novel. If you’re in the middle of a sci-fi novel, when you realize that you really hate that genre… then switch genres! Jump to fantasy, or historical fiction, or contemporary! Jump words, centuries, kingdoms, and arrive at the book that you love, your listeners love, and that isn’t boring.

5. Don’t Overdo It

In my family, we love our reading aloud times. Sometimes, mom will go well past an hour. But not every family is like that! You might have a crazy busy day, early morning tomorrow, or just a crazy audience right then. In that case, shorten your reading time. But still do it. Still be consistent.

I generally recommend 30 minutes – 45 minutes of reading time if you have littles in the home, and 45 minutes – 1 hour if you have an older audience. Too short, and there’s not much time to get settled in, get cozy, and enjoy the story. Too long, and the littles will start getting rowdy and everyone’s attention will start lagging. You don’t want to burn your family (or yourself) out on your first night of reading aloud. As you practice more, you, as the reader, will be able to read for longer stretches of time, and your audience’s attention span should be ready for more.

6. Choose Books All Ages Will Love

If you sit down to read picture books every night, your teenagers might grow a little tired of it. But if you sit down to read Dickens or Henty… then the story might go over your littles’ heads. Choose books that you love, that older kids will love, and that littles will love. If you don’t know where to start, then I’ve included a bonus feature in this article to help you out on just that point…

Bonus: 3 Book Series the Whole Family Will Love

If you’re struggling to find good books/series that the whole family will love, then here are 3 ideas! All of these, my family has read aloud. Whether it was just my mom to me during school years ago, or me reading to my younger sister, these are some of our favorites!

Series #1: The Chronicles of Narnia

Narnia, Aslan, the Pevensie children – all of these are found in this incredible series! My mom first read these aloud to my siblings and I during school time when I was around 10 years old. I distinctly remember her doing British accents for the Pevensie children, leading me to believe that anytime you read a series aloud… the characters had to have British accents.

This storyline is fairly simple and easy to follow. With its limited cast, the characters can be understood by littles, though still enjoyed by those older. Dozens of resources for study questions, trivia questions, or just fun activities exist online to help you bring this book to life for all ages!

Series #2: The Wingfeather Saga

I read aloud part of this series with my younger sister. The book is full of hilarious moments, even while laced with themes and plot points that can be enjoyed for the older members of your audience.

The story is also fantasy, mixing a few elements of allegory in. The creative drawings, additional information available in the footnotes, and just overall fun facts give this story a classic charm and lively nature.

Series #3: The Kingdom Series

While definitely a newer story, the themes of this story compare closely to The Chronicles of Narnia. The sequel series, The Knights of Arrethtrae, continues the story of the fantasy world of Arrethtrae, where the King and His Son fight to bring freedom to the people.

My mom read both of these series aloud, along with the discussion questions available for every chapter at the back of each book. The questions and topics are thought-provoking, gospel-centered, and God-glorifying. Chuck Black has quickly become one of my favorite authors!

In Conclusion

Reading aloud as a family might seem like a struggle at first, but mastering this activity will foster family unity, create fond memories for everyone involved, and introduce your kids to timeless tales of heroism and courage. If you’re looking for some great read-alouds, check out the series that I mentioned above. And as always, I will see you around The Library!