OTT: 242: Daily Rituals That Transform Children into Lifelong Readers

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What if raising a reader didn't require battles, bribes, or boredom? What if the secret wasn't about forcing more reading minutes, but about transforming how your child feels about books?

This eye-opening episode reveals three deceptively simple daily habits that turn reluctant readers into book lovers. As both an experienced teacher and parent, I share research-backed strategies that make books a natural, joyful part of children's lives rather than another task to check off their to-do list. The approach focuses on creating environments and rituals that foster a love of reading, helping children develop lasting reading identities that extend beyond school assignments.

We examine how traditional approaches often backfire, rendering reading a chore rather than a pleasure. I share personal stories from my classroom and home that demonstrate the power of no-pressure reading rituals, modeling genuine reading enjoyment, and making books interactive experiences. Parents frequently tell me they are primarily concerned with test scores and academic performance. Still, I challenge this perspective by showing how children who love reading naturally excel without the relationship-damaging battles that can arise from forcing them to read.

You'll learn specific, actionable strategies you can implement today, including creating cozy reading moments without rigid rules, making books visible and accessible throughout your home, and transforming reading into a social and interactive experience rather than a solitary task. I also share my "Five-Minute Reading Fix" for busy parents who need quick solutions that actually work.

Ready to raise a child who reaches for books by choice? This episode provides the blueprint for growing readers who not only know how to read but genuinely want to do so. Subscribe now and join our community of parents creating confident, joyful readers one page at a time!

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to One Tired Teacher, episode 242.
Simple daily habits to turnyour child into a lifelong
reader.
So today we are taking a lookat some habits that will
actually help your child readfor life, and that is the goal.
That's what we want.
Reading isn't just about how weget through school or how we do

(00:23):
on a test.
There's so much more to it, somuch more to reading and the
love of reading and falling inlove with books, and that's what
we're going to talk about today.
So I hope you stick around.

Speaker 2 (00:40):
Welcome to One Tired Teacher and even though she may
need a nap, this teacher isready to wake up and speak her
truth about the trials andtreasures of teaching here.
She is wide awake.
Wait, she's not asleep rightnow, is she?
She is awake right.
Okay, From Trina Debery,Teaching and Learning your host,
Trina Debery.

Speaker 1 (01:02):
Hi, what if reading wasn't about forcing kids to
read books?
What if it was about makingbooks a natural, joyful part of
their everyday, daily lives?
In today's video, I'm going toshare three simple but powerful
habits that will help your childsee themselves as a reader and

(01:23):
develop a love of books.
Hope you stick around.
Hi, I'm Trina Debery, and thisis Readers in the Making, and
this is what you're going tolearn today.
You're going to learn the dailyhabits that create lifelong
readers.

(01:43):
You're going to learnresearch-backed strategies to
help kids love books withoutpressure.
And then I'm going to share asimple five-minute reading fix
for busy parents who need quicksolutions.
All right, let's get started.
So why daily reading habitsmatter?
Let's talk about the researchbehind lifelong readers.

(02:04):
Habits matter.
Let's talk about the researchbehind lifelong readers.
Studies show that reading andthat kids who see reading as a
normal, everyday, enjoyableactivity, not as part of a
school requirement, but assomething that they enjoy and
love, they are far more likelyto be a lifelong reader.
Now let's talk about why thismatters really quick, because I

(02:26):
often hear parents and evenfamily members who are like,
well, my kid doesn't really lovereading.
They, they, you know, we don'thave.
We have some books, but theydon't really love it a lot.
That's, but that's the problem.
And then, and then they saythings like they will go to
college.
They have no choice but go tocollege.
Like all my all the kids willgo to college.

(02:47):
And I'm like, if you reallycare about that which, but if
you really care about that, youwant to really think that
through, because if that's whatyou want for them, if that's the
path they have to take which Ipersonally don't think that kids
have to take that path butlet's say you really want that
path, you're going to have,they're going to have a lot of
reading.

(03:07):
They're going to have a lot ofreading Because you're reading a
ton when you're on the collegepath and if kids hate it,
they're not going to do it asmuch as they should, they're not
going to want to do it, they'renot going to be happy about
doing it, and that's a longbattle with your child.

(03:28):
When they don't love to read,homework is not fun, reading is
not fun, schoolwork is not.
None of that is fun when theyhate it.
So let's get them to love itinstead, all right.
So the key is about isn't abouthow much they read.
It's about how they feel aboutreading.
It does matter how much theyread through their lifetime.
But again, if they don't likeit, they're not going to do it

(03:50):
as much.
If they love it, they're goingto do it a lot more.
All right, when books are partof their everyday routine, kids
start to identify as readers,which builds confidence and
motivation.
So think about it.
Which builds confidence andmotivation.
So think about it.
If a child grows up in a homewhere reading is celebrated,
modeled and easily accessible,they're naturally going to

(04:12):
develop a love for books.
I often hear parents tell methat they aren't really worried
about if their child likesreading, that they are more
concerned how they're doing inschool and how they test and
them going to college, which islike I shared a little earlier.
But let me challenge this with.
When we love something, when wetruly love something, we do it

(04:35):
more often.
We do it without complaining,we do it without battles or
bribes.
We do it because we love it.
If your child doesn't love it,you have a very long road ahead
of you and I can promise youit's not going to be easy and it
will take a major toll on yourrelationship with your child.

(04:56):
There came a time in counselingwith my son that I realized I
had to decide Did I care moreabout his school success or did
I care about having arelationship with him?
And I chose Jackson, and itmade all the difference.
So, before you end this video,I want you to consider how much

(05:16):
easier it would be if your childactually loves to read.
So let's dive in.
Did you hear something thatsomeone else needs to hear?
Definitely share this with afriend, because some people
definitely need to hear this.
If you heard something you like, give me a like in the comments
.
I need to know that I'm on theright track.
All right, let's dive in.
We're going to talk about threedaily habits that make the

(05:37):
biggest impact on your child'sreading.
Habit number one make reading ano pressure, no rules ritual.
So, whoops, so many mistakesthat parents make as we turn
reading into a chore.
You have to read for 20 minutesbefore their screen time,
over-structuring things like.

(05:58):
Kids feel like they're on theclock rather than engaging in a
story when we make it a choreand then we've got like we got
to go.
We got it, we're moving on,we're going to you know, soccer,
and then we've got to go tobasketball and you got to make
sure you do your reading.
Okay, let's go.
How do we fix it?
We choose a daily readingritual without rules.
So, instead of making it a task, make it reading a cozy,

(06:22):
connected, pressure-free part oftheir day.
So here's an example let'scuddle up and read before bed,
instead of saying you have toread for 20 minutes.
This gives you a connectionthat you desire with your child,
and this time is even thoughthis is thought of as a happy
and joyful time and of love,rather than an argument that you

(06:45):
have every single night.
Let them read however they want.
They want to listen to an audiobook?
Great.
You want to read the same book10 times?
Perfect.
Want to flip through picturesinstead of reading the words?
That's OK too.
Why does this work?
Because when reading isassociated with warmth, comfort,
love and choice, kids lookforward to it.

(07:08):
Kids don't they?
When they feel in control,which this increases motivation.
No pressure equals morewillingness to engage with books
.
Try this tonight.
Create a relaxed reading moment.
Light a candle, grab a blanket,let your child pick the book

(07:28):
and enjoy it together.
Habit number two model readingand make books accessible.
The mistakes many parents makeis they're telling kids reading
is important, but they're nevermodeling it themselves.
Your child never sees youreading, or books are hidden
away.
You've got them behind closeddoors instead of being easily

(07:49):
available and inviting.
Like I was saying before, ifyou don't have a lot of books in
the house and there's not a lotto choose from, it gets kind of
like well, this isn't so fun.
It's like if we had didn't havestreaming or cable and we only
had three or four channels tochoose from.
It's not as fun.
So think about that when you'rethinking about books.

(08:11):
And there's lots of places toget books for really cheap as
well, like Goodwill or, you know, garage sales or yard sales or
things like that.
So doing a swap with yourneighbors that's a really cheap
and easy way to do it too.
How do we fix this?
We let kids catch us reading.
When they see that you'reenjoying a book, they're more

(08:32):
likely to read and find itvaluable and fun.
So I love this story, want toread next to me.
I know when I would read in myclassroom with my second graders
when I was teaching, everythingstopped.
They wanted to read too.
They were so excited when Isnuggled up on the couch and was
reading Twilight not to them,to myself.

(08:55):
I wasn't reading to them.
They would be so excited that Iwas reading that they would get
their books and want to snugglenext to me.
Or they would be so excitedthat I was reading that they
would get their books and wannasnuggle next to me, or they
would wanna be on the flooraround me.
And when the timer went off forour time to be up, they were
like no, and I was like no,let's read for five more minutes
.
And they're like yay, andthat's what we would do.

(09:15):
We want kids to see how much welove it, how much we enjoy it.
And I was literally.
I wasn't faking it, I wasn'tacting.
I really wanted to keep reading.
So that's a really importantthing.
Make books visible at aneveryday part of your life.
Put books everywhere in the car, on the coffee table, near

(09:36):
their bed, next to the toilet.
Yes, it's okay, you can havetoilet books, it's all right.
It really does make adifference.
Rotate books weekly so there'salways something fresh to
explore.
Why does it work?
When books are in reach, kidsare more likely to pick them up.
When they see you reading,they're naturally going to

(09:58):
follow the lead.
If you've heard something youlike, definitely give me a
thumbs up.
I'm a words of affirmation kindof girl.
I need to know that I'mresonating with you, so give me
a thumbs up.
Let a words of affirmation kindof girl.
I need to know that I'm, thatI'm resonating with you, so give
me a thumbs up.
Let me know in the comments.
All right, my own children andmy students.
They loved when I read to themand when I grabbed a book and
sat down and read to them, oh,all bets were off.

(10:20):
So kids would actually beg formore rating time.
What a difference this makes.
All right, this also works tocreate an environment where
books are just part of life, notsomething forced.
Try this tonight Instead oftelling your child to read and
grab a book, actually read nextto them.
See if they join in.
All right, let's talk abouthabit number three Make books

(10:43):
interactive, social and fun.
The mistakes that I see isthinking reading equals just
sitting and turning pages,focusing on quiet, solo reading
instead of making booksinteractive.
How can we fix this?
We can turn books intoconversations and we can turn
them into playful moments.
First of all, ask open-endedquestions.

(11:05):
What would you do in thissituation?
To playful moments.
First of all, ask open-endedquestions.
What would you do in thissituation?
How do you think this characterwas feeling in this part?
If this were you, would youfeel like this too?
How would you feel?
What do you think is gonnahappen next?
How do you know that?
How do you know what you knowLike?

(11:26):
Things like that are soimportant.
Act out parts of the story.
Give each character a voice.
Let them retell the story intheir way through drawing or
acting, or even building it withLegos.
Make reading a socialexperience.
Join a library story time or abook club for kids.
Have a family book night.

(11:46):
Everyone reads their own book,then shares one thing that they
learned Read with relatives,grandparents, cousins, aunts and
uncles can all be a part of thereading journey.
Why does this work?
It boosts comprehension.
Kids engage more when readingis active, reinforce
storytelling skills andcreativity.

(12:07):
It turns reading into a sharedexperience instead of a solitary
task.
Try this tonight Read a booktogether, but let your child act
out the characters, sillyvoices and all All right.
The five-minute reading fix.
So I want to share this withyou.
It's a little freebie that youcan grab.
It makes easy reading easy andstress-free to build your

(12:31):
child's confidence.
You can grab this five-minutereading fix.
It's quick, actionablestrategies to help your child
enjoy reading withoutfrustration.
It's perfect for busy parentsand I also have one for teachers
who need real solutions fast.
You can download it in thedescription below.
All right reading isn't.
Let's do a final thought.
Reading isn't just about books,it's about connection.

(12:54):
It's about curiosity.
It's about creating habits thatmake books a natural part of
their daily life.
Try one of these habits todayand let me know how it worked.
Drop a comment below.
What's your child's favoritebook to read?
Want more quick and easyreading strategies?
Sign up for my newsletterReading Readers in the Making

(13:15):
and get access to exclusive tips, book recommendations and fun
reading challenges.
You can find that attrinadeveryteachingandlearncom.
Forward slash newsletter Allone word newsletter.
And don't forget to like thisvideo, to share this video and
to subscribe to this channel soyou don't miss a thing.

(13:35):
So together, you and I arecreating confident, joyful
readers.
Readers in the making, one pageat a time.
Bye for now.