The Read-Aloud Family: Making Meaningful and Lasting Connections with Your Kids

by Sarah Mackenzie

The families I know who read aloud most consistently (and therefore who get the most benefits) tell me that reading aloud doesn’t look perfect in their homes either; it rarely (if ever) looks like they originally imagined it would. Kids fight over couch cushions. Someone complains that the preschooler is making too much noise. The toddler runs off and starts shoving Hot Wheels down the toilet before you even notice he’s gone. A kid jumps up every couple of minutes to sharpen one of his colored pencils, or another one wanders away right at the most climactic scene in the book. There are endless interruptions and constant rounds of bickering. When read-aloud time doesn’t look like we originally hoped, we begin to doubt that it’s giving us any of those wonderful benefits we discussed in part 1. But here’s the thing: it still works. Even when it’s noisy, messy, and more chaotic than you’d like it to be, it works. Even when kids are grumbling, complaining, and don’t seem to be listening, it works. When we read aloud to our kids in spite of the fact that it looks much different from our initial vision, we’re stepping out in faith. If I can tell you one thing in this entire chapter, it is this: keep stepping out.