How to Make My Kids Enjoy Reading?

30 September, 2018
Q I just wanted to ask about what you look for when buying books for Muslim children. For me, a lot of books bore me when I read them to my kids. I think books should teach Islamic knowledge, but at the same time should be interesting as well! JazakAllah kahyran.

Answer

As-Salamu ‘Alaykum, 

I’m not so sure the books themselves matter, actually, because kids like to use their own imagination, and they feed off the person reading. You should try and MAKE the book exciting by adding your own information, funny voices, sound effects, questions, etc.

My daughter has some very simple children’s books that on the surface are pretty plain, so my wife and I like to improvise to make them more interesting. It’s more about a means to interact and educate children, I think, rather than just reading the book straight away.

If you’re bored reading the book, then your child is going to be bored listening to it. So, make it fun and educational for them!


 

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Read more:

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About Dr. Abd. Lateef Krauss Abdullah
Dr. Abd. Lateef Krauss Abdullah is a Research Fellow at the Institute for Social Science Study’s Community Education and Youth Studies Laboratory, Universiti Putra Malaysia. He received his B.A. from the University of Delaware (U.S.), his M.S. from Columbia University (U.S.) and his PhD from the Institute for Community & Peace Studies (PEKKA), Universiti Putra Malaysia in 2005 in the field of Youth Studies. Abd. Lateef is an American who has been living in Malaysia since 2001. He is married and has 2 children.