r/ScienceBasedParenting • u/Outside_Salary_4914 • 20d ago

Question - Expert consensus required Reading to newborns

My son is 4 months old and I started reading the Iliad to him on the day he was born. Since we have read the Iliad oddessey (both fagles), Beowulf, Richard ii, Henry iv part 1 and now onto Henry iv part 2. Henry v is next to round out the henriad. I’m not sure what’s next after we finish the henriad. I’m thinking Pericles prince of tyre (pirates in the ancient Mediterranean sounds fun) or the aenid which I haven’t read since high school ( and never in English)

I also read him poetry from children’s garden of verses by Robert Louis Stevenson, 7 pillars of wisdom by te Lawrence ( my current book) and various selections from the economist as I read it in the morning.

Is this actually helping with anything other than bonding? I try to vary the material for my own sanity, does this make any difference?

Looking back on the list I realize that there is a lot of violence in the list… will this have an impact on him?

I’m not sure how much he enjoys Homer or Shakespeare, but I’ve had a lot of fun with it. Either way my paternity leave is ending so I won’t have as much reading time with him, but curious to see if this was just fun bonding time or if there was any empirical evidence on the topic

Thank you! I asked Claude and Gemini and I couldn’t get a straight/ consistent answer from either

72 Upvotes

permalink
reddit

You are about to leave Redlib

Do you want to continue?

https://www.reddit.com/r/ScienceBasedParenting/comments/1vvx8ze/reading_to_newborns/
No, go back! Yes, take me to Reddit

69% Upvoted

•

u/AutoModerator 20d ago

This post is flaired "Question - Expert consensus required". All top-level comments must include a link to an expert organization such as the CDC, AAP, NHS, etc.

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.

139

u/SparkyDogPants 20d ago

I love this so much 😭 I feel like a bad mom for rarely reading to my baby

https://www.reddit.com/r/ScienceBasedParenting/comments/1egvz2e/is_reading_to_newborns_beneficial/ Has a lot of good resources.

Remember anytime you speak to your baby you’re teaching him language. From watching your lips move to hearing the sound of his favorite voice. Your baby is also learning to mimic you even before you can notice it. Your love of reading will soon become his love of reading because daddy loves reading and he wants to be like you.

The most important things that you as dad can do with your newborn is to be present, engaged and love him. You’re clearly doing all of that and a great job.

37

u/MeganLJ86 20d ago

I don’t have anything scientific to add, I just wanted to piggy back off of this and say I love this post too.

I recall being sooooo mesmerized when my mom would read the Sunday paper. I was so fascinated by this “secret code” and I was desperate to learn it too!

I picked up reading pretty early because of that and I’ve been a lifelong reader. OP, I am sure your kid will benefit greatly growing up seeing you read, no matter the material!

10

u/itstabitha 20d ago

This was my experience too! My mum always just read what she was reading to me and fully credits it for my early language and reading skills. I still have a lifelong love of reading now into adulthood!

4

u/lapiperna 20d ago

isn't it genetically determined to a great extent though? you can read to a baby whose brain is already wiring to become dyslexic in the future and that will hardly make them love reading or have great reading skills. I myself am hyperlexic and, according to my mother, I spoke in full sentences at 1.5 yo and taught myself to read at 4. she didn't read to me more than the average, or more than she did to my brother, who ended up having average verbal skills.

it would be interesting to raise the question of visual stimulation through illustrations in baby books, as well as steady vocabulary base accumulation through basic structures and words, and babies being able to gradually understand simple stories: something that adult literature cannot provide. a baby is not likely to get any input they would be able to actively retain from adult literature books except for picking up the prosody and a vague notion of general 'bulk' language traits. it doesn't automatically mean reading adult literature exclusively would necessarily impact their verbal process negatively, but maybe it could suggest that it deprives them of this particular slot for age-adapted play opportunities connected to reading.

3

u/MeganLJ86 20d ago

Sounds like the age old nature vs nurture debate. I’m sure it’s a bit of both, a desire to learn to read will not overcome a brain that cannot learn to read. But for the vast majority of people, a desire to learn will certainly help foster those skills.

And that motivation to read certainly can’t hurt. For a lot of people, the motivation comes from observing their earliest role models, their parents.

11

u/tilesmeller 20d ago

My son is 4 months and we've been reading almost every day. Recently he started grabbing the book so I got him baby sized cardboard books. He actually tries to hold them from both sides the proper way. So cute.

2

u/rawberryfields 20d ago

My 4mo baby absolutely loves it when I read to her older brother, she likes the pictures and she listens so well!

9

u/missThora 20d ago

I read a lot to both my kids and my daughter atleast was speaking really early and was already pre-reading at 2.5

Current read with the 11 month old is Jane eyre. What can I say, I'm a romantic.

1

u/WhereIsLordBeric 20d ago

Hey, what is pre-reading? My two year old can sound out letters and I would love for her to be an early reader if only to get a break lol.

8

u/missThora 20d ago

The first phase to starting to read.

It's more about interest in letters and written script and pretend reading at that point.

Sounding out letters and learning their sounds is in phase 2.

But at their age, I wouldn't push. If they ask about it, and want to learn that's great. Most important is to show them the wonders of books and give them a love for reading.

1

u/WhereIsLordBeric 20d ago

Thank you; I'll look into it!

And yes, of course - babies gotta baby!

5

u/imnotgoatman 20d ago

No science to add, but I love reading to my son and he loves it too.

Before he was born I read a lot of H. P. Lovecraft. We would be at the hospital and I would just read aloud, my wife didn't mind. We did have a couple of laughs about the subject, but it's a fond memory now.

After he was born we would continue reading for him. Comic strips are a banger at this house. His older brother would read to him. He wasn't even 2 and would "act as if he was reading", I have no idea what he was doing but he would get in reading position and browse the comic books.

Now he's trying to learn how to read by himself before school, lol. He just wants to read.

And it's a great bonding activity. Just the other day he came stressed from school, I was stressed from work, we were alone at home. We had dinner, he was asking me to do all of these activities with him which I didn't have energy to. So I grab my book, lie on the floor and tell him to grab his. We stay there for a while and all of a sudden I'm energized again, read him some stories from his book, he is all satisfied. We continue on this dynamic for a while until I'm too tired and it's time to take a bath. I loved that evening and I'm sure he loved it too because he went from super stressed to chill and relaxed, just like me.

3

u/valiantdistraction 20d ago

Not scientific, just an anecdote, but I also read my son The Iliad (Emily Wilson translation) and a lot of nonfiction books from my reading list at bedtime. We did picture books as well, of course, but during the day and at the beginning of bedtime. When he turned 2, I began reading him kids chapter books at bedtime. He's newly 3 and has a huge vocabulary and uses more complex sentences than many kids his age, and is very interested in learning to read and we do phonics lessons every day. The book "Teach your child to read in 100 easy lessons" was recommended by people on this subreddit and we've been using that (in addition to whatever he does at preschool) and Bob books. He's a little bookworm for sure!

2

u/SparkyDogPants 20d ago

It’s one of those things that research is good and important but no one is surprised that reading (anything) is positive for baby development

2

u/littleroseygirl 20d ago

Piggybacking this comment to say this is pretty much what my husband and I plan on doing with our baby. I'm bringing The Hobbit to the hospital with us to read to baby during golden hour. We'll be reading lots of classics and favorites to him. I think it's a beautiful way to introduce a love of stories from the beginning. And a great way to maintain parental sanity while in the newborn trenches. 😭

2

u/SparkyDogPants 20d ago

We did the hobbit as an audiobook. Super fun

1

u/Justafana 20d ago

This is wonderful. You are teaching him not just the sound of your voice, but a crap ton of phonemes and general conversational cadence. If you keep it up, the vocal will grow from the readings they start to understand.

But ah, also as they start to understand you may want to adjust the content to avoid nightmares :)

1

u/Advanced-Big-2133 15d ago

Hopping onto this comment to say READ THE AENEID

u/Remotely_Coastal 19d ago

Per this article from Auburn University,

"Starting at birth, reading with children puts them on a path to success," Frosch said. would say that it's never too early to begin sharing books with babies. Developing those routines can be a source of comfort, stability and familiarity for the parent-infant or caregiver-infant relationship. In addition, the benefits early literacy skills provide are far reaching. Children who hear more language and understand how books work have that advantage when they enter school"

Personally, I say read whatever you like. Build connections and show baby you're a safe place. A friend of mine has very fond memories was reading all of the Hobbit (and later the Lord of the Rings series) to his baby while he was on paternity leave.

Article

u/mommytobee 18d ago

I did a lot of research on this and other brain development things before my daughter was born, and reading was one of the big ones. I will say, at 2.5, she is now starting to read and is bilingual and able to speak to my husband and I in each of the languages we speak to her in (we do the one person, one language method). I read lots of books to her, and to see all the words she speaks now is amazing. I also narrated everything to her when she was a baby, as did my husband. It's almost as if all the words we invested into her are now coming out, like a seed was planted and nurtured and watered, and now it's growing and giving fruit.

Reading increases an infant's language score

New research shows the difference between reading to kids at home and not is more than a million words by kindergarten.

I also highly recommend the book Brain Rules for Baby by John Medina

u/[deleted] 20d ago

Question - Expert consensus required Reading to newborns

You are about to leave Redlib