From the moment Lucy could lift her little head, I was reading to her.
Not perfectly. Not for long stretches.
But consistently.
And while reading aloud is powerful on its own, there was one simple habit I added—almost without thinking—that made all the difference:
I pointed to the words as I read.
At the time, I knew she didn’t understand the letters.
She didn’t know how to read.
But what she was learning…
was how reading works.
Before They Read, They’re Watching
Long before a child ever reads independently, they are studying us.
They’re noticing:
- How we hold a book
- That words move from left to right
- That sentences carry meaning
- That stories come alive through words
That small act—running my finger under each word—was quietly building a foundation.
It was showing her that those little black marks on a page…
meant something.
A Lesson from To Kill a Mockingbird
There’s a line in To Kill a Mockingbird that has always stayed with me.
Scout reflects that she doesn’t remember when the words on a page became something she could actually read—only that somewhere along the way, her father’s finger tracing the newspaper turned into understanding.
That idea stopped me in my tracks.
Because that’s exactly how it happens.
Not all at once.
Not through pressure.
But through exposure, modeling, and time.
You Can’t Expect What You Don’t Model
If we want our children to love reading…
we have to let them see us loving it.
Handing a child a book and hoping they enjoy it, without ever modeling that joy ourselves, rarely works.
But when reading is something we share—
something that feels warm, connecting, and alive—
it becomes something they want.
The Moment I Knew It Was Working
I’ll never forget this.
Lucy was four years old, and we were reading one of the Magic Tree House books together.
I read a line out loud and said,
“Jack said—”
And she quickly stopped me and said:
“Mom… it says ‘said Jack.’”
I just looked at her.
Because in that moment, I realized—
she wasn’t just listening to the story.
She was tracking the words.
She was paying attention to structure, to placement, to detail.
All those little moments of pointing and reading together…
had quietly built something strong.
Simple. Powerful. Effective.
This isn’t a complicated strategy.
It doesn’t require expensive tools or formal lessons.
It’s simply this:
Sit close.
Read often.
Point to the words.
Enjoy the story together.
That’s it.
And yet, it lays a foundation that can shape a child’s entire relationship with reading.
More Than Learning—It’s Connection
Because at the end of the day, this isn’t just about raising readers.
It’s about:
- Shared moments on the couch
- Little voices asking for “one more chapter”
- Tiny hands turning pages
- And hearts connecting through stories
And those moments?
They’re just as important as the reading itself. 💛
✨Light in Action
Make reading something your child experiences with you—not just something they’re told to do.
Try this today: https://a.co/d/0fjwjsLa
- Read aloud—even if your child is very young
- Use your finger to follow the words as you read
- Let your child sit close enough to see the page
- Read with expression and joy (make it fun!)
- Most importantly—be consistent, not perfect
💛 You’re not just teaching your child to read… you’re showing them why it’s worth loving.
