For children up to six years old, storytelling can be a very useful and healthy tool. Telling or reading them a story will light up their imagination, helping them with the development of language, literacy and the general development of their brains. At this age, children are like sponges, taking in everything around them easily and learning, seemingly, without an end. This is why it is extremely important to make sure they are engaging in healthy and productive activities.
Sharing stories with your young child will help them develop a love for reading and it will encourage them to be creative. It will also be a great way for them to approach language, even before they speak or read it. By associating images and sounds with words, a child who often hears their parents tell stories will have an easier time developing these abilities.
Another important aspect is that the child will learn to make a difference between fiction and reality, and they will be able to bring out questions they might have that may otherwise stay hidden. Through storytelling, children also approach emotions, learning about new situations, the emotions commonly associated with them and how to work with them.
The best part about storytelling is that it is also beneficial for the parents. Storytelling is a great way to bond with your child and to get to know each other. This, in turn, can help the child work on their social skills.
If you read to your child in a different language than the one they are growing up around, it will also help them develop their brain and pick up the language much more easily as time goes by. It will also give them an in on different cultures and, if it happens to be your own maternal language, you will be able to share this with your child.
source: http://m.raisingchildren.net.au/articles/reading.html
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