Goodnight & Bedtime Stories for Toddlers

The other night I was thinking about how my boyfriend’s niece loves bedtime stories (especially with voices) and how I used to love bedtime and how my mom would read to me. From Dr. Seuss to Russell Hoban’ s Bread and Jam with Frances the badger to Shel Silverstein poems from Where the Sidewalk Ends. Everyone knows there are benefits to reading to your child at bedtime, but what are those benefits exactly?

A parent who reads to his or her children provides

• A foundation of intellectual development
• A calming routine for healthy sleeping habits
• Encouragement of creative and imaginative thinking
• Strengthening the bond between a mother or father and child 

Foundation of Intellectual Development
According to Kids Health Organization, “Studies show that kids with active exposure to language have social and educational advantages over their peers — and reading is one of the best exposures to language.”

Storytelling that engages children in an imaginative way or helps them to identify everyday objects will help inspire their curiosity which will in turn enhance their listening skills and language development. Try to speak to your child about the story and provide an open dialogue.  For example, ask questions about the story or replace a character’s name with their name and point and ask about pictures in the book to make them relatable.

Calming Routine for Healthy ZZZZs
Oye veh – trying to calm down a hyper toddler before bedtime can always be a challenge, but reading in a relaxed child’s bedroom can be a good recipe to help wind down his or her energy. Continuously having story time before bedtime each night becomes a healthy routine for the child and parent alike.

Along with special mommy and daddy time to bond, the routine will encourage healthy sleep patterns and will help the child to understand that reading means quality time with his or her parents.

Creative and Imaginative Thinking
A love for books often begins in childhood. When children are encouraged to read, it stimulates their imagination and provides other forms of entertainment that are healthier and more interactive than the tube (aka the television). A parents’ role in literary development should begin early, because aiding their child in the discovery of fun and educational books pave the path for a future full of curiosity and knowledge.

To conclude – “leaders are readers” and developing your child’s reading habit begins at home – you are giving your child one of the best advantages for life for years to come.

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Le Top Tip: Make Food Fun!

This tip was passed on to me by one of our fabulous designers, Marice, and mom of two.

“Some kids get excited to eat foods that are fun. Try cutting up those veggies into small crazy shapes and let your kids dip them in ranch dip, peanut butter or hummus… (Yum!) I have a cutter that is wavy so it makes food look like crinkle-cut fries. There are a variety of vegetable cutters on the market that can turn seemingly boring vegetables into a garden of flowers, a pile of maple leaves and almost anything else you can dream up. I’ve used regular cookie cutters to make sandwiches into pumpkins, hearts or even cartoon characters like Snoopy. (If you don’t like waste, you can use the cast off edges of the bread to make stuffing to go with your roast chicken or treat your family to a classic bread pudding!)  Kids also love tortillas rolled up to make wraps instead of regular sandwich bread. Be creative.

I have always preferred my kids get used to eating veggies “as they are” rather than hiding them (and yes, they still refuse to eat certain ones) – but I am always happy to give them a snack of carrot muffins or zucchini bread just to get some extra nutrition in them.  There are recipes out there that use juices or other non-sugar sweeteners. I also try to find different ways to cook vegetables – listen to your child’s preferences – do they like it more crunchy or soft, with cheese sauce, etc.  As a kid, I didn’t like zucchini and later in life I discovered that I liked it barely cooked and not so squishy!

Speaking of zucchini, sometimes I slice it lengthwise and top it with pizza sauce and cheese and run it under the broiler for what I call, “pizza-cchini”  – or even a drizzle of Italian dressing topped with parmesan cheese and broiled is pretty tasty for the whole family.”

Thank you Marice for your FUNtastic tip!

Note from the editor: If you have any tips or suggestions that you think another parent or caregiver could benefit from please send it to me at editor@letop-usa.com.

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