Parenting hacks: 5 easy ways to get kids reading without realising

Tip 1. Get them reading song lyrics

Most children enjoy singing, whether it’s pop ditties, raps, rhymes or school songs. Print off lyrics of their favourite songs to sing whenever they feel like (copyright permitting, of course!).

For little ones, sing rhymes with accompanying actions and fingerplay. Interactive singing like this is an important precursor to reading words. Some great suggestions on how to introduce fingerplay and rhymes with little ones can be found here. You can also find finger rhyme books on our site.

As an additional benefit, singing songs also boosts children’s brains, regardless of their age, by developing their memory, endurance and focus. See more here on the benefits of singing.

Bonus tip: organise a fun singing party with your children. If you have access, set up a karaoke machine or use an online karaoke app with kid-friendly playlists, eg KaraFun. It’s the perfect activity for birthday parties or just some spontaneous family time — your children will be reading all the lyrics while having so much fun performing! Note: as many online apps now have social media sharing facilities, karaoke works best as a parent-supervised activity, especially for children under 12.

Tip 2. Read for purpose with recipes!

Reading for a specific purpose, for example, reading recipes and packet labels, is just as valuable as reading for pleasure, and some children actually prefer it. Cooking with your children provides so many natural opportunities for reading.

Borrow or buy some child-friendly recipe books or print off online recipes (check they are suitable for your child’s reading age/stage) and allow your child to take the lead in reading the instructions for everyone to follow. Acting as Head Chef, they’ll love being in charge, especially knowing that at the end you’ll have worked together to make something yummy!

Bonus tip: for littler ones, simplify the task by asking them to help gather the ingredients. Reading the brand logos and food labels will be just as fun and rewarding. Make sure all the children get to do some actual cooking, too! Check out this lovely, inclusive picture book which cleverly merges storytelling with real recipes from around the world.

Tip 3. Play wordy games

You might think playing games is a bit old-fashioned, but with card game Taco, Goat, Cat, Cheese Pizza and multimedia board-game quiz Outsmarted being current firm family favourites, it’s clear games are making a comeback. And because most games are packed with words, kids will end up reading without even thinking about it.

Choose games with cards, boards and or onscreen prompts that use words to encourage everyone to take a turn in reading within a fun, competitive format. We are not talking Scrabble or Boggle, which focus on the specific skills of reading and spelling — reading should be secondary to the main purpose. Instead, for little ones aged 3+ try Shopping List or Minibeast Bingo; for 6 and above, think Guess Who, 5 Second Rule or Monopoly Junior; and for older children, opt for quiz-based games like Herd Mentality or Outsmarted.

Bonus tip: let your child be the 'game leader’ and read out the rules or questions to everyone else. It will give them a sense of pride and authority, and plenty of extra reading opportunities!

Tip 4. Watch TV (with subtitles)

There’s no getting away from it — most kids love watching videos, with YouTube fast becoming the most popular viewing platform, as suggested by this latest Ofcom survey.

Although screentime has its downsides, it’s definitely here to stay, so why not use screens as an opportunity to encourage children’s reading? When your children are watching their favourite movie or cartoon, try turning on subtitles for a reading boost that’s naturally integrated into their viewing experience. Subtitles aren’t just for people within the Deaf community; they can also benefit neurodivergent children, for example, helping with focus and comprehension. You can read more on that here. There are lots of movie and cartoon book tie-ins too, so watching their favourite shows could, in time, encourage children to read the original book series.

Bonus tip: for children who enjoy playing video games, subtitles are often an option. Many games include words and phrases in the form of onscreen instructions or dialogue spoken by game characters. Reading while playing their favourite games? What’s not to love!

Tip 5. Tap into kids’ passions

Every child has a hobby or interest they really love, whether it’s football, trains, music or animals, and those passions give you huge leverage when it comes to getting children into reading without even noticing.

If your child is obsessed with a particular sport, you could look up match fixtures/stats, read player profiles or follow club updates online or in matchday programmes. Budding gamers might enjoy reading walkthroughs or subtitles in story-based games. Animal lovers could explore pet care booklets, wildlife facts from National Geographic or fiction about pets. There are plenty of examples of pet-themed stories on our website.

The aim is to start where their interests already lie, to hook them into reading. Once children see that reading helps to learn more about things they care about, it stops feeling like work and starts feeling like a way to go deeper into the worlds they love!

Bonus tip: you don’t need to label this activity as ‘reading time’. Just enjoy your children’s curiosity and celebrate what they discover. Very soon, they will be bringing you the next fun fact or article to share.

And finally…

Alongside all these fun and easy ways to promote reading, ensure your child always has opportunities to access a range of suitably pitched, inclusive books whenever they choose.

You can check out our expertly reviewed inclusive books for babies right through to children aged 9 by clicking ‘Search books’ and ‘Search booklists’.

All titles are high-quality reads, richly diverse in format, topics and representation. 

Ready to get started? Explore the IBC website to find inspiring inclusive books that both you and your child will enjoy. Make this new year the beginning of a brand-new reading routine for your whole family.

Fabia Turner is Head of Content at IBC and the Founder of the Jericho Prize for Children’s Writing. She is also a former primary teacher and educational book editor with a love of children’s literature.