Lastest Articles
NEW sibling special Zooboo storybook: Save The Beach!
We have an exciting announcement! A brand new Zooboo storybook has just launched called – Save The Beach. This storybook can be customized 4 ways like our sibling special books and is great of 7-8 year olds (or younger/older depending on your kids interests & reading levels). This book is a heartwarming tale about two siblings who set out to clean the local beach. It is a perfect example of the saying, ‘Every little tale has an impact’. When a small family visits a coastal town of India they are shocked to see the state of the beach. Will they be able to encourage the citizens to clean the beach? What ideas will they put into restoring their beach? Read this book here to find out! It is available in 5.5” as well as 8” sizes in hardcover & softcover format. You can customize it to suit all sibling relationships like Elder brother-younger sister, Elder sister-younger brother, Elder sister- younger sister, Elder brother – younger brother This book will show the kids names and character (boy/girl) on the cover & throughout the story. If you want to encourage your kids to think about the environment and become conscious citizens then 'Save the beach' is for YOU. Your kids will learn many complex new words, build their imagination skills and will be motivated to actively work towards saving Mother Earth. This book is a good option if looking for Birthday gifts, birthday return gifts, party favours, Raksha bandhan gifts, back-to-school gifts & more. Check out our other sibling special books here: A1 Summer and Play I spy Customize your Zooboo storybook at a special discount today! Use code MERRY30 For FLAT 30% off on your order!
6 Ways to Teach Kids Creative Thinking
Why is creativity so important? Research shows that creativity can improve your brain’s cognitive abilities. Plus it has been shown that creative thinking can help our brains develop neural connections and learn new concepts. As you may have experienced, creative activities often improve your child’s mood and help them de-stress or calm down right? And so it is clear that fostering creative thinking in your kids will lead to stronger emotional & brain health. But sometimes, determining where to start can be tough. Read on for 6 tips to help your child explore their imagination and learn to think creatively. Tip #1 Encourage free-play It is recommended to provide some unstructured free time as a way to support creative thinking. Give your child a little time each day to independently explore their own ideas and interests. Also, make time for creative play—or free time that encourages curiosity or creative thinking. Offering your child a pack of crayons and some paper or encouraging them to play pretend with siblings can be great ways to support creative play. Zooboo book ‘I spy’ is all about two siblings playing a game of I spy while learning about primary & secondary colours. Explore this creative book with your kids name in it! Zooboo book: I Spy Tip #2 Explore outdoors Research has shown that getting outside into the nature has known to enhance curiosity, encourage flexible thinking, and help you recharge. Next time the weather is good, pack a picnic in the park. Or read a book with your child in the garden. This Zooboo book ‘Bo-peep’ shows your kid exploring a nature park & learning about the various animal features. Personalize it for your child here! Zooboo storybook: Plays Bo Peep Tip #3 Teach them to ask ‘What if’ questions If you can get your children to ask questions about the world and how it works, they’re more likely to come up with their own unique answers. For example: What if animals could suddenly talk? What if you got wings one day P.S: This Zooboo book ‘Gets Wings’ is a great start to your kids creative thinking journey. Personalize it with your childs name today! Zooboo book: Gets Wing's Tip #4 Bring nature into their learning Involve nature in your child’s day-to-day activities. This helps jiggle their innate sense of curiosity and fosters STEM (Science- Technology-Engineering-Maths) based thinking. For example, for a counting activity let them count leaves instead of blocks. For sorting, encourage them to sort leaves from stems. Introduce your child to the natural elements and weather conditions in this Zooboo book ‘What’s behind the door?’ Zooboo book: what's behind the door? Tip #5 Ask them open-ended questions Asking open-ended questions can help children learn to form their own ideas and develop creative thinking. These are questions that require a longer answer than a yes or no. For example, If you saw a dog outside the temple, chewing on your dad’s shoes, what would you do? This NEW Zooboo storybook ‘Finds a story’ is all about the child thinking about an original story plot. Customize it for your 9-10 year old and let them enjoy a story about thinking creatively. Zooboo book: Find's a story Tip #6 Read Together Research has shown that reading with your child can boost your child’s imagination and problem-solving skills. Make a goal to read a book together every day. If your book has pictures in it, ask your child to guess what the page is about before you read it together. This can help children practice problem-solving, as well as reading comprehension. Inspired to buy your kids some personalized storybooks? Check out 15+ book titles that can be customized as per your kids name & character. Suitable for all kids aged 0-12 Use code STORY for Rs. 300 off on your order!
5 tips to teach kids about ‘originality’ & ‘authenticity’
The latest Zooboo story book ‘Finds a story’ is all about a little child trying to write a story for their school project. The child asks around at home, neighborhood as well as looks to the TV for inspiration for their story. The plot and ending of this book led us thinking about a few issues such as ‘original thinking’ and ‘authenticity’. How many times do we come across children who are more than willing to mimic ideas from the internet/society? Are we also guilty of consciously or unconsciously guiding kids to follow a pre-planned path with no creativity of their own? Research has shown that when parents focus on ‘teaching values’ v/s ‘rules’ and encourage kids to take ‘sensible risks’ that will allow them to try new things – such children grow up to be great contributors in the society. Here are 5 simple things that YOU can do to try and inculcate the importance of original thinking, creativity, and authenticity in your young ones: Tip #1 Encourage them to always read & remember the name of the author & the illustrator This is something you can start even when kids are a few months old. Always make it a habit to read the name of the author & illustrator of the book before you begin reading it. This allows kids to understand that there is someone who has taken the effort to write and illustrate this book for them. That not all books are the same and there is a person is who thinking original ideas & is creatively presenting it for them. Tip #2 Seek books with a moral Along with picture books, try to also read out stories that have some moral attached to it. Doing this from an early age encourages kids to think about the values and consequences of their actions. Tip #3 Encourage creativity in all forms It is upto us what rules and conditioning we raise our kids with. Instead of giving them the rules of society, life and your personal set of rules, teach them the values behind it. Let them know what your family believes it and the reason behind it. For example if you want them to clean their room, rather than saying ‘Clean your room’, say ‘This is why we as a family believe in a clean and neat environment. And this is why it’s a core value to keep our belongings neat.’ Tip #4 Guide with relativity rather than absolutes If your child is drawing or painting an image of the sky, let them pick out the colours rather than giving it to them. And now if they happen to paint it pink & purple, will you tell them – The sky is blue, not pink. OR will you tell them – The sky can be blue, sometimes it can also be orange and at twilight, it can even be pink or purple! Rather than saying ‘This is a stone’, say ‘This could be a stone, or it could be Y, or it could be Z, what do you think it is?’. This allows them to let their mind run free and fosters creative thinking. It helps ‘out of the box’ ideas. Tip #5 Model ‘authenticity’ yourself If you want to raise an honest citizen who is true to their self and stands against borrowed ideas and pirated/copied work then YOU need to model this behaviour too. Show them the importance of being original by being original yourself. Don’t download that song from the internet/unofficial source. Don’t buy a book unless its author is getting their due credit. Don’t quote an idea or phrase without mentioning the source you got it from. There are small ways that kids are observing us & what we say, do & talk makes an impact. If you want your kids to be inspired to write their own story or do some original thinking then try this NEW personalized storybook by Zooboo called ‘Finds a story’. Personalize it with your kids name & character & enjoy Rs. 300 off. Use code STORY
3 Diwali Gift ideas for kids under Rs. 279!
Diwali is next week. If you’ve thought of gifts for neighbors, friends, family then why leave your kids out! This festive season, we have 3 amazing gifting ideas for kids of all ages. Make most of the sale and order these gifts from Rs. 279 only! Idea #1 Personalize a storybook in their name A gift that is educational, filled with learning concepts & is a keepsake with your kids name – what more could you ask for? Pick from 17 Zooboo storybooks to personalize for kids aged 0-10. Now order them at a discounted price + enjoy Free Economy Shipping. Use code FESTIVE30 for 30% off + free home delivery. Idea #2 Gift them an acrylic puzzle with their photo This 56 pieced acrylic puzzle can be customized with any photo of your choice. There a cutely themed designs for the border as well. Your kids will enjoy this keepsake with their name & photo! Use code HAPPY30 to order this from Rs. 279! Idea #3 A soft cushion with cute themes + your fav memory together Add a bit of personal touch to their room or any corner of the house. Customize a cute designer photo cushion with your favourite photograph. These cushions are also available at 30% off just for this week. Use code HAPPY30 Inspired to create your own customized gifts? Head to www.zooboostory.com to customize your storybooks and to www.zoomin.com for other personalized gift options too!
6 Tips to make family reading time more fun!
Reading together with family is very good for kids of all ages. Right from inspiring a love of reading books in young children to helping you connect as a family. Most of all, it’s also really fun! But we know that it’s not always easy to plan a family reading time in advance. So forget thinking about reading as something you need to tick off your list and instead imagine storytime as an amazing show that’s about to begin and the excitement in the kids will naturally follow. Here are 6 tips by Team Zooboo to help make family reading time easier to plan and a lot more fun! Read outdoors Make a picnic out of it or carry your books during garden time. A change of scenery adds some excitement to reading time. You can also spot your favourite natural elements around you while reading. Add a game like – Act it out Adding a game gives a fun twist to reading. Give the entire family a few roles to enact. Let kids get into the character and act it out. They will gain confidence + work on their language skills too. Personalize a storybook Personalizing a storybook in your kids name boosts their curiosity while reading it. Studies have shown higher language skill development, vocabulary development and confidence level in kids who read personalized books. Click here to check out personalized storybooks for your kids. Involve every one Sometimes it is good to let someone else take over the lead while reading. Invite an older cousin, neighbour or grandparent to read stories with you. The diversity in voice modulation and creativity piques a kids interest and involvement. Set up a schedule Make a reading schedule. Pin it up at a place where it is visible to all. Try to add a star chart or some reward upon finishing the required reading time. P.S: Making the reading chart can be a fun art activity too! Reading corner A cute cozy dedicated reading corner helps calm them and sets a routine. It doesn’t have to be anything elaborate. A few curtains and pillows with easily accessible books and good light does the trick. Mind buzzing with new ideas to try out? We hope so! If you’re looking for some books to get you started, browse our bestselling personalised books on a wide range of topics and that too for all age-groups! Explore all the 16 book titles here!
5 games to keep kids entertained while travelling
Family trips are fun & exciting, isn’t it? But how do you keep the kids engaged during long drives, road trips, layovers or other wait times? They will eventually get bored of even the ipad/mobile and boredom can get challenging! Dodge the 42 million ‘Are we there yet?' questions by being a little prepared with some basic games & activities : ) Here our top 5 tips to keep kids entertained (or atleast engaged) during your travels! Tip #1: Count objects around you This tip is inspired from our very own (NEW!) Zooboo book ‘Traffic Jam Adventure! It’s a story about a kid stuck in a traffic jam on the way to the planetarium. The family plays a game of counting objects around them starting from 1 and sequentially going upto 10. Try this game on your next trip and see how far you can go! Clue: 1 car, 2 adults, 3 bags, 4 red cars – etc etc. @cuppycakes_muffins11 https://zooboostory.com/book/traffic-jam-adventure Personalize the book here Tip #2: Play audios of their fav songs Turn your car time into a fun karaoke session! Start by playing the audio of their favourite rhymes and gradually move on to songs. Give them some basic instruments for even more fun – guitar, xylophone, rattle – anything that gets them to sing-along and pass the time! Tip #3: Whoever spots (____) first, wins! This is one of our personal favourite games. It keeps the kids hooked for hours. Take turns to name ‘whoever spots a (fill in with a fun character/object) wins’ – and keep score for who was the first to spot this. Here are a few ready examples to get you started. Whoever spots a: policeman, traffic signal, red car, school bus, twins, ice cream parlour, truck driver, windmill – etc etc. Tip #4: Recap/Retell their favourite storybook If you want to get kids to calm down and started for naptime in your transit, you can try to get them to recap their favourite storybook. Guide and prompt them wherever required. As they zone back to their pre bedtime story they will eventually settle down and feel ready to nap (hopefully!). If not it is still a great way to recap some concepts or learn a new story. Tip #5: Play I spy Taking inspiration from the Zooboo book ‘Plays I spy’, we suggest this classic game that can be literally played anywhere! Take turn to spot an object around you and explain it to one another. Set a timer for the opposite person to guess the name of this object. Classic, simple but super effective game – isn’t it? Try out these tips during your next travel/trip and let us know what else you could think of. If you’re looking for some personalized storybooks for your kids then head here to check out 16 exciting stories for kids aged 0-9 years. Personalize 16 books here
Quick tips on 'troubleshoot' your Zooboo ordering experience!
Trying to order your Zooboo books but not able to? Not able to finish the step at checkout? Unable to sign in to your Zoomin account? Read these few tips to ensure that you can finish your Zooboo purchase within a few minutes and a couple of clicks! #1: If you are clicking on the website link directly through Instagram or a DM then you might face issues at checkout. So instead do this: #2: Open the browser on your device. Type www.zooboostory.com directly in it. This way you can access the website through your browser instead of through Instagram/any other website. #3: Once you’re inside the website follow the simple steps to customize your books and add them to cart #4: You will need an account on www.zoomin.com to finalize your checkout process. #5: If you’re having trouble logging in or creating an account then make sure you have tried #2. And then do this: #6: Close all the other tabs on your browser and phone. Clear the cache of your phone. Now try visiting www.zooboostory.com through your browser and follow the steps. #7: If you are still stuck at any phase and are not able to complete your order please write to us at customerservice@zoomin.com and the team will help you out asap! We hope our tips were helpful and that you could order your favourite personalized storybooks in a jiffy. If there is something else that you would want help with, we’re always listening! Please leave us your feedback/suggestions/queries on social@zoomin.com with the subject line: About Zooboo. Our team will be more than happy to help you out! Keep smiling, keep reading!
How to create your Zooboo personalized storybook!
Our beautifully personalized stories fill kids with excitement upon seeing themselves as the HERO of their books! With multiple titles to choose from, your child can become the star of their own story in just a few simple steps. TIP: Sometimes clicking on the website link directly through Instagram might cause a broken link. It would be advisable to open the browser on your phone/laptop, type www.zooboostory.com and click the website through your browser and NOT through the link on Instagram. Once you are on the Zooboo homepage: Step 1 A: Start by entering your child’s name, gender & age here. The titles that are appropriate for your kid’s age will show up on the next screen. This step will look similar to this: Step 1 B: Alternatively to view all the titles in our catalogue simply scroll below on the homepage. All our books are listed here (link). After selecting the book you'd like to create, you'll be prompted to enter in a few initial details to personalise the story, starting with the child's name & gender, selecting the book size. This step will look similar to this: Step Two: After filling in the first details and clicking on the green 'Preview book' button, you'll reach step two. Here, you’ll need to decide on the book size and format which you want to opt for. You can pick from: 5.5”x5.5” softcover book 5.5”x5.5” boardbook (recommended) 8”x8” premium softcover book 8”x8” boardbook (recommended) Step Three: You can now preview the entire book to check every detail before adding it to cart. Isn’t that super cool!? Below is an example of the preview and personalisation details for our book, A Surprise for: Click on the arrow to the right to ‘turn the first page’ and start reading through the story. Once you are satisfied with the preview click on ‘Add to cart’. Step Four: At this stage you will need to create an account on www.zoomin.com if you don’t already have one to complete the order. Once you’re logged in, simple follow the checkout procedure and add your address and avail one of the on-going offers to enjoy a discount. You can opt to gift wrap the storybook & add a personal notecard too! We can’t wait to brighten up a little ones day and make them the STAR of their storybook. Order your books right away by clicking here! P.S: If you are unable to add the book to your cart, or have trouble logging in to your Zoomin account then please read our troubleshoot guide here.
6 Tips to set sustainable ‘Reading Goals for 2022’ with your kids!
The New Year is a great time for those looking to make a fresh start. It gives us all hope for new beginnings and healthy habits. It is a good idea to let children develop a positive attitude towards reading from an early age. Here are some quick tips to help your kids set sustainable ‘Reading Goals for 2022!’ Working towards reading goals not only improves your child’s literacy but research says that completing goals provides children with a sense of accomplishment and builds their self-esteem. Make a plan/chart: Make it fun start for them by first drawing up a chart/routine to mark off each goal. Tip: Keep space for stars (or rockets or dinosaurs!) for each baby step towards the final goal. source: Just a girl and her blog Start with the basic: I will read X number of books this week Once they start finishing these small goals, you can encourage them for bigger goals like I will read a new author every week. Or I will read X number of books this year. Older children can read the books themselves, while younger kids may need to read with adults or have the books read to them. The goal at younger ages is to familiarize children with books and instill a love of stories and reading. You can try personalized storybooks that feature the child’s name & character throughout the story. These books help engage and entertain young readers, as they feel they are the STAR of the storybook. Order some such books for your kids here. https://zooboostory.com/ Add some twist with interactive reading/role play: I will read X number of books to my sibling/cousin/friend this year. Add in a few evenings of enacting some books, staging a drama or role play with friends. Re-living their storybook characters adds excitement which boosts further reading. @mummas_littlemunchkins To make the goals sustainable through the year, start with small goals & celebrate small victories.Tips for some smaller goals for the younger kids: I will read about a new topic every month I will learn about the authors of the books I read I will learn xx new words from my books every week Attaining a reading goal should be cause for celebration. While you have many possible rewards for reaching reading goals, the most appropriate reward is a book. A personalized book like ‘Birthday’ or ‘Lost Smile’ will be a constant reminder of the child’s achievement, as well as a treasured keepsake. Track these goals Create some Prints to keep track here or Print a Restickable customized calendar here. Stick these in an area that is accessible to your child. Keep tracking the goals to give your kids a practice of conscientiousness. https://www.zoomin.com/calendars/restickable-calendar-6x8 Join them by setting your own reading goals! Children learn best by what they observe. So join them with your own reading chart or read your book once while they read theirs. Always carry a few books while travelling. These small cues help children develop a life-long friendship with books. Mom2treasure We hope these tips help you raise a budding bookworm in 2022. Please tag us on social media if you post about your kids reading habits or if you have some other ideas that we could add here!
5 activities to teach your kids the values of Diwali!
Have you ever experienced the difference in behaviour when you ‘tell’ your child something v/s when you ‘show’ them? Children always learn better through experiential learning methods like ‘role-play’, ‘reading books’, ‘art play’ etc. Why not make use of this festive season & the extra time during the Diwali vacation to reinforce some of the traditional values that the auspicious festival of Diwali stands for!? Here are 5 simple ideas that will make your child get into the festive spirit AND help them understand the significance of Diwali! Values: Respect & Family bonding How: Books The Zooboo book ‘A1 Summer’ is all about two siblings trying to adjust to the village life. The story takes you through their journey of learning to appreciate the simple things in life, respecting elders and the value of family bonds. This Diwali, take some time to read this book with your kids & use it as an opportunity to discuss about ‘mindful social behaviour’. Personalize this book here. A heartwarming book that emphasizes on sibling and family bonds... ... and respecting each other. Value: Good always triumphs over Evil How: Enacting/Puppet show This is a great time to tell your kids about the Hindu mythology ‘Ramayana’. You can create a simple stick figures puppet show to explain to the kids what is Diwali & why it is celebrated. Print out the characters of Lord Ram, Goddess Sita, Lord Hanuman, Lord Lakshman, Ravana and you can refer to this video for enacting the story. Use the moral of the story to emphasis on how good deeds and purity of heart always wins over evil & negativity. www.tokabox.com Values: Sharing & Helping How: Group Diwali art activity with shared resources Nothing will get the kids into the festive mode quicker than a Diwali themed art acitivity! Collect easily available material like paper plates, paints, decorative stickers, printsouts of diya/lanterns etc. Let your kids create some festive art while sharing these resources with their siblings/cousins/friends. hobbycraft madebylakshmi rachelmarsh thejoyofsharing artsycraftsymom Values: Kindness & Empathy How: Donation to the needy Diwali cleaning would surely have resulted in a lot of unused clothes and toys from the house. Take this chance to teach your kids about the value of being kind, helpful & empathetic towards those less fortunate than us. Let your kids be an active part of deciding what they don’t use/need and encourage them to give it away to a shelter home/ngo/ needy. assureshift seattleschild Values: Humility & politeness How: Reward chart for saying the 5 golden words Talk to kids about the 5 golden words – Please, Thank you, Welcome, Sorry & Excuse me. Use them in everyday conversations. Every time they use a golden word in the correct context, give them a star/sticker on a reward chart. Gradually, they will understand the value of being polite, using socially appropriate language & conversing with humility. As a bonus, you can gift them a personalized Zooboo storybook after they complete 50 stickers on their chart! helloparent pinterest Team Zooboo wishes each of you a very Happy Diwali & a Prosperous New Year!
7 ideas to calm your child during the festive chaos
With the festive season right around the corner there is always a flurry of excitement in the air. Cleaning the house before Diwali, shopping for new decor, gifts & sweets, planning Diwali get-togethers... it can get overwhelming for even the most adept planner isn’t it? Typically during such times, do you find your kids getting anxious, overactive, irritable or just filled with extra excitement with no outlet? Not to mention the anxiety that some kids may have due to the noise pollution caused by firecrackers! Well, we have put together a few ideas that can help calm your child during the festive chaos. Save & share this to help fellow parents! Stress balls Squeezing a stress ball often relaxes muscle tension and gives fidgety kids something to do. Turn this into a bonding activity by making some stress balls at home together with your kids. How: Fill up balloons with rice, flour or pulses. Image source: www.onecrazymom.com Discovery Bottles These bottles are a great way to calm newborns, toddlers, older kids as well as adults! All you have to do is take empty plastic bottles and fill them up with any of these options: Glitter & water + oil Colourful pom pom balls Colourful water + baby oil Blue water with sea shells Coloured water with soap for bubbles Different shaped buttons www.messymotherhood.com www.funathomewithkids.com www.teachertypes.com After filling the ingredients seal the bottle cap firmly using glue or tape. Read books with them The best way to make kids calmer is by reading to them. Especially when the story is all about them, kids tend to get immersed into it & forget about the ‘discomfort’. Try personalized storybooks for your kids and watch them get totally hooked to the story. Order your books here. @momknowsmebest @mewithmysonshine @chatterfromamom Quiet Corner Create a thinking corner in your house where your kids can go to spend some quiet time by themselves. Often kids don’t need anything but some space to calm themselves down & feel normal again. Make this corner feel warm & cozy by adding in some storybooks, a blanket, some soft toys & posters. @annareyner @whitneymarie_F Lavender Playdough Lavender induces calmness & sleepiness. Create some lavender infused playdough & keep it ready for use when needed. Use regular flour, warm water, edible oil, salt, purple food colouring & some glitter to make your regular playing dough. Add a few drops of lavender essential oil to this & knead it to form soft dough. www.theartkitblog.com Open-ended art Give your child some paints, newspapers & open-ended material for a relaxing art activity. Spread the newspapers on the floor and lay out the paints. Tie up some twigs, leaves, use stones, pebbles, empty bottles & cans – let them use any material they like as a paint brush. www.kindercare.com www.handsonaswegrow.com Browse through their Photobook together If you have a journey book of your child or a family photobook then bring it out and distract them with pictures of them as a child or happy family times from the past. It helps children feel secure & safe. Create yours here. @justmommyfied @thecompulsivemommy @thecompulsivemommy You can easily prepare some of these ideas and keep it ready in advance to avoid stressful times during festive seasons. You can also order personalized storybooks by Zooboo as Diwali gifts, return gifts or just an addition to your kids library! Write to us at customerservice@zoomin.com for bulk orders or order from www.zooboostory.com to avail the best discounts & offers! Keep smiling, keep reading!
10 Tips to make your child love reading!
Does your child run away from books? Are you looking for ways to making reading time more fun and less boring? Are you tired of extended screen time for your child? If you answered yes to any of these questions then this useful article is exactly what you need, trust us! This week we partnered with the amazing Mom Blogger @Vandita.momandmore who spends dedicated time reading different types of books to her 2.8 year old son Viaan. When it came to helping fellow parents, she was more than happy to share her personal tips on raising a budding bookworm. Here are 10 super useful, realistic, tried & tested tricks penned by her! “I don't consider myself an expert, just a fellow parent trying her best to inculcate a love for reading in my little guy. Whether my son will continue to love books or not, I don't know! But for now, I'm doing my bit! Here are my top 10 tips to raise a reader: START EARLY - If possible, start when the child is in the womb. I know not everyone is comfortable with it. So you determine what's early enough for you. I started reading to my son when he was 3 months old. 2. TRY PERSONALIZED STORYBOOKS! - Try personalized books to engage your kid. Reading his name in his storybook was a big excitement factor for my kiddo! I tried Zooboo’s ‘What's behind the door Viaan?’ and he was thrilled to read his name in the storybook. His interest in reading definitely went up after that. 3. CONSISTENT ROUTINE - Schedule reading time in a day - it may be before each bedtime and make this consistent. But don't watch the clock, watch only your child. Watch which parts they laugh at, what they ask for repeats of, which pages they like to linger on. 4. HAVE BOOKS EASILY ACCESSIBLE - Place books in different areas of the house - for eg, a small bookshelf in the dining area, a basket of books on the play mat, some books by the bedside table, and some in the child's closet. The books should be easily accessible to the child without any adult help. 5. READ EVEN WHEN YOU DON'T HAVE AN ACTIVE AUDIENCE - Don't expect little ones to sit through a book with rapt attention each time or even sometimes. I have often read to my son even when he's roaming around the room and playing with something else. But he's still receiving the language input and picking up on my tone, fluency, expression and body language. 6. MAKE IT INTERACTIVE - Have fun with role-playing - try out different accents and voices for characters. Have your children point to pictures and words and repeat them. 7. RE-READ FAVOURITES - It will give kids the opportunity to hear or see something that may have been missed the first time and provides another chance to hear a favourite part 8. CREATE BUZZ AND EXCITEMENT AROUND BOOKS - Gift books to your kids every chance you get. Gift books to other kids on occasions or have them donate a book to someone in need. Involve them in the gift buying, wrapping and giving process. 9. TALK, TALK, TALK! - A child's vocabulary grows through rich conversations. No matter your child's age, narrate what you're doing, talk in full sentences, and sprinkle your conversations with interesting words. 10. BE A READER YOURSELF - Monkey see, monkey do! Model the right behaviour, let the child see you enjoy books. Remember, you get to decide if you make reading aloud taste like medicine or chocolate!” Try a mix of these tips with your own parenting styles to encourage the habit of reading in your kids. Research has shown that personalizing a child’s books makes them more curious to read. Try it out yourself with Zooboo’s books that allow you to customize your child’s name on the cover page and throughout the storybooks! Did you know that Zooboo books have been penned by some of India’s award-winning authors? Click here to read more about the amazing panel of Zooboo’s authors.
