Reading Books Without Words

This summer, as my girls and I took a break from school, I took the time to ponder what made my oldest daughter such a good reader.  You see, I'm now on my second struggling reader, and wondering what I can be doing to make it easier for her to learn.  Sarah, my oldest, has always had a love of books.  Long before she could even talk I would find her in the corner of her room with books spread out all around her.  She would sit there for an hours (which is a very long time for a 1 year old).  Because of that, and the fact that I had four less children, I spent more time looking at books and reading to her. 

As I thought about what I could do to help Andrea read better, I remembered one of Sarah's favorite books.  HUG by Jez Alborough.

I bought this from a book club when Sarah was little.  To be honest, at first sight, I was a little disappointed.  There were hardly any words and it was more like a picture book.  But it soon became one of Sarah's favorites, as well as one of mine.  This monkey learns to connect with his mother through watching other animals hug.  As I thought about this great book, I realized reading to your children is more than just the words on a page.  And then I wondered if that is all it would take for Andrea to want to read more.....a little more time with mom, and some good books to just cuddle up with.