In short
- Stories give you a gentle way to talk about choices, feelings and the wider world.
- Ask questions, pause before the big reveal and read new words with gusto.
- Play with stories too: mix two fairy tales, or tell your family's own.
Do you remember the stories your grandmother told you? The mighty king, the clever queen and the villain hiding in the woods. Chances are you can still picture them.
Stories are some of the first adventures we share with our kids. They give us a gentle way to talk about big things, and a lot of reasons to laugh together. Here are seven easy ways to make story time something everyone looks forward to.
1. Talk about the choices characters make
Every story is full of choices. The fox tricks the crow. The hero tells the truth, even when it’s hard.
Some books open the conversation for you. In You Shine, Amazing Boy, the story “Max and the New Kid” starts by admitting that the right choice can feel scary, then asks the reader what they were afraid of, and how things turned out. After the last page, try the same: “Was that fair? What would you have done?”
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Max and the New Kid
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Cora's Big Challenge
2. Feel the story together
Kids live a story from the inside. Read Cinderella and they’ll hold their breath as the clock strikes twelve, then cheer when the slipper fits.
Pause on those moments. “How do you think she feels right now?” is one of the best questions you can ask during a story. Stories like “Cora’s Big Challenge”, about a day when believing in yourself gets hard, make room for a quiet “Has that ever happened to you?”
3. Stop before the big reveal
Here’s a trick every storyteller knows. Read right up to the exciting part, then pause. “What do you think is behind the door?”
Kids love to guess, and their ideas are often wilder than the real ending. Books with short chapters make this easy: in Emo and the Mystery of the Cloak, a strange cloak turns an ordinary afternoon into an adventure full of secrets, and every chapter ending is a natural place to stop and wonder.
4. Travel the world through stories
A story can take kids to places they’ve never been, and introduce them to children who play and celebrate in their own ways.
Choose books from many places and cultures. They invite kids to look at the world with open, curious eyes, and to come back with plenty of questions for you.
5. Collect new words
Stories are full of words kids don’t use every day, like enormous or mysterious. Read them with gusto, and explain them when your child asks.
You might hear “enormous” at dinner a few days later. Some families keep a little list on the fridge: one new word per story.
6. Play tale twist
Mix two favorite stories into a new one. What happens when Little Red Riding Hood meets the Three Little Pigs? Who helps whom, and where does the wolf end up?
Take turns adding one sentence each. The story will go somewhere nobody expected, and that’s the point.
7. Share your family’s tales
Tell the stories your parents and grandparents told you, and the folktales from the places your family comes from. Stories about when you were little are often the favorites of all.
Your turn
Find a cozy spot, open a book and do all the voices. Stop once before the big reveal, and ask one question after the last page. That’s how new favorites begin.
For more ideas, from choosing between paper and screens to setting up a reading corner, read The magic of reading together, on paper or on screen.
Questions about story time
What questions can I ask while reading a story?
Simple ones work best: “How do you think she feels?”, “What would you do?”, “What happens next?” Ask one or two, not after every page.
What if my child wants the same story every night?
Read it again. Knowing what comes next is part of the fun. You can play with it too: change a detail and see if they catch it.
How can I make reading aloud more fun?
Give each character a voice, pause before the exciting parts and let your child turn the pages or read a line with you.
Activities to print for the kids?
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