Guide for Dads: Non-Fiction is as great as Fiction!

Some dads believe that non-fiction books are boring. Wrong! Children are fascinated by the world around them. Non-fiction books unlock some of this world’s secrets and set children thinking about other secrets. Remember, most of the reading that children need

for their education is non-fiction, such as school textbooks. Reading aloud from non-fiction helps them read their textbooks and builds their knowledge of the world around them.

Wan Inn’s youngest son Jason was one child who needed no convincing that non-fiction could be fun. He loved having science books read to him and read these himself when older. He had a big thrill when he was in the second year of elementary school and found that he was the only one in his class, including the teacher, who knew why spiders do not stick to their webs!

By reading aloud non-fiction, dads can arouse children’s natural curiosity about the world around them. This curiosity encourages children to ask questions. Reading is the best way of finding answers for those questions. In this manner, dads can start a

virtuous cycle of reading, asking questions and doing more reading to answer those questions, which leads to still more questions and still more reading.

Dad reminder: You can start to read to your kids at ANY age. It’s fun for the kids and dad. It really is a dad duty!

– George Jacobs, Ph.D. and Wan Loh Inn, Ed.D.

Dr. George Jacobs, Ph.D. and Dr. Wan Loh Inn, Ed.D. are the authors of many books (including “The Read Aloud Guide”, textbooks for teachers and students, curriculum guides, and children’s storybooks).

Find out more about reading aloud to your kids.