With screen-free activities trending so heavily this year, books are quietly having a moment of their own as one of the easiest screen-free habits to build, starting from a baby's very first weeks.
Reading aloud to a newborn may feel unnecessary before they can understand words, but the benefit is less about comprehension and more about exposure. Babies absorb rhythm, tone, and the sound of language long before they can speak it back.
A simple nightly reading habit also folds naturally into a bedtime routine, giving parents a calm, screen-free activity that doubles as connection time and a wind-down cue for sleep.
Board books with thick, chunky pages work best for the earliest stages, since they survive being mouthed, dropped, and turned by clumsy little hands without falling apart. Simple, high-contrast images tend to hold newborn attention longest.
As a child grows into toddlerhood, letting them choose the book, even if it means the same story every night for weeks, builds genuine enthusiasm for reading that lasts far longer than any single title. The goal at this age is less about variety and more about making reading feel like a warm, repeatable ritual.
