Help my child read for free

45 Best Reading Websites for Kids (Teacher-Approved)

Fluent reading may be the most important skill anyone can master. Studies show it only takes 15 minutes of practice each day to build fluency, and these reading websites for kids can help. There are options for all ages, helping students learn to read, discover new books, track and share progress, and more. There’s a big selection of free options, but there are some excellent paid sites that schools and parents may want to check out too. All of them can help kids become lifelong readers!

• Best Free Reading Websites for Kids
• Best Paid Reading Websites for Kids

(Just a heads up, WeAreTeachers may collect a share of sales from the links on this page. We only recommend items our team loves!)
  

These free reading websites give kids practice that won’t break the bank. Get free e-books, games, activities, and more!

ABCya

This site hooks kids through fun games that meet learning standards. In addition to reading, students can brush up on math, science, social studies, arts, and music. A free account gives you basic access with ads. Paid Premium Family and Classroom plans are also available. (Grades Pre-K–6)

Between the Lions

Watch videos from the popular PBS series, including read-along folktales and fables, clever song videos of letter sounds, and more. (Grades Pre-K–1)

Biblionasium

Think of this like Goodreads for kids. It’s a safe place for reviewing and sharing books, making reading a social adventure. (Grades K–8)

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Bookopolis

This is another site that bills itself as “Goodreads for kids,” and it offers similar features. Read kid-friendly reviews, post your own, find recommendations, track reading goals, and more. (Grades K–8)

Bookshare

This fantastic digital library service helps people with print-related disabilities read independently. (Grades Pre-K–12)

CommonLit

This library includes thousands of high-interest, standards-aligned reading passages and lessons. You can search for texts by book, genre, grade level, literary device, and theme. (Grades 3–12)

Dogo News

The kid-friendly news articles on DOGONews make it easy to assign reading. Each article has reading/interest-level guidelines, and you can access the site in English or Spanish. It’s free to assign articles for reading. Paid plans provide discussion questions and quizzes too. (Grades 1–12)

Epic

If you’re looking for reading websites with digital books, this site has thousands of them, along with audiobooks and videos. You’ll find endless popular titles from your favorite publishers. Teachers can track student progress as they read too. Epic is free for teachers and classrooms, with paid plans available for parents. (Grades Pre-K–8)

Explorer Magazine

This amazing compilation of nonfiction has all the quality of National Geographic magazine, leveled and accessible for young readers. (Grades K–5)

Fact Monster: All About Books

Kids who love books will want to check out this site. They’ll find fascinating facts about many of their favorite reads. (Grades 1–8)

Free Rice

Test your vocabulary while earning rice for those in need! Each time you play, you’re helping the United Nations World Food Programme provide food to those around the world who need it. (Grades 2–12)

FunBrain

In addition to learning games and videos, FunBrain has a selection of free books to read online. You’ll find favorites like Diary of a Wimpy Kid and Judy Moody. (Grades Pre-K–8)

Harry Potter Reading Club

This is a must-see for any kid (or adult) who loves the Harry Potter books. Find regularly updated activities, plus videos, discussion guides, and more for hardcore Hogwarts fans. (Grades 2–8)

International Children’s Digital Library

A no-frills site from the University of Maryland, ICDL has more than 4,000 free e-books kids can read online. There are a variety of books in languages other than English too. (Grades K–8)

Into the Book

Into the Book is a reading comprehension site that focuses on reading strategies teachers work on every day. Kids get practice using prior knowledge, making connections, questioning, visualizing, inferring, summarizing, evaluating, and synthesizing. (Grades K–6)

Khan Academy

This is one of the most well-known free learning sites around, and their reading and language arts courses are top-notch. There’s nothing flashy, but kids will get good practice with accompanying lessons and quizzes. (Grades 2–9)

Khan Academy Kids

This reading app and site is designed especially for kids just learning to read. There are supplemental materials for parents and teachers too. (Grades Pre-K–2)

Lalilo

Kids learning to read can benefit from Lalilo’s phonics and reading comprehension activities. The adaptive exercises provide an individualized experience for each student. Free for teachers, with a premium paid edition available for schools and districts. (Grades Pre-K–2)

Oxford Owl

Created by Oxford University Press, this U.K. site has plenty to offer for any kid learning to read. There are free e-books and games, plus tips for parents and teachers. (Grades Pre-K–2)

Reading Bear

Reading Bear teaches beginning readers vocabulary and concepts while systematically introducing all the main phonetic patterns of written English. (Grades Pre-K–1)

Reading IQ

Gain access to several thousand leveled books, including favorites like Curious George and the nonfiction National Geographic Kids titles. Teacher and classroom access is free. (Grades Pre-K–7)

Read Theory

Read Theory offers online reading activities for all ages and ability levels. The program adapts to students’ individual ability levels and presents them with thousands of skill-building exercises that suit their needs. (Grades K–12)

ReadWorks.org

Get literacy lessons that include comprehension and short passages to analyze. Use them online, via your classroom projector, or print to send work home. (Grades K–12)

Roy: Tale of a Singing Zebra

Kids will enjoy the punctuation, reading, and spelling games on this cute, simple site. You’ll also find online guided reading stories and lesson plans for teachers. (Grades Pre-K–2)

Scholastic Kids Press

Students will love reading news articles written by other kids just like them! This regularly updated site includes articles on current events, with kid reporters from around the globe. (Grades 4–8)

Spelling City

If you’re looking for reading websites that help kids improve their spelling and vocabulary, this one takes only 10 minutes a day. Not only will they learn words, they’ll remember them long-term! (Grades 1–6)

Storyline Online

Storyline Online features videos of read-alouds by celebrities with creative illustrations. Each book also has a supplemental curriculum for teachers and parents to use. (Grades Pre-K–4)

StoryPlace

Get the experience of going to the library without leaving the house at StoryPlace. Find animated videos of stories, with activities, sing-along songs, and more. (Grades Pre-K–1)

Story Time From Space

What’s better than a read-aloud? A read-aloud done by someone in space! This reading website features real astronauts reading books they love, often with a STEM theme. (Grades Pre-K–5)

Teaching Kids News

TKN provides readable, teachable news articles for kids. You’ll also find media literacy activities and tips on how to discuss challenging news topics with kids. (Grades 3–8)

Tween Tribune by Smithsonian

The Smithsonian provides quality content on a variety of nonfiction topics, with something to engage every interest. You can change the Lexile reading level on each article to differentiate for student needs too. (Grades K–12)

Vooks

Vooks bills itself as the first streaming service dedicated to animated storybooks. There’s a small free collection of books, plus teachers get classroom access for one device at no cost. Parents can pay a monthly fee for access. (Grades Pre-K–2)
  

Sometimes it’s worth it to invest in a learning program. These are some of the best ones around, according to teachers and parents.

ABC Mouse

ABC Mouse offers learning that spans the curriculum. Their reading program starts at the very beginning with the alphabet and takes kids through to fluent reading and writing. (Monthly or annual subscription after 30-day free trial; Grades Pre-K–2)

Adventure Academy

Brought to you by the same folks who created ABC Mouse, Adventure Academy offers reading practice for older kids. They can also work on math, science, and more. (Monthly or annual subscription after 30-day free trial; Grades 3–8)

Amplify Reading

Students take on a series of personalized quests as they learn and practice reading. The characters and story lines keep them coming back for more.  (Contact for pricing; Grades K–5)

HOMER

HOMER promises to create a personalized reading program for every child, based on their interests and current skill levels. Membership also includes access to 200+ interactive animated stories, with a whole section dedicated to favorite Sesame Street characters. (Monthly and annual subscriptions after 30-day trial; Grades Pre-K–2)

IXL

IXL’s personalized learning experiences cover a variety of subjects. Their language arts curriculum includes spelling, vocabulary, phonics, and more advanced topics. (Family, Classroom, and School/District pricing available; Grades K–12)

MagicBlox

This collection of e-books includes titles from around the world in a variety of languages. It’s always growing as publishers and authors upload their new books. (Individual and school subscriptions available; Grades K–8)

PebbleGo

Teach younger students the right way to research with PebbleGo. You can be sure they’re using safe, reliable resources as they learn about subjects like animals, biographies, and more. (Annual subscriptions by school; Grades K–3)

Reading Eggs

Play games, sing songs, and practice reading, vocabulary, phonics, and more. Looking for help for older kids who need additional practice? Check out Reading Eggspress. (Monthly or yearly subscription after 30-day free trial; Grades Pre-K–6)

Starfall

This site teaches children to read with the help of phonetics. Kids sing songs to help them learn and get lots of practice putting it all together. (Yearly membership fees; Grades Pre-K–3)

TeachingBooks

Help students make deeper connections to books with author interviews, read-aloud videos, activities, and more. (Yearly license fees; Grades K–12)

TumbleBook

This is a cool reading website for schools, offering talking animated picture books that kids will truly love. School accounts provide access to every computer in every classroom. You can also offer home access through your school website. (Annual subscription; Grades K–8)

Vocabulary A-Z

Give kids vocab practice with customizable word lists. Students can play games online, while teachers can get lessons and printables to support the learning. (One-time purchase; Grades K–5)

Whooo’s Reading

Get your students thinking with open-ended quiz questions that provide a strong alternative to multiple-choice questions. Students get feedback as they write, including reminders to cite evidence and answer all parts of the question. (Free basic trial membership, with premium annual subscriptions for teachers and classrooms; Grades Pre-K–12)

What’s on your list of the best reading websites for kids? Share your ideas in our WeAreTeachers HELPLINE group on Facebook.

Plus, check out the best reading apps for kids.

15 Useful Online Reading Programs for Kids | Prodigy

Over the last few years, digital learning technology has boomed. Now, more than ever, you can find high-quality educational programs online — and many of them are free!

If your pre-k, kindergarten or elementary child needs extra reading practice, put those tablet screens to good use and check out an online reading program. 

These free or low-cost reading websites and apps feature digital libraries to help learners master letter sounds, sight words and reading comprehension without frustration.

Online reading programs are an excellent way to ignite a lifelong love of reading. Once a child can read, they can go anywhere on their reading journey. So let’s go!

Assess your child’s reading level before jumping in

Before you get started with an online reading program, it’s important to know your child’s current reading level, which may or may not line up with their grade level.  

If your child is in a traditional school, check with their teacher. They should be able to give you a breakdown of where your child is and what they need to work on. 

If you’re homeschooling, start slightly below where you think your child is. Jumping too far ahead is likely to cause frustration, but lessons kids can quickly run through are confidence-boosting when starting out. Since many programs are gamified and interactive, the excitement of “winning” will help encourage more reading time. 

Just be sure to not go too simple. If your preschooler is mastering digraphs (two-letter sounds like sh, ph, or oo), starting them on the more basic phonics can quickly get boring. Take some time to read with your child or watch them complete a few lessons of their online program and you’ll quickly gather an idea of where they are in their learning. 

No matter your child’s current reading level, don’t be afraid to tackle books above their level together. Reading aloud is a great way to expose children to new words and interesting stories.

A love of reading is built on fantastic stories. Reading with you, or even listening to audiobooks, are great ways to encourage a love of books — especially if your child encounters frustrations while learning to read solo.

The 15 best online reading programs to help build comprehension

Here are our top 14 picks for online reading programs. From phonics instruction to vast digital libraries, these online reading resources will keep kids excited about learning! 

1. Prodigy English

Prodigy’s brand-new adventure introduces kids to a world filled with adventures, wishes and more ways to practice reading and language skills. 

As your child plays, they’ll answer questions that help them gain more energy. Players can use their energy to gather resources from an open world, craft items, earn coins and build their very own village!

Prodigy English is a great way to motivate kids to practice their language skills in a fun, engaging environment. Create a free parent account to get started today.

Price: Free, with optional paid Membership

2. Starfall

Starfall is an excellent reading program for younger students, from pre-k through 3rd grade. It uses cute animated characters, songs and interactive games to teach phonics basics. 

Starfall is particularly great for helping kids with reading challenges, such as dyslexia. It’s untimed and stress-free, and uses plenty of positive reinforcement to help build up childrens’ reading confidence. 

Price: access some free content, or unlock all resources for $35 USD per year.

3. Epic

If your child is starting to read on their own, give them access to unlimited books with the Epic reading library. Epic is great for beginning readers, and will grow with your child as their reading improves. 

This online tool recommends books based on your child’s reading level and interests. It offers a selection of “read to me” books, with an easy-to-use dictionary feature to help their skills grow. Your child will be encouraged to continue reading as they earn badges for their achievements!

Price: basic membership includes one free book every day. Unlimited plans are $9.99 USD per month or $79.99 USD per year.

4. Storyline Online

You know the importance of reading aloud to your kids, but some days it’s hard to find the time. Not to worry — with Storyline Online, your child can enjoy books read by some of the biggest celebrities in Hollywood.

Each story includes an animated video to accompany the actor. There’s also an included activity guide to help you discuss the story together!

Price: Free

5. ABCYa

This reading program’s educational games cover a wide range of subjects, including early reading and language arts. Explore games by subject and age level, from pre-k to 6th grade.

Some features are available for free, but for ad-free play and an improved mobile experience, you’ll need a premium plan. Luckily, the website lets you explore all of its learning games before committing to a paid plan.

Price: ABCYa offers a free plan with ads, or purchase a premium plan for $9.99 USD per month or $69.99 USD per year.

6. ReadWorks

If you’re a teacher or a homeschooling parent, you need to explore this reading website. 

ReadWorks has a variety of engaging, well-written text to correspond with whatever your K-12 child is studying. These topics cover both non-fiction and literary assignments, complete with question sets and vocabulary practice.

And if your child is struggling with reading, ReadWorks provides a feature called StepReads. This presents the same information as the original text, but in a simpler way. Instead of “dumbing down” the topic, ReadWorks teaches the same material (including vocabulary words), no matter your child’s reading level.  

Price: free

7. StoryPlace

StoryPlace is designed to bring the library story time experience home. Perfect for pre-k children, this reading website combines stories with movement, activities and songs. 

The videos accompanying each book are bright and colorful, and a crafty hands-on activity is suggested with each story. If you have littles, give this free resource a look.

Price: free

8. Oxford Owl

If you want to help your child learn to read, visit Oxford Owl for some amazing, confidence-boosting guides for parents. These guides break down how phonics works, share learning at home tips and explain reading comprehension milestones from pre-k to age 11. 

And don’t forget to explore their free digital library with a huge variety of tablet-friendly reads!

Price: free

9. PebbleGo

PebbleGo is a research resource for early elementary children. It has a variety of texts on animals, science and history with a read-along feature for struggling readers. However, this online resource requires a school sign-on code. Check it out and suggest it to your local school to gain access to this wonderful online library.

Price: available at home for free with plans available for a schoolwide subscription.

10. Storynory

If your struggling reader loves a good story, keep that love alive with audiobooks.

From classic fairy tales to Greek myths, your child can explore the world with a wide variety of audiobooks from Storynory. 

Each book includes a transcript so kids can follow along. The website has quite a few ads, but all stories can be downloaded to keep your child listening ad-free. Or try their app for an ad-free display. 

Price: free 

11. Vooks

Vooks wants to help your child get excited about reading. It combines great stories with beautiful animation to help your child discover the magic of books. It’s the healthy, ad-free screen time you need.  

Price: sign up for a 7-day free trial, then pay $4.99 USD per month or $49.99 USD per year.

12. Khan Academy

Khan Academy is still one of the best online learning resources for, well, anything.

For early readers, explore the new Khan Academy Kids! This self-paced, personalized program is perfect for little ones ages 2 to 6. 

Or if your older child is looking for extra reading help, head to the original Khan Academy site. You’ll find personalized reading instruction for your 2nd grader and beyond. Practice reading comprehension in a self-paced, safe place and watch them grow. 

Price: free

13. Bookshare

Not everyone learns to read at the same time, and some people encounter more barriers to reading than others. Bookshare knows the most important thing is to enjoy the books and learning, no matter the format.

Bookshare provides audiobooks, with highlighted text, to its learners. Its library offers over a million titles to choose from, accessible on almost any device. 

Price: free for qualifying US students. Learn more on Bookshare’s website. 

14. Funbrain

This engaging reading website offers hundreds of interactive games, books, videos, and printables — all for free!

With popular titles (including those from the much-loved Diary of a Wimpy Kid multi-book collection), your pre-k to 8th grade child will have plenty to read and enjoy.

Browse by grade level and find what you need to keep your child engaged and learning at home.

Price: free

15. Read Write Think

Powered by the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE), this online reading program is full of amazing resources that are sure to excite homeschooling parents. 

Search by grade to find a great curriculum full of extensive lesson plans, activities and printables — all ready to go for your K-12 child.  

Price: free

How to encourage struggling readers

Every child’s reading journey looks different. For some, reading just takes longer to click. 

Keep your child encouraged and promote a love of learning with these tips.

1. Use picture books and visualizing

Even if your child is getting older, picture books will always have their place. Using pictures to improve understanding is a great way to boost your child’s reading confidence.

2. Use audio stories

Books tell amazing stories. From fantasy to nonfiction, there’s so much to learn from a great book. Play audiobooks as your child learns to read, to keep them interested in everything books have to offer.

3. Track student progress

It’s too easy to miss the steps your child has made towards reading if they’re struggling and behind their peers. Take some time to celebrate their progress as they figure it all out.  

4. Practice reading aloud

Many kids get nervous reading out loud to others. Encourage your child to practice with you to improve their reading skills. And continue reading out loud to your child to help them gain confidence.

5. Use quizzes and make them fun

If your child is struggling with reading comprehension, find out what’s not sticking with fun, trivia-style quizzes. 

Have prizes ready (ice cream is always a hit), celebrate correct answers with dance parties, and learn together as your child increases their comprehension skills.

6. Encourage kids to teach others

If you have pre-k kids in your home, or friends with younger children, get together for a child-led story time. 

Reluctant and struggling readers sometimes need a reminder of how far they’ve come. Suggest acting out the story as they go, to keep everyone active and increase comprehension.

7. Use questions and answers

Read together to help their reading stick, stopping often to review story highlights. 

Ask questions like, “how do you think this character is feeling?” or “what do you think will happen next?” to avoid them shutting down or just repeating back the words on the page.   

Use educational games to improve reading skills

Technology is a huge part of today’s educational landscape. Children are learning more online than ever before, and multi-sensory, interactive resources are perfect for learners of all types. 

Want more online resources to help your child develop their reading skills? Try Prodigy English!

In this all-new adventure, kids can explore and create a world of their very own as they meet new characters, earn coins and build a home. Create your free parent account today!

7 tips on how to help your child fall in love with reading (voluntarily!)

For one child, a book is really the best gift, while another will cringe at the sight of another volume. They force you at school, now at home too. But you don’t need to force it, even a school reading list for the summer. How to really captivate a child with books - tells a specialist in children's reading and writer Yulia Kuznetsova.

The desire to read is formed from within, so I am sure that forcing a child to read at five or six years old is a dangerous path. The word "should" should be applied to children's reading in general with caution and at a more serious age, from grade 5-6 and only in relation to school literature.

If a child does not feel like reading by himself, there is nothing wrong with that. My middle son did not take reading aloud until he was three years old. While I was reading to my eldest daughter, he was crawling around on the sofa, pinching our hair - it only annoyed me. Then suddenly, at the age of four, he fell in love with reading aloud. At the age of five, we began to teach him to read, at first he did not particularly like to do this either. And by the age of six, reading began, this is a spontaneous process.

Often parents are afraid that their child will go to school without being able to read. It all depends on the teacher. Now I hear about cases when teachers say: “I don’t need parents to bring the child to some level, otherwise he will be simply bored in the lessons.”

My experience is very different. When I came back from book festivals and brought bags of books to children, we had the following dialogue: "I brought you gifts" - "What gifts?" - "Books" - "I see, but did you bring normal gifts?"

When there are many books in the family, the following stories may come up. You ask: "Do you want to read a book?" - "No". They closed the book and put it in the fridge. After a while, you ask again, you get the same answer, and you put the book on the windowsill. It turns out that these “I don’t want” lie all over the apartment.

It seems to me that we should remember our book experience, when there were always not enough books in childhood. Especially the ones you really wanted to read. I run courses for children where we do group calculations, we have our own library that fits on a chair. These are books from my home library that have gone through a rigorous selection: they will definitely appeal to children who do not like and do not want to read. Children come, sit down, see some books, they are interested in taking them and looking at them, but I don’t let them do it. They say, “Please, please, can I? If I don’t take it now, then Petya will take this book later.” I say: "No, now we have a lesson, we are doing other interesting things." And when they see that the books cannot be freely approached, then after the lesson they scatter in a second. A mob runs up, they take everything apart and take it home. Moreover, the children know that next time I will ask what this book was about.

Parents who read in front of their children are very rare. Use these moments to talk to him about the book you are reading right now, or even try reading out snippets. For example, my daughter once loved sheep very much, and I was reading Sheep Hunt by Haruki Murakami just at that time. When she found out about this, she said: “Sheep are being killed there, I feel sorry for them.” I offered to read a fragment of the book aloud to her so that she would see that no one was being killed there. I read the description of the pasture to her, and she was so delighted: her mother let her touch her book.

You can discuss books with other adults in front of children. I discuss books on the phone with my mother

We have similar tastes, my mother likes modern Russian women's prose, for example, Marina Stepanova. We call her and discuss some books, and the children hear it all.

Parents spend the whole day at work, and if after that they read aloud to their children for at least ten minutes, this becomes a powerful lock that holds relationships together. You can also not only read aloud, but also record reading on a voice recorder. The phone is not suitable for this, because it will switch attention to itself all the time. There is only one button on the voice recorder - turn it on and off.

Dad sits down, reads aloud to them, all this is recorded on a dictaphone. One chapter in a children's book lasts an average of 10-15 minutes, this time is enough for the event called "evening reading" to take place. When dad leaves for a business trip, the children listen to the recordings. They turn it on when they eat, when they draw. This is not just a text, this is a memory of how good it was with dad in the evening.

Audiobooks are a relief for children who are not very confident and see mostly letters, not images. They first get used to, and then return to a paper book. This mechanism also works with films (yes, yes). Children first watch the movie, find out how it all ends there, and then take the book and read it. It happens that children take the book even after performances. The host of the theater studio told how she staged "Uncle Vanya" with teenagers, and then a boy came to her and asked: "Is it possible to read this somewhere?" So a well-read audiobook, especially if you listen to it with your parents and discuss the plot, can also help instill a love of reading.

Take a picture or draw your child, stick it on a piece of paper and write: "This is Kolya." Then take a picture of how he eats and write: "Kolya eats." Then you can take a picture of how he sleeps, plays, and so on. Make such a book and show a child at the age of three - let him look at all this. When he is four years old, he will understand that letters can somehow be put together into words and will start trying to do it. Reading about yourself is always more interesting. My daughter is 12 years old, and she sits down with pleasure herself and reads a book about what she did nine years ago: she sculpted hedgehogs, kneaded the dough, molded cookies from it.

In my lessons I set aside 15 minutes and we write a book about ourselves. I give simple phrases that need to be completed: "Once I went ...", "And suddenly I saw ...", "Here I meet ...". It takes a little time, but it works very well. Children can write whole volumes about themselves.

In fact, for students who have difficulty in reading, it can be like writing classes - this is a good way to overcome reading difficulties. It seems that the child is learning to write, but at the same time learning to read. I had a girl on the course who stuttered and skipped words when reading. But when I read my text, I did not miss a single word. For her it was very important.

Take the list of literature, a pen and first of all cross out the books that the child definitely does not need. During communication with the teacher, you can understand what he wanted, including this or that book in the list. For example, in the first grade in our textbook there was a fragment from The Hobbit. The teacher decided that since there is a piece from Tolkien, then you need to read the whole book. I say, "Sorry, guys," and cross it out. We tried to watch a movie based on the book, but the children didn't get it: they were just scared.

Then cross out all the books that the children know by heart. In the first grade, along with The Hobbit, we came across Little Red Riding Hood. I crossed out this book because we know it very well. Next, we select books that can be replaced with audiobooks and films. If the child is not drawn to reading Pinocchio, just show him the film. The plot will be postponed, and when the text from the book comes across to him in the textbook, the child will cope with it, because he will be six months or a year older.

Then choose the books you will read aloud. It was the same with Garin-Mikhailovsky's The Childhood of the Theme. My daughter got it in the second grade, and I realized that she would not pull it.

There remains a small sample of books that the child can read on his own. You take this list and say: “Look, here the teacher recommended these books. Which of these would be the most interesting for you to read?”. He chooses and you start reading. One summer, our son read one or two books, but at the very least, we replenished our cultural baggage. Often parents are afraid that they will come to school in September and they will be asked if the child has read the entire list. Just answer that you didn't read everything. There is nothing terrible in this.

• Marina Aromshtam "Read!" - a book that will give parents answers to many questions.
• Yulia Kuznetsova Calculation. How to help your child love reading ”- a book about how parents can help children love books.
• Aidan Chambers “Tell me. We read, think, discuss” - the author tells how to communicate with children through books. What questions can be asked to children so that they talk about what they read and at the same time do not feel that they are being examined ( an excerpt from the book read here ).
• Daniel Pennack "Like a Novel" - for parents who are worried that their child does not read.
• Papmambuk - is an excellent site with useful materials about children's reading.

Listen to the full interview with Yulia Kuznetsova here. The conversation took place on the air of "Radio School" - the "Mela" project and the radio station "Moscow Speaks" about education and upbringing. The guests of the studio are teachers, psychologists, scientists and other experts. The program airs on Sundays at 4:00 pm on the radio "Moscow Speaking".

Illustrations: Shutterstock (oriol san julian, Kat Buslaeva)

Read online “100 promises to my child. How to be the best parent in the world, Mallika Chopra - Litres

To my mother, Rita Chopra, who embodies all the mothering qualities I hope to have in my life.

And to my precious daughters, Tara and Lila, who awakened in my heart and soul a love that I could not even imagine

Every child born is proof that God has not yet given up on people.

Rabindranath Tagore

Mallika Chopra

100 Promises To My Child

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without the written permission of the copyright holders.

Foreword

Deepak Chopra

I was studying medicine at the height of the revolution - it was an internal revolution to change the world's attitude towards healing.

Modern scientific medicine has gained incredible power thanks to the mechanistic approach to the treatment of diseases, and although this approach has allowed us to defeat such serious epidemic diseases as polio, smallpox, malaria, tuberculosis, etc., today we are dealing with new, not less serious epidemics: cardiovascular disease, cancer, alcohol and drug addiction, AIDS, sociopathic and psychopathic disorders. We live in a world that literally screams in pain and despair - unstable relationships, dysfunctional or incomplete families, unfulfilled dreams have become the norm. Mother Earth herself is seriously ill: every day some kind of animal disappears; the air we breathe is dirtier than ever; our forest, mineral and fossil fuel resources are depleted; The greenhouse effect causes ocean levels to rise – hurricanes and floods devastate vast areas from Honduras to Bangladesh. Perhaps all these disasters are the consequences of a deep crisis of the very foundations of our being, a disease of our collective soul?

Early in my study of medicine, I realized that the mechanistic approach of modern science had produced a generation of excellent technicians who knew everything about the human body, but who could not be called healers because they knew nothing about the human soul. The spiritual experience of many generations suggests that the essence of the human soul is pure love, and that love is not just an emotion, but the fundamental principle of the entire created world: love heals, love brings back to life, love gives us a sense of protection, it inspires us to great deeds and conquers fear, even the fear of death. Love is the binding substance of the universe.

Being a doctor myself, I know about the healing power of love. When the emotional energy of love is exchanged between people, their inner worlds resonate with each other, and this resonance is observed at all levels - biological rhythms, sleep / wake cycles, the activity of the immune and endocrine systems are synchronized and “closed” on each other. The same happens with thoughts, emotions, dreams, aspirations and worldviews. Dr. Thomas Lewis, a psychiatrist at the University of California San Francisco School of Medicine, defines this phenomenon as limbic resonance. Limbic resonance, limbic regulation, and limbic revision, according to Dr. Lewis, are the most important components of healing. Limbic resonance means that your inner world is in tune with the inner world of another person; limbic regulation means the synchronization of the biological functions of two people. Limbic revision is a direct change in the structure of neural networks, in which the areas of our brain responsible for emotions are restructured, and we literally become one with those we love: our biological systems, processes of cognition and perception, our emotional worlds merge, together create and develop, and we become healers for each other and for the rest of the world.

When my children were growing up, I intuitively understood that the most important thing that my wife and I can do for them is to develop in them adequate self-esteem, self-confidence and a sense of security that arises as a result of a direct feeling of the essence of their soul, which is in love, insight, joy and peace, which is more important than intelligent reflection.

When my daughter, Mallika, was pregnant, she took her intuitive understanding [of motherhood] to an even deeper level by consciously formulating 100 promises to her child. Today it is already known that the thoughts, emotions and aspirations of a pregnant woman directly affect the physiological development of the child in her womb and that this influence only intensifies when the child is born, as well as with its further development and maturation - through games, emotional interaction, storytelling. stories and body language. When a mother feels anxious, the baby in her womb responds with a racing heart, increased blood pressure, adrenaline, and cortisol levels in the blood. The personality of the future adult is formed under the influence of the emotions and worldview of his mother, therefore, making a promise to her child, the mother directly affects his physical and emotional development and, ultimately, how his relationships with other people and with the world as a whole will develop. A mother must learn to tune in to the inner world of her child, to achieve a harmonious resonance with him; the mother needs to consolidate this bond with the child that makes them one, and subsequently participate in the further transformation and development of the new human being - and in this process the mother experiences her own transformations and development. Mother and child help each other's inner and outer worlds to coexist and develop harmoniously: their biological rhythms, healing mechanisms and homeostatic reactions are "tied" to each other, and thus they weave a fabric of shared experience.

The greatest spiritual wisdom says that the world is an extension of ourselves. If every mother could come to an agreement with her child in advance, the world would completely change - after all, every terrorist was once a child, like every saint - the fate of the world depends on the choice that mothers make.

Politicians or, for that matter, scientists have never really succeeded in changing the world - the mothers of the world hold the key to healing our planet, so let's promise ourselves that we will help them keep their promises.

Acknowledgments

As the old African saying goes, it takes a whole village to raise a child. In many ways, writing a book is just as much a shared endeavor, as ideas, inspiration, and support come from so many people, and I would like to express my gratitude to the following people for their help in bringing this book to life.

To my father, Deepak Chopra, who always gave me moral support and made me feel confident that I could do anything.

To my mother, Rita Chopra, who makes life so carefree, selflessly caring for everyone and everything in our world with all her devoted, calm and boundless love.

To my husband, Sumanth Mandal, who believed in my abilities and pushed me to achieve what I considered impossible dreams.

Gotham Chopra, my younger brother, who became my best friend, advisor and companion.

Neelam and Suresh Mandal, who adopted me as a daughter, giving me their love and admiration.

Candace Chen and Hemantu Mandal, who, thanks to sincere friendship and love, have become like a sister and brother to me.

Sayantani Dasgupta, Grace Rwaramba, Sarah Ross and Edith Lee are my dear friends, fellow writers, mothers and mothers-to-be - whose honest criticism, stories and reflections are invaluable to me.

to Linda Lowenthal, my agent, who sensed the potential of this book and gave me the confidence to take it to the next level, and to Heather Jackson, my editor, whose own experience of pregnancy and motherhood was such a delightful opportunity to exchange ideas.

Introduction

A few years ago, when I discovered that I was pregnant, it was one of the happiest and most exciting moments in my life: the feeling that a living being was growing inside me gave me awe; I imagined for hours what my baby would look like, talked to her, sang songs to her, caressed her and, together with my husband, Sumant, made plans for our new family.

However, along with my love for my unborn child, my fears about whether I could become a good mother grew every day - will I be able to properly care for the baby? Will I make her happy or unhappy? How can I teach her to treat other people well, how to give her a sense of protection, instill confidence that she is on the right track? And what is the right way? Thoughts about responsibility, about how to be a good mother, completely took over me.

And that's when I felt - probably deeper and more sincerely than ever - my gratitude to my parents, Rita and Deepak Chopra, for their protection, patience, love and support that they gave me when I was a child. For most of my life, people have asked me, “What is it like being Deepak Chopra’s daughter?” or “How did your parents instill spiritual values ​​and ideas in you and your brother, Gotham, when you were children?” Of course, for Gotham and me, my father was always just our father, and my mother was just our mother - we never thought about what it is like to be the children of such parents, or how we are different from others.

But as I was preparing to become a mother myself, I began to think more often about how our parents raised us, how we always felt loved, and how easy it was for us to communicate with each other. Because my father was a spiritual teacher and writer and eager to share his knowledge with us, I learned at a young age that love and compassion are at the core of everything in this life.

Gotham and I had a wonderful childhood - not only because we constantly met amazing people, but also because we were taught to look at the world through the prism of magic, with curiosity and passion. And it is very likely that this upbringing gave rise in me during pregnancy to the desire to agree with myself to try to bring into my own life what I learned from my parents, as well as from other family members, my ancestors, friends and from my own life experience. . I dreamed that Tara would have a childhood full of miracles, magic, adventures and secrets, and intuitively I felt that I needed to start this childhood now, while she was still a part of me - for some reason I was sure that she heard me.

My desire to connect with my unborn child was consistent with my scientific knowledge that the quality of love and support felt by a child - even in the womb - subsequently affects his health, self-esteem, self-confidence and determines his behavior in life. I was well aware - intellectually - that my child and I are connected to each other at every level of existence, but now I began to directly feel my future child as an extension of myself - my body, my consciousness, my soul.

And I started writing down promises to myself and my baby, inspired by all the love and hope I had for her and anticipation of what she would grow up to be. As I formulated these promises, I realized that each of them arose from something that I had experienced or learned about myself. I also began writing down stories, memories, and lessons that I would like to share with Tara when she grows up, as well as formulating all the values ​​and aspirations that I will need to adhere to when facing the challenges of motherhood. As a result, I began to feel that as I write it all down, our connection with the baby becomes stronger and deeper; this bond has only been strengthened since Tara's birth and continues to form as she matures. I feel that my love for Tara is reflected in her love for me, and I know that we are both constantly growing and developing together.

Tara is now two years old; for a whole year after her birth, the book I had planned was put aside - I completely immersed myself in motherhood. I loved this job - being Tara's mother - more than anything in my life; I also realized that some aspects of motherhood come naturally, while others are difficult - great difficulties that require patience, determination and mutual understanding to overcome. And, frankly, some of the promises I made to Tara from the beginning turned out to be unfulfilled (for example, the promise to never say no to her).

When Tara began to interact more actively with the outside world and absorb information from the outside, I decided to “refresh” the promises I had made - I wanted to remind myself of what I had already promised, and even write down new promises. A few weeks after I returned to my promises, I discovered that I was pregnant again! And it was hardly a mere coincidence - because my desire to write a book was fueled by my love for Tara, and now for a new baby, Lila, who was starting to grow inside me.

In all this time, I have learned that the bond between parent and child is one of the most important bonds between two human beings. Parenting today is very diverse and comes with its own set of challenges – an abundance of single parents, divorced parents, parents from different cultures, adoptive parents who are older or younger than usual; many people, in addition, are forced to combine full-time employment with the upbringing of children, etc. - but no matter what category of parents we belong to, we are all united by the role that we play in shaping the pure consciousness of the future generation. We parents have a chance to raise new citizens of the world who can change this world; In a world so often subject to fear and violence, the role of parents becomes even more important. If we all promise to teach our children love, respect, honesty and tolerance, we can play our part in creating a new, more prosperous, serene and responsive world in which our children will live.

My dear little ones, Tara and Lila!

Both of you changed my life forever - you blessed me with your sacred presence and awakened in me a love that knows no bounds.

I cherish the memories of how I felt you inside me - full of awe from the realization that a new life is developing in me and the miracle of creating a new person is happening. You made me feel absolutely alive, humble, inspired and divine.

I just look at you and my heart melts with joy and love - I admire your every move, every cry and smile, every word - every moment of your existence. Despite all my insecurities, all my sleepless nights, all the difficulties of adjusting to a new way of life, all my doubts about whether I was raising you right, I never doubted that you are the greatest and most secret gift of all that I have ever or received.

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