Book Week is not just for big kids. How to engage babies and toddlers at storytime
This article provides practical advice for parents on how to engage babies and toddlers during storytime. It emphasizes that even short, consistent reading sessions can significantly boost a child's literacy and cognitive development.
Why it matters
Early childhood literacy is a foundational element of long-term educational success, and parents often struggle with the practicalities of engaging very young children.
Satoshi-K/Getty Images Book Week is not just for big kids. How to engage babies and toddlers at storytime Published: August 24, 2026 12:29am EDT https://theconversation.com/book-week-is-not-just-for-big-kids-how-to-engage-babies-and-toddlers-at-storytime-289401 https://theconversation.com/book-week-is-not-just-for-big-kids-how-to-engage-babies-and-toddlers-at-storytime-289401 Link copied Share article Share article
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Book Week is a great opportunity for parents and carers to inspire a love of reading in babies and toddlers.
But sometimes very young children aren’t very engaged when adults read to them. They may become distracted and restless. They can wriggle away, scrunch up the pages or seem more interested in putting the book in their mouth than listening to the story.
This can make reading to little kids seem like a pointless exercise. Here’s how you can get the most out of storytime with babies and toddlers .
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