Can't Get Your Child To Sit Still To Read?

You’re sitting on the couch. You’ve opened the book, you start reading. Then your child is up and moving. They're playing with toys. They're drawing. They experiment with spinning in circles, either on the floor or while standing.

Parents usually say something like, Stop moving, sit down and listen. Or maybe you've tried what my husband used to say, If you get up, I stop reading. When you sit, I keep reading. I admit, I tried it too, felt ick, and thought why?

Birds Eye View

When we pull back from the situation for a moment and look at this from a different vantage point. (The is where Story Tree comes in to help us look at raising readers from a different vantage point.) The phrases above assume that kids are only listening, if they're sitting still. What's missing from the phrases, is that kids are still listening, even when they're moving.

Movement As A Sign

For many children movement is a sign of engagement and deeper processing. It's not a sign of of a lack of interest or trying to be rude. For many children, movement is a tool for regulation. Something that helps them listen and process the information coming in to understand it better.

When a child moves, they're helping themselves process the auditory information. Their body needs to move, so their brain can focus on what they hear. When they are forced to sit still, it may actually be disrupting their ability to focus on listening to the story.

A Shift to Read the Clue

The clue isn’t that the child has bad behavior by not sitting still to listen to the story. The clue is the child needs the movement of their body to listen and understand the story. In Story Tree we Read the Clues to raise readers who love to read.

A Possible Pivot

You can ask yourself: Is my child engaged with the story?

• If they're answering questions about the story or the characters.

• If they're laughing at the funny parts in the story.

• If they're asking, What happens next?

Then they're listening and the wiggles are helping your child.

Ways to Support Your Child:

1. Let Them Move: Allow walking around the room you're reading in, dancing, or drawing/coloring on paper/coloring books or even building with toys.

2. Act It Out: Encourage them to act out scenes. Ask them if they can roar like the lion.

3. Change Positions: Read on the floor, under a blanket fort, while lying down, read outside while they swing on the swing.

4. Use Props: Let them hold the book, point to pictures, or use finger puppets.

When we remove the pressure to sit still, we remove the power struggle with our kids. We replace kids having to be told what to do and follow directions with what we say.

To meeting them with where they're currently at, which builds on creating a connection with your child and a love of reading.

Ready For More Clues beneath your child’s behavior?

Join Story Tree, designed to help you build confidence, curiosity, and connection with your child, while raising your child to love to read.