Reading aloud to children is proven to have social, emotional, and behavioral benefits. Storytime is also an opportunity to incorporate physical activity into your child’s day. Plus, adding movement to storytime may get your child excited about reading.
Before you begin reading, choose five to 10 repetitive words in the book and attach an exercise to each. For example, every time you hear “red,” do five jumping jacks. It’s like Simon Says for reading. It may be helpful to draw the exercises on a white board or piece of paper for your child to reference. Practice each exercise before you begin the book to check for understanding. Here are some sample exercises using two popular Dr. Seuss books.
The Cat in the Hat
- Cat: High knees/march in place, x5
- Hat: Squats, x5
- Fun: Hop in place, x5
- Sit: Jumping jacks, x5
- Sally: Frog hops, x5
- Fish: Star jumps, x5
- Thing 1: Right foot hops, x5
- Thing 2: Left foot hops, x5
- House: Toe raises, x5
- Mother: Bicycle crunches, x5
Green Eggs and Ham
- Sam: Touch your toes
- Eggs: Reach for the sky
- Ham: Balance on right foot, count to 5
- Green: Balance on left foot, count to 5
- House: Do a dance move
- Box: Jump side to side, x5
- Car: Heel raises, x5
- Tree: Lunges, x5
- Train: Run in place, count to 5
- Rain: Jumping jacks, x5
- Goat: Star jumps, x5
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