“Read a book, ask a question, start a conversation”

It’s sometimes hard to compete with screen time – whether it’s a TV show, an interactive website or video games. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation , kids under the age of 6 watch an average of about two hours of screen media a day. Kids and teens ages 8 to 18 spend nearly four hours a day in front of a TV and almost two more hours on the computer and playing video games.

So what can parents do to limit the screen time and encourage children to read?

A recent post on Business Week’s Working Parents blog offered some insights on this issue from Diane W. Frankenstein, author of “ Reading Together: Everything You Need to Know to Raise a Child Who Loves to Read .” Here are some of her thoughts and suggestions:

• - A child’s desire to learn to read comes from being read to
  - Children need confidence to be good readers and confidence comes from understanding a story
  - Be creative and find other times in a day – not just bedtime – when reading can happen. How about a poem with breakfast? How about a short story with a snack? How about one chapter with dessert after dinner?
  - A child’s reading will improve the more he or she enjoys reading
  - Keep the love of story alive. While children hone their reading skills, encourage them to return to the picture books and early reads they loved when they were little; you are never too old to read a 32-page picture book!
  - Don’t interrupt the reading of the story with explanations or editorials. A child can easily become annoyed and frustrated with too many interruptions
  - Slow down. Encourage children to read fewer books and know them well. Children need comprehension – not speed – to be good readers
  - Take the “assignment” out of reading to children and put in the pleasure of getting lost in a story together.

Do you worry that your children are spending too much time in front of the TV or computer? What do you do at home to encourage your kids to read?