Some of the most precious moments in a busy schedule are spent reading a story with your child. But you can make this time even more valuable and increase what your reader gets out of it by asking a few strategic questions.
“When you ask questions during story time, it really helps children learn to be active readers and to think critically,” says Tammy Milby, Ph.D., director of reading in the Department of Education at the University of Richmond. “When parents can get kids thinking and discussing a text, it makes storytime a richer experience.”
Ask the questions following before, during, and after a story to encourage your child to think about the text in a more in-depth way. (It’s OK if they can’t read independently yet.)
Before You Read
1. What do you think might happen in this story?
“This question helps children notice and think about clues from the title and illustrations,” says Milby.
It also piques your child's interest in the book, encouraging them to recall what they know about the story’s topic and make predictions.
In general, try to keep your questions open-ended. Ask, "What do you think this story is about?" rather than, “Do you think this story is about a superhero?”
“Open-ended questions facilitate conversation and vocabulary building by giving the child the chance to formulate a full response,” says Milby.
While You Read
2. What word do you think should come next?
Every so often, cover a word in a sentence and ask this question.
“It helps with children’s syntax, because they’re indirectly noticing that they need to choose either a noun, adjective, verb, or so forth based on what helps the sentence make sense,” says Andrew DiNapoli, director of curriculum at the Baldwin School District in New York.
It also encourages observational skills because children will choose a word based on what they've learned about the story so far. If your reader thinks “rat” comes next, perhaps every sentence ends with a word that rhymes with “cat,” or there’s a rat in the picture.
3. What was that character’s name again?
Simple recall questions help you gauge a child’s reading comprehension. It’s common for your child to skim past words or names they’re not familiar with, but remembering these basic facts helps them better answer more complex questions later on, while boosting attention and memory skills. Plus, knowing all the important details will make the rest of the book more engaging and enjoyable. If necessary, flip back through the pages to find the answer together.
4. Which words do you think best describe this character?
When a child thinks about a character’s traits, they might begin to decide if they would make the same decisions as them. They also might consider how characters interact.
“Understanding those relationships leads to a better comprehension of the overall story,” says DiNapoli. “Seeing certain relationships — say, that between a mother and a child — helps the reader better understand the character’s ability to move through specific challenges and conflicts.”
5. Does anything in this book seem familiar to you?
You could also phrase this question as: “Can you make a connection between what’s happening in this book and something in your own life?”
“We want kids to make these powerful connections to their world because it helps them to better understand what’s happening around them,” says Milby.
After You Read
6. How might this story be different if it was told from another character’s point of view?
This question encourages your child’s reasoning skills.
“At this point, they’re thinking about the big ideas within the story, but also the authorial moves that were made,” says DiNapoli. “The author made a decision by telling the story from a certain point of view, but if you tell it from another character’s point of view, the plot might change.”
To answer, your child will need to consider how the characters, setting, and structure are connected.
7. Can you make up a different ending to this story?
Your child will need to reflect on what they’ve read to answer this question, and they will also need to think comprehensively about the various routes the plot could have taken.
“If the theme of the story is honesty, then they might brainstorm other solutions to the plot’s conflict that reflect that theme,” says DiNapoli.
For the more advanced reader, you may even ask, “Can you create an ending to the story that shows how the characters solved the problem differently?”
Ready for a Challenge? Try a Week of Questions
Make the experience more fun by gamifying it. Go through one question every night for a week with your reader, and see if they can complete them all. While asking what a character’s name is can be an easy way to boost recall near the beginning of the challenge, asking how a story would be different from another character’s point of view can help expand creativity near the end, after they’ve built upon their comprehension skills.
A Week of Questions
- Monday: Before you read, ask: "What do you think might happen in this story?"
- Tuesday: During reading, ask: "What word do you think should come next?"
- Wednesday: During reading, ask: "What was that character's name again?”
- Thursday: During reading, ask: "Which words do you think best describe this character?"
- Friday: During reading, ask: "Does anything in this book seem familiar to you?"
- Saturday: After reading, ask: "How might this story be different if it was told from another character's point of view?"
- Sunday: After reading, ask: "Can you make up a different ending to this story?"
At the end of the week, ask your child which question was the most fun to answer and which made them think the hardest. You may be surprised by the insights they share!
Bonus Questions for Book Lovers
If kids are ready for more questions and conversation, try:
- What was your favorite part of the story, and why?
- Which character would you most like to meet?
- What lesson do you think the author wanted readers to learn?
- Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?
Keep the momentum going and encourage a love of reading with help from our guide, which includes book recommendations by interest, tips for getting your child to read for fun, and much more. Shop great books for story time below! Find all books and activities at The Scholastic Store.
