The Magic of Reading at Tea Time
The Magic of Tea Time
I found out about the idea of tea time when we homeschooled our children - it’s a pretty popular concept in homeschooling communities.
The basic idea of tea time is that you gather your children around the table, serve a special treat (like cookies or hot chocolate), light a candle, and read aloud to them. Simple!
But doesn’t “Tea Time” sound so much more special than “let’s read at the table?”
Friends, this is SO SIMPLE, and yet it’s effective.
We don’t do tea time on a schedule, although some families do it once a week (every Tuesday, for example). Some do it once a month. Some - like us - do it when the mood strikes and I feel like we need a little boost or sparkle added to our day.
Here are some quick tips for an effective tea time:
If you serve the cookies before your’re ready to sit down and read, they will be gone in a flash and the children will disappear. Make sure you have everything ready and on the table before you call the children.
Choose a book that will hold everyone’s interest. This might be tricky at first, and picture books are 100% good! If you have an large age/interest range in your children, try some classics. Or alternate books, rotating through each child’s interest.
Have something quiet for fast eaters to do to keep them in their seats and listening. The goal is to read to them, so if they wolf down the treat and start running around, then tea time isn’t working. Play-doh and coloring are two easy options.
Change it up every now and then and have the children read independently instead of you reading out loud. Join them with your book!
Tea time, complete with candle and hot chocolate (and coffee).
If you try out tea time I’d love to know how it goes! Please let me know in the comments or tag me on IG! And if you found this helpful, please pin or share :)
Happy reading!
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