Reading advice for babies 0 to 12 months

You are your child’s first teacher, and babies are ready to learn from the day they are born. Reading, singing, talking and playing with your baby are the first steps in teaching your child language and communication.

Reading to your child can be a rewarding and valuable bonding experience for both of you. Babies will enjoy the physical closeness, the sound of your voice and the pictures.

Songs, books and rhymes are a fun way to increase you baby’s exposure to a variety of words and sounds, creating a language rich environment. This is a wonderful way to introduce babies to the enjoyment and rhythm of language.

Further resources:

• Find advice for more reading stages on our Literacy and reading resources for families page
• Register for the 1000 Books Before School program on our 1000 Books Before School page
• Explore more recommended reads on our Booklists page
• Visit our Baby 3 to 12 months page for more information and services for you and your child. 

Book recommendations

Programs for babies 3 to 12 months

We offer a range of events and activities for children. 

To find events and programs:

• Visit our Children's Storytimes and activities page 
• Find out about upcoming events by following our Eventbrite page-external site
• Subscribe to our newsletter by filling in our What's On newsletter subscription form-external site
• Follow our Facebook page, Twitter account, or Instagram account.