Voices, Interruptions, and Fidgets: Mastering the Read-Aloud Experience

Have you ever felt self-conscious reading aloud to your child? That strange feeling of performing for an audience, struggling with character voices, or wondering if you're "doing it right" when your child interrupts or wanders off mid-story? You're not alone.

Reading aloud transforms both reader and listener, but rarely in the picture-perfect way we imagine. Drawing from my own journey—from awkwardly reading Roald Dahl to my newborn to now sharing magical reading moments with my children—I unpack the essential elements that make read-aloud time meaningful rather than merely performative.

The foundation begins with selecting books that spark joy for both of you. Children intuitively sense when adults are genuinely engaged versus going through the motions. Reading slowly allows young minds to absorb language and create mental images, while simple voice variations—changing volume, pitch, or pace—create character distinction without requiring theatrical training. Those dreaded interruptions? They're actually signs of deep engagement, often leading to meaningful conversations about school, friendships, or worries that wouldn't emerge through direct questioning.

Perhaps most reassuring is understanding that movement during storytime is normal and beneficial. Research shows many children absorb stories better when their bodies are active. That child doing cartwheels during Charlotte's Web might remember more details than the one sitting perfectly still! The goal isn't perfect execution but connection—creating a foundation for lifelong reading and relationship building.

Whether you're reading to a newborn, a fidgety toddler, or a questioning school-aged child, remember that your unique reading journey, with all its beautiful imperfections, is exactly what your child needs. Follow me on Instagram @TeaTalesandTomes for more bookish inspiration!

Find us on Instagram @teatalesandtomes and don't forget to join us next time for more bookish wonder.

Podcast music by Lundstroem (Episode 1 onwards) and Audionautix (TTAT Trailer). Podcast edited by Timothy Wiggill.

Chapters

• 0:00 Welcome to Tea Tales and Tomes
• 1:00 The Awkwardness of Reading Aloud
• 4:44 Choose Books You Enjoy Too
• 6:18 Pace and Voices: Simple Techniques
• 9:38 Embracing Interruptions During Reading
• 12:54 Active Listeners: When Kids Move Around
• 16:05 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

Transcript

Natasha: 0:12

Hello bookish friends. This is Natasha and you're listening to Tea Tales and Tomes where we are living our favorite lives talking books and drinking hot beverages. So grab your cuppa and let's talk books. It's a beautifully rainy day in Durban, south Africa, so while it's an awesome day to read and talk about books, it's probably not the best day to record a podcast, but I'm doing it anyway because I really wanted to talk about this really important topic, which I'll get to in a moment. But in case you're wondering what that pitter-patter is in the background, it's the rain and you might hear it, unless my awesome editor, timothy Wiggle, is able to edit it out. Thanks, Tim.

Natasha: 1:00

So, like I said, today we're talking about the ins and outs of reading aloud, how to read a book. Are you furrowing your brows at why I would talk about how to read a book? I bet you wouldn't believe that this is probably the most frequent question I get asked Not ever in those exact words. So my friends with newborns or those with kids that are just starting to show an interest in books and being read to, or those with kids that are just starting to show an interest in books and being read to, may wonder at how I quote-unquote get my kids to be so enraptured during read-aloud times, or how I manage all the constant interruptions or the initial awkwardness or the voices you name it. Essentially, how do you read this book aloud? So we're not talking about decoding the language or the ability to read Obviously decoding matters but for the most part, adults are able to read. A recent study showed that 90% of adults in South Africa are literate and the global literacy average is about 86.3%, so that's a pretty decent number. But when it comes to reading aloud to someone, things can sometimes feel a little odd and get a little messy. So let's unpack this a little while we drink our tea.

Natasha: 2:23

I mentioned this, I think, in episode one. I started reading Roald Dahl to my newborn, freshly out of my tummy. The selection of the book for me was simply because it was something I had on my shelf, something I was familiar with and something that I loved as a kid. But despite my familiarity with the stories, reading them aloud felt super awkward. Initially. I felt as if I was learning to speak another language. There were stop starts. I felt like I had never actually read Dahl before. Heck, it felt like I had never really read any book before. The strangest and perhaps funniest part of all and I can laugh at myself now in retrospect was sometimes my mom or my husband would be in the room with me and I genuinely felt like I wanted to hide under the covers because I was so self-conscious.

Natasha: 3:11

Who reads aloud? I mean, it's not something that we do on the daily. So I think I may have read the book like a robot. I was reading words and sentences and literally just getting through the story and I must admit that I didn't enjoy it. Initially I would go as far as saying that in that robotic manner I didn't really take in much of the story at all. But slowly the awkwardness went away and we were ultimately in that bubble of words, a space of comfort in the solitude and stress of being a first-time mom.

Natasha: 3:43

So now I'm reading and I'm reading Kid. So now I'm reading and I'm reading. Kid is attached to my boob and I'm reading. He falls asleep and I'm still reading. He's fussing and I'm reading and it's starting to make me have some real thoughts about the appropriateness of Roald Dahl for little children. Again another story.

Natasha: 4:00

A part of my sleep adult mom brain is also seriously criticizing myself for my boring monotone and thinking yikes. This is really complex. How do I do all of these voices, you know? And if I am doing the voices, how do I remember which character is speaking in which voice? How do I know if I'm reading at the right pace? I don't know. I wasn't even thinking about pace. I was reading the book out loud, like I read it to myself. Thankfully, I have come a long way from then, and this is what this episode is all about. I just want to share that knowledge with you. So the number one rule for me when reading out loud is to always choose a book that you enjoy too. That's the number one rule. If something is not working for you and it may be the greatest in terms of kid literature just leave it aside. If it's not working for you, your kid can pick it up when they are able to read.

Natasha: 4:59

Reading aloud must be pleasurable for the reader and for the listener, and when I was reading Roald Dahl out loud to my newborn, I kept finding myself questioning my taste in books. Roald Dahl is brilliant and quirky and wildly imaginative for the most part, but some of the books also have some seriously questionable content. The adults are generally awful in the books, and some books like Ezio Trott, in my opinion, should never really be read to a kid, unless we are reading it as a lesson in what not to do to win someone's affection. This is a whole episode in itself, so I'm going to park it there. Bottom line is that kids are super intuitive and they will know when you are not into a book that you're reading and that will detract from their reading experience, even if you are there physically. They will know when you've checked out mentally and if you cannot make yourself excited about something, they're not going to get excited about it either. So always find good books and choose the books that are enjoyable for yourself and your kid. Luckily, you're here at Tea Tales and Tomes, and that's exactly what we do. Secondly, on the subject of pace, slower is always better, especially for the youngest readers. Slow down your pace and allow yourself to just relax into the book. Remember, we want those stories to go into their ears and for the words and sentences to create beautiful images in their minds. Just let it happen.

Natasha: 6:35

The aim of reading is not to finish a book. It never is, not even as adults. The aim is always enjoyment, and the aim of reading aloud is to build connections with our loved ones. It is not to finish that reading challenge. But what about voices? So at the beginning of my read aloud journey, the idea of doing voices was a huge conundrum to me. I could maybe do a really bad British accent, a terrible Russian accent or an exaggerated and very un-PC South Asian accent, and ultimately, everything will end up sounding exactly the same and everyone will end up sounding exactly the same. So what can you do if you, like me, are not the best with voices and accents? So as you keep reading aloud to your kids, you will develop your own box of tricks when it comes to voices, to let them know where you are, to make the story more interesting.

Natasha: 7:36

To make the story more interesting and some of the things that work really well for me are really slowing down my pace if reading for some characters or parts of the story, especially if it's a tortoise or a snail or a sloth or a teenage kid and speeding it up for foster animal creatures or kids that have personalities that are more boisterous or excitable or in a part of a story that's getting really exciting. And this also works really, really well for all types of stories. For example, if you're reading a mystery and kids are creeping into a deserted house, I would go really slowly and just as the reveal is about to happen I would speed it up to increase the excitement. Another trick is to speak really softly for some characters, sort of in a soft or a very low whisper for animals like mice or moles or timid kids, and to speak a little louder for lions or elephants or human characters that are more boisterous or extroverted. I will sometimes also speak in a really high-pitched way for certain bad guys or in a very deep voice for other characters. Guys, my kids just eat it up. I know I'm being a total clown and if there are adults around listening to me read, they usually will have a little giggle. That's what I'm here for. I'm the class clown, but I absolutely love it. Now the best part is that my kids will now also try these voices when they're reading, and they are usually better than me sometimes. So I think you get the picture. Most importantly, you don't need to do voices. I'm super envious if you can, but you don't need to. You can just read the book in your own voice, with the right level of enthusiasm, at the right pace, and your kids are going to love just having that moment with you and with that story.

Natasha: 9:34

Let's move on now to the Interrupting Chickens. Do you know that book? By the way, if I remember correctly, interrupting Chickens is by an author named David Ezra Stane, so it's a fabulous tale about a chicken, a chick, that keeps interrupting their dad at bedtime when dad is reading a bedtime story. Does that sound too familiar to you? Are you even doing it right? If your read aloud, time is not constantly interrupted by random thoughts of your kids, sudden conversations and tons of questions. If you do have a child that never interrupts, please, please, can you tell me what the secret is? Interrupts, please, please, can you tell me what the secret is. But you know what I'm going to. Let you in on a little secret.

Natasha: 10:20

If you have a child that is interrupting with questions or conversations, or who wants to linger on a picture or a page, or who wants to go back three pages or wants you to read something again because it was so good, you have the makings of a great reader. That child is going to be a spectacular reader and storyteller. That child is showing deep interest and we, as adults reading aloud, have to just sit with that and let it be. We might even learn a thing or two, because our kids are hugely perceptive and they will see things differently to us. Another secret the aim of any read aloud is not to get through a book. So my husband used to find it quite irksome when he was reading a book aloud that he himself was interested in, but the kids wanted to linger or go back or have chosen that time to now get into a really deep conversation about something that happened during their day.

Natasha: 11:24

Accepting that the aim of A Read Aloud is to build lasting and meaningful connections with our children and not to finish a book is a life changer. So I have got kids that really don't like to unpack their days. When I pick them up from school, whether they've had a good day or a bad day or an average day, they're tired, they need their downtime and they usually want to sit in silence while they eat a snack and listen to an audiobook. However, when we are all more regulated at night and they've rested and their tummies are full and we are in our safe bubble of stories, sometimes these moments of connection will more than often cause them to open up about what happened at school, for better, for worse, whatever it is. Sometimes something in the story that we're reading may cause them to ask a question. That takes us to some far off place. The story is abandoned for now and we are discussing something that really matters to them. Bottom line is embrace the interruptions, stay there, go along for the ride, dwell as long as you need to. We also know that we don't have infinite amounts of time to just sit there with this unfinished story, but just tell your kids that you've loved of time to just sit there with this unfinished story. But just tell your kids that you've loved being able to explore this topic with them, or to explore this page for so long or this paragraph for so long. But also let them know that you won't be able to finish the story today and you will pick it up again tomorrow. So now you're reading.

Natasha: 12:54

Okay, what happens when you have a child who appears to be showing zero interest and goes on walkabout while you're mid-story? They want to go here and there. They may occasionally come back and read or look at the pictures, but then they're back at it. So I've got two kids with absolutely different personalities. My eldest can sit next to me and read a stack of book for hours and hours and hours and he will just sit there and listen and ask questions and be completely riveted by what's going on, whereas my youngest? He will be standing on his head, he'll be upside down on the couch, he will walk a little bit and pick up a little toy car to play with, he will do cartwheels, he will go get a sip of water and he will come back and look at the picture. He is the ultimate fidget. Does that sound familiar to you? But you know what? It has been scientifically proven that kids listen better, understand better and take in more when they are moving their bodies, particularly when it comes to read-alouds.

Natasha: 14:06

So when I am listening to an audiobook, I actually cannot listen to an audiobook. If I'm just sitting there and all I'm doing is listening, I have to be doing something else. An audiobook listening for me is something that involves multitasking, whether it is I'm driving or washing dishes or doing the laundry or doing a puzzle. If I had to sit down and listen to an audiobook, I will not take anything. So this child, my youngest who is walking about and doing cartwheels and for all intents and purposes, looks as if he's completely uninterested in the story. If I had to ask him something about that story tomorrow or two weeks from now or a month from now, he will remember. He will know exactly what the characters did. He will probably even remember more than I did, and I was reading that story because that's just the way he's taking in the information. He needs to move his body.

Natasha: 15:03

So if you have a kid that is moving around while you're reading, don't think that that's them not being interested or that's them being disrespectful. Just let it happen. Obviously, you know if they've gone to another room and they can't hear you, that's a different story. Maybe that's not the time right now for the read aloud, but if they're moving about and you know that they still are coming back to you occasionally to look at a picture, let it be, because this is how they're taking in the information. They too probably need to multitask when they're listening to you and at this time you are actually that audible, you are that audiobook.

Natasha: 15:43

So we spoke about you know voices and pace, picking the right books, picking books that you enjoy, what to do about kids that interrupt and, lastly, about fidgeting and letting kids just be themselves, even if it means that your read aloud looks a little bit different to what it looks like on TV, with everyone huddled around a book and absolute silence and you're going from beginning to end. It's okay, it will look different in your family. I hope that with this episode, I've given you some tips that will be game changers in your read aloud journey. Don't forget to follow me on Instagram at Tea Tales and Tomes, and join us again next time for more bookish wonder.