A homeschooling mom of six turned her podcast into a how-to
Sarah Mackenzie started the Read-Aloud Revival podcast more than a decade ago because she saw what stories were doing for her own family, and it has grown into one of the best-known read-aloud communities online, with millions of downloads in more than 160 countries. She homeschools her six kids in the Pacific Northwest. The Read-Aloud Family is the book version of everything the podcast teaches, which she has called "a love note, of sorts" to that community.
Sarah Mackenzie with a pile of picture books, including her own A Little More Beautiful. Photo from readaloudrevival.com.
Run your read-aloud like a book club, not a reading lesson
The heart of the book is Part 2, "Connecting with Our Kids Through Books." Mackenzie's model is a book club: snacks, good questions and no worksheets or book reports. She takes on five common myths about reading aloud, shows how to fit it into a day that already has school, sports and dinner dishes, and explains how to become a "literary matchmaker" who finds the right book for each kid.
Chapter 11 is the one parents come back to. It gives ten "compelling questions" you can ask about any book, from a picture book to an epic novel, such as:
- What does the character want, and why can't they have it?
- Should the character have done that?
- What surprised you most?
- What is something you don't want to forget from this book?
They work because none has a wrong answer, which keeps the talk feeling like a conversation and not a quiz.
The book beside the Read-Aloud Revival podcast mic. Photo from readaloudrevival.com.
The book lists are sorted by age, with a fix for each age's problem
Part 3 has four chapters of book lists: ages 0 to 3, 4 to 7, 8 to 12, and teens. Each chapter starts with the problem that age brings (the toddler who will not sit still, the teen who says they are too old for it) and how to handle it, including a list of quiet things kids can do with their hands while they listen. Indexes in the back sort every recommended book by title, author and age.
Mackenzie is also a strong defender of audiobooks. She counts them as reading aloud, which helps families who spend a lot of time in the car.
Reading together. Photo from readaloudrevival.com.
It is warm and faith-tinged, and the core advice is not new
Zondervan, a Christian imprint of HarperCollins, published the book, and Mackenzie's voice carries her faith and her homeschooling life. Most of the advice works for any family, but a secular or public-school parent will notice the lens. Some reviewers pointed out that the case for reading aloud repeats what Jim Trelease made in The Read-Aloud Handbook decades earlier. What Mackenzie adds is the practical part: routines, questions and current booklists.
Hear her explain it
Mackenzie introduces the book for her publisher:
Her longer conversation on Focus on the Family about why reading aloud to your kids changes everything:
Read it with
The Enchanted Hour is the deeper case for reading aloud, written by the Wall Street Journal's children's book critic. Raising Kids Who Read explains the science behind the habit. Mackenzie's first book, Teaching from Rest, is for homeschooling parents. For a ready-made list for a mixed-age family, see read-aloud chapter books for a 9-, 6- and 3-year-old together.
