The Girl and the Bicycle, by Mark Pett/How to Read a Book With No Words

When I first borrowed ‘The Girl and the Bicycle‘ from the library I had no idea how memorable and influential it was going to be for our family. Many times I have found myself tearing up as we progress through this sweet and touching tale. It is a wonderfully illustrated work of art that will stay with you and your kids for years to come. The illustrations are so good in fact that this book does not require text to assist the reader to understand the meaning of the story.

The story is based around a determined young girl, her tag-along brother and a friendly neighbour – oh, and of course a bike. We follow the girl on her quest for the bike and learn a valuable lesson about work and kindness. While the illustrations are clear enough for children as young as 3 to follow, you and your child will get more out of this book if you share it together.

There are parents and kids that steer away from children’s book that have no words, and occasionally I can be guilty of this if I’m not drawn to the illustrations (pun intended). If you find yourself in this category you MUST make an exception for this terrific book. And to help you out here are a few pointers on how to read a book with no words to your child.

1 Choose the book wisely

I would give this advice whether a book has words or not. Make sure you are excited to read it, your child will pick up on your excitement and respond.

2 Ask questions

Again this will aid your child whether the book has words or not. Your child’s age and personality will dictate what type of questions you ask, but really try to use questions that start with a ‘what’, ‘who’, ‘where’, ‘why’ or ‘how’. These questions will not lead to a yes or  no answer, but instead will encourage your child to think about what they are seeing and how this new picture progresses the story. For example some questions I ask when we read this book are: “What is she thinking?” and “What is he saying?” and “Why is she doing that?”

3 Know when to lead and when to follow

Some children really need to be lead along through a book like this, others with a very active imagination might get on the wrong track, as a parent you need to learn how to guide and gently help the child understand the story. While your child might not get all the small subtle nuances of the story the first time around, make sure they understand enough of what’s going on to move to the next picture.

But if your child is understanding the story and following well enough, let them lead you. Sit back and admire your clever, sweet child as they experience the joy that comes from a wonderfully well told story.