Turning the page: Increasing young children's preference for looking at and engaging with books

Loomis et al. (2026) worked with six preschoolers who had various disabilities. None of the kids chose books during free play.

The team used a multiple-baseline design across children. Every time a child touched or looked at a book, the teacher gave immediate praise, smiles, and brief play with toy characters from the story.

Sessions happened in the classroom book corner. The goal was to see if steady social reinforcement could turn books into something the children wanted.

All six children began to pick up books and sit with them after only a few sessions. The behavior stayed high even when reinforcement slowed.

The new preference also showed up during free-choice play outside the reading corner. Parents later reported the kids asked for books at home.

Bradshaw et al. (2011) got the same outcome without giving a single reinforcer. Their children simply watched a peer earn book time and then started choosing books themselves. The two studies look opposite—one uses pure observation, the other uses steady rewards. The difference is pathway: observation works when kids already attend to peers; continuous reinforcement works when they do not.

Ward-Horner et al. (2017) showed that preschoolers with autism switch to liking continuous schedules if the reinforcer is strong enough. Loomis et al. (2026) applied that idea in a natural classroom task and confirmed it works for book engagement.

Dababnah et al. (2025) reviewed home reading with autistic preschoolers and found most families struggle to get attention on books. The Loomis procedure gives those families a simple tool: pair any brief book touch with big social praise until the child stays.

You can build book preference fast by celebrating the smallest book-directed move. Start with immediate praise, smiles, or a quick puppet pop-out right after the child touches the book. Fade the extras only after the child freely stays for five seconds. Use this at the table, on the carpet, or while waiting for the bus—any moment you want reading to beat other toys.