A story at bedtime? With twins?

We started out reading stories at bedtime with good intentions having read that twins (and higher order multiples) are evidently more prone to developmental delays, the most common being language delay. There are the obvious reasons such as prematurity and low birth weight, but there are also social factors affecting this too.

It is widely accepted that reading to babies and toddlers helps to stimulate their senses and builds communication and language skills. Reading to twins can be difficult and frustrating unless you have been blessed with two well-behaved little angels! What do you do when one is causing so much commotion and distracting the one that is happy to listen?

We gave up after a few months when we felt we weren't getting anywhere and just making bedtime a bit more stressful that it probably should be. Jasper is more than happy to sit and listen, and even pays attention to the pictures when the mood takes him. He'll happily sit with books during the day and is getting quite skilled at turning the pages and lifting the flaps.

Tilly, on the other hand, appears to have very little interest in books or being read to. She's too impatient to get on to the next thing, play with another toy, climb over another obstacle, or will chatter away loudly in her cot when you are trying to read!

So how do you read to twins?

We are now trying to get back into reading to the twins so here are some of the ideas that I've thought of so far:

• The most obvious option is one-on-one time. If there are two of you available, then each take one aside for some quality time where they get the sole attention of one person.
• Read two short stories. Take it in turns and have one on your lap for each story. (We haven't tried this yet but I'm hoping this will also help to teach patience!)
• Find a time when they are both relaxed. Tilly and Jasper are quite happy after mealtime, so it's the perfect time for reading while they are still imprisoned sitting happily in their highchairs.
• An extra pair of hands is always useful to quietly control one while a story is being read.

This is all I've come up with so far. For the moment we will persevere and hope that it gets easier!

If you have any other suggestions, or have found a way that works, then please feel free to share in the comments.