The research behind personalized reading

Their story. A reason to join in.

Studies suggest that personalized books can help children get more involved when you read together.

  • New words to discover. Personalized story sections supported better word learning in a small preschool study.
  • A little more to say. Children spoke more often during personalized shared reading in a study of 35 preschoolers.
  • More smiles together. A home-reading study found more smiles and laughter from toddlers and their parents with personalized books.
Explore the three studies
  1. A small study of 18 preschoolers found better word knowledge for personalized story sections at two of three assessments.

    Word learning · First Language, 2014
  2. In a study of 35 preschoolers, personalized sections prompted a higher rate of spontaneous speech, including more references to themselves.

    Children’s speech · Journal of Pragmatics, 2014
  3. Seven parent–toddler pairs shared books at home. Both parents and children smiled and laughed more with personalized books than with comparable non-personalized books.

    Shared enjoyment · Journal of Early Childhood Literacy, 2013
A child and an adult sharing Dragon Roar

Made for one little person

A gift today. Their story for years.

Their name on the cover. Their own face in the adventure. Even their favorite outfit, brought into the illustrations from your photo. It’s a story with little details they can recognize as their own.

A birthday surprise, a grandparent’s gift, or a new bedtime favorite — a sturdy hardcover to open together and keep as they grow.

A child holding their personalized copy of Dragon Roar