A grandfather and his seven-year-old granddaughter are halfway through a story when they come across something unusual.
Two young explorers have discovered a mysterious wooden door hidden inside an enormous tree. There's no handle, no keyhole, and no explanation for how it got there.
Grandpa is convinced the door leads to a secret underground laboratory.
His granddaughter has a different theory.
“It's obviously where the fairies keep their dragons.”
Grandpa raises an eyebrow. “Fairies have dragons?”
“Of course they do. But they're tiny dragons. Otherwise they wouldn't fit through the door.”
Now Grandpa wants to know whether the dragons breathe fire. His granddaughter explains that they breathe glitter instead, which is much safer when you live inside a tree.
By the time they return to the story, they've invented an entire world that didn't exist a few minutes earlier.
The next week, Grandpa asks whether she remembers the mysterious door.
She does. But what she remembers most clearly isn't necessarily what the characters discovered behind it.
It's their conversation about the glitter-breathing dragons.
That's one of the wonderful things about interactive reading. A story may begin on the page, but the experience becomes something much more personal when children and adults explore it together.
The characters, illustrations, and unexpected discoveries give them something to talk about. Their different ideas create opportunities to laugh, wonder, disagree, and imagine. And somewhere along the way, they're creating memories that belong to both of them.
What Makes Reading Interactive?
When people hear the phrase interactive reading, they sometimes imagine a digital book filled with buttons, animations, and activities that children click to make something happen.
Those features can be entertaining, but interactive reading doesn't have to involve any of them.
At its heart, interactive reading is about participation.
Instead of an adult reading while a child quietly listens, both people become involved in the experience. They notice details, ask questions, make predictions, share opinions, and occasionally take the story in an unexpected direction.
A child might interrupt to point out a tiny creature hiding in an illustration. An adult may wonder aloud why a character is behaving strangely. Together, they might try to solve a mystery before the characters do.
The story provides the starting point, but the conversation becomes part of the experience.
And participation doesn't always mean talking.
A child might draw what they imagine a mysterious creature looks like. They could choose an emoji to express how they feel about a character's decision or create a different ending to a scene.
Sometimes, the most meaningful participation is simply noticing something the other person missed.
These little contributions help children feel that they aren't just receiving a story. They're sharing it with someone.
Why Children Remember the Moments Around a Story
Think about a favorite childhood memory involving a book.
You might remember the story itself, but there's a good chance you also remember something about the person who shared it with you.
Perhaps your father gave every character a ridiculous voice. Your grandmother always paused before the exciting parts, making you beg her to keep reading. Or your mother laughed so hard at a particular scene that she had to start the sentence over.
Those moments became part of the experience.
A child may enjoy a story about an adventurous penguin, but the memory can become especially personal when Grandpa insists on giving the penguin an exaggerated British accent.
Every time the character appears, the child begins laughing before Grandpa has even spoken.
Weeks later, they might not remember every detail of the plot. But they remember the voice.
They remember Grandpa laughing with them.
Interactive reading creates opportunities for these personal moments because the experience isn't exactly the same every time or with every person.
Two people may read the same book and notice completely different things. One child may become fascinated with a mysterious object in the background, while another wants to know why the main character looks worried.
An adult's response can lead to a funny exchange, an unexpected discovery, or a conversation that continues long after the story ends.
The book gives everyone something to share, but their personalities make the experience unique.
A Story Becomes More Memorable When Children Help Shape the Experience
Children often have wonderfully unexpected ideas about what should happen in a story.
Imagine two characters trying to cross a river without a bridge.
An adult might suggest building a raft. The child thinks they should ask a passing turtle for a ride.
The adult points out that the turtle is much too small.
“Then we need a giant turtle.”
And just like that, they've begun inventing possibilities together.
The actual story may eventually reveal that the characters find a hidden stepping-stone path. But before reaching that moment, the child has already explored several ideas and explained why they might work.
The adult has had an opportunity to listen, respond, and discover how the child approaches a problem.
Neither person has changed the written story. They've simply made the experience of reading it more collaborative.
That's an important distinction.
Interactive reading doesn't require children to control every part of the narrative. Sometimes the most engaging experiences come from wondering what will happen and then discovering whether their predictions were correct.
A child who confidently announces that a mysterious sound belongs to a dragon may be delighted to discover that it actually comes from a very small frog with an unusually loud voice.
And if Grandpa was equally convinced it was a dragon, they now have something to laugh about together.
The surprise becomes part of their shared memory.
The Best Conversations Often Begin With Curiosity
Adults sometimes worry that making reading interactive means constantly asking children questions.
They may feel pressure to pause after every page and check whether the child understands what's happening.
But when every moment becomes a question-and-answer exercise, reading can begin to feel more like schoolwork than something enjoyable to share.
The most engaging conversations often happen naturally.
A character discovers a strange object, and the child immediately wants to know what it does. An illustration reveals something unexpected, and Grandma wonders aloud whether it's a clue. A fictional animal behaves in a ridiculous way, and both readers start laughing.
Curiosity creates the conversation.
Instead of asking a formal question such as, “What lesson did you learn from this story?” an adult might say, “I can't believe he did that. What do you think is going to happen now?”
Or perhaps, “I think there's something hiding behind that tree. Do you see it?”
These invitations feel different because the adult is participating too.
They're not testing the child's knowledge or waiting for a correct answer. They're wondering, noticing, and imagining alongside them.
And sometimes the child will lead the conversation somewhere completely unexpected.
A story about a lost animal might inspire a discussion about a pet the family once had. A character who loves building things could remind a child of something they created at school.
Those conversations may wander away from the original story, but they can reveal interests, memories, and feelings that might never have come up otherwise.
The goal isn't to ask more questions.
It's to create more opportunities for genuine conversation.
Shared Reading Gives Adults a Window Into a Child's World
One of the loveliest parts of reading interactively is discovering how differently children see things.
An adult might look at an illustration and focus on the main character. A child may immediately notice a tiny purple bird perched on a branch in the background.
The adult wonders why the character looks frightened. The child is more interested in whether the bird has a name.
Neither observation is wrong.
They simply reveal different ways of experiencing the same scene.
When adults take children's observations seriously, they learn more about what captures their attention and how they interpret the world.
Perhaps a child consistently notices animals in every illustration. Another might become fascinated by maps, unusual buildings, or mysterious objects. Some children are especially interested in how characters feel, while others want to understand how things work.
These preferences can become familiar parts of the relationship.
Grandma begins looking for hidden creatures because she knows her grandson loves finding them. Dad starts making predictions because his daughter enjoys proving him wrong.
Over time, the adult isn't simply learning what kinds of books the child enjoys.
They're learning more about the child.
And the child experiences what it feels like to have someone notice and appreciate the way they think.
Interactive Reading Can Help Children Explore Feelings Together
Stories also create opportunities for children and adults to talk about emotions without putting the child directly at the center of a difficult conversation.
Imagine a story about a small creature who wants to join a group of animals playing a game but isn't sure whether they'll welcome him.
A child might immediately recognize that the creature looks nervous.
Grandpa could respond, “I wonder what would help him feel a little braver.”
The child suggests that someone should invite him to play.
Perhaps Grandpa thinks the creature might need a friend to walk over with him.
Now they're discussing kindness, courage, and friendship through the experience of a fictional character.
The conversation doesn't have to become a lesson about how children should behave.
Instead, both people can explore the situation, consider how the character might feel, and imagine what could help.
Sometimes a child will connect the story to something they've experienced. They might remember feeling nervous on the first day of school or describe a time they helped someone who was lonely.
Other times, they'll simply enjoy the story and move on.
Both experiences are valuable.
Interactive reading creates an opening for meaningful conversations, but it doesn't require every story to produce a serious discussion.
Laughter, curiosity, surprise, and imagination are just as much a part of connecting with someone.
Why Interactive Reading Is Especially Meaningful for Long-Distance Families
When families live in different homes, maintaining close relationships often requires finding new ways to share ordinary experiences.
A grandparent may not be able to stop by after school. A parent traveling for work may miss the usual bedtime routine. An aunt or uncle might live too far away to spend a spontaneous afternoon with a niece or nephew.
Video calls help families see and hear one another, but conversations with younger children don't always flow naturally.
An adult asks about school. The child gives a short answer. Another question follows, and before long, the child becomes distracted.
Interactive reading offers a different kind of connection.
Instead of relying entirely on conversation, both people have a story to focus on.
Imagine a mother traveling for work who calls her eight-year-old son from a hotel room.
They open a story about two explorers who discover an unfamiliar island. When the characters encounter a mysterious animal, the boy decides it must be a combination of a giraffe and an ostrich.
His mother thinks it looks more like a penguin with extremely long legs.
They compare their ideas, laugh at the possibilities, and continue reading to see what happens.
For those twenty minutes, the distance between them hasn't disappeared. Mom is still in a hotel room, and her son is still at home.
But they're doing something together.
They've shared a discovery, created a joke, and enjoyed a moment that belongs to their relationship.
The next evening, her son might ask whether they can find another story with a strange animal.
And now they have something to look forward to.
Familiar Stories Can Become Family Traditions
Interactive reading can be particularly meaningful when it becomes something families return to regularly.
A grandfather and granddaughter might share a story every Sunday evening. A traveling parent and child could read together whenever work schedules allow. An aunt and nephew may make Saturday morning their special adventure time.
As these experiences continue, families begin developing little traditions of their own.
Perhaps Grandpa always makes a dramatic prediction before the final page. Maybe a child insists on choosing a favorite character at the end of every story. A parent and child might keep a collection of imaginary creatures they've invented during their reading adventures.
These traditions don't need to be elaborate.
What matters is that they become familiar.
A child may begin thinking about the next story during the week, remembering a funny moment from the previous adventure, or planning something they want to tell the adult when they meet again.
That anticipation helps the relationship extend beyond the time spent reading.
And as children grow, the tradition can grow with them.
A five-year-old who enjoys spotting unusual details in illustrations may eventually become an eight-year-old who loves solving mysteries and debating what characters should do next.
The activity evolves, but the shared experience remains.
If you're looking for ways to create those familiar moments, our articles The Best Weekly Rituals for Long-Distance Families and How Families Can Read the Same Story Together Online From Different Homes explore how families can make shared reading part of their lives.
Making Interactive Reading Easier With Bailey & Beau Co.
At Bailey & Beau Co., we believe the most meaningful part of a story isn't always what happens on the page.
Sometimes it's what happens between the people sharing it.
That's one of the reasons we created our Reading Room for children ages 5–9 and the adults who love them.
The Reading Room gives two people a shared online space to experience the same story, whether they're sitting together or connecting from different homes.
Both participants can follow the story pages, notice details, make predictions, and enjoy the conversations that develop along the way.
Our stories are designed with opportunities for participation in mind.
A mysterious discovery might encourage two readers to imagine what comes next. An unusual character could inspire a funny discussion. A moment of uncertainty may invite the child and adult to consider how someone in the story might be feeling.
Participants can also use the available drawing, writing, and reaction features to add to their shared experience.
But the real interaction isn't about clicking through a story or making something happen on the screen.
It's about the conversation, laughter, imagination, and connection between the people reading.
For families who enjoy extending that sense of discovery beyond reading, our Activity Room offers opportunities to create, explore, imagine, and solve problems together.
Both experiences are designed around approximately twenty minutes of shared time, making it easier for families to enjoy something meaningful together without needing to plan an elaborate activity.
The goal isn't simply to keep children occupied.
It's to give them and the people they love something they can genuinely share.
You Don't Have to Make Every Story Extraordinary
It's easy to imagine that creating lasting memories requires something special.
A particularly exciting book. An elaborate activity. A perfectly planned evening when everyone is enthusiastic and nothing interrupts the experience.
But family life rarely works that way.
Some days, a child will be excited to read and eager to share every thought that comes into their head. Other days, they'll be tired, distracted, or more interested in showing Grandma something they made at school.
That's normal.
Interactive reading doesn't need to follow a rigid formula.
If a child wants to spend several minutes discussing one illustration, enjoy the conversation. If they make a funny observation that sends everyone into a fit of laughter, there's no need to rush to the next page.
And if the story doesn't get finished, it can wait.
The purpose isn't to complete a certain number of books or turn every reading session into a memorable event.
It's to create opportunities for connection.
Sometimes a wonderful shared moment will happen unexpectedly. Other times, the experience will be simple and quiet.
Both can have a place in family life.
And over time, those ordinary moments may become more meaningful than anyone realized while they were happening.
The Memories We Make Between the Pages
Years from now, a child may not remember every character or every detail of the stories they read with someone they love.
They may forget exactly how the mysterious door opened or what the explorers discovered at the end of their adventure.
But they might remember Grandpa's ridiculous theory about the tiny dragons.
They might remember how Mom always tried to solve the mystery before they did, or how Aunt Sarah laughed whenever they invented a particularly silly character.
They may remember being asked what they thought, having someone listen to their ideas, and discovering that their imagination could make another person laugh.
Those are the moments that make reading together something more than an activity.
The story gives two people a place to begin, but their conversations, discoveries, and laughter make the experience their own.
And when those experiences happen again and again, they become part of the relationship itself.
Because the most lasting memories aren't always found in the stories we read.
Sometimes, they're created in the moments we share between the pages.