TRELEASE'S TIPS FOR PARENTS

* Do begin reading to children as soon as possible. Use Mother Goose rhymes and songs to stimulate the infant's language and listening. Simple but boldly colored picture books arouse children's curiosity and visual sense.

* Don't read stories that you don't enjoy yourself. Your dislike will show in the reading, and that defeats your purpose.

* Do try to set aside one traditional time each day for a story. Many parents find before school or bedtime to be favorite story times.

* Don't be fooled by awards. Just because a book won an award doesn't guarantee that it will make a good read-aloud. In most cases, a book is honored for the quality of its writing, not for its read-aloud qualities.

* Do use plenty of expression when reading. If possible, change your tone of voice to fit the dialogue.

* Don't be unnerved by questions during the reading. Answer children's questions patiently. Don't put them off. Don't rush your answers.

* Fathers should make an extra effort to read to their children. Because 98 percent of primary-school teachers are women, young boys often associate reading with women and schoolwork. It is not by chance that most of the students in remedial-reading classes are boys. - From `The Read-Aloud Handbook,' by Jim Trelease

TRELEASE'S TOP READ-ALOUD BOOKS

Suitable for preschool through primary school listeners:

* `Where the Sidewalk Ends,' by Shel Silverstein

* `Charlotte's Web,' by E.B. White

* `James and the Giant Peach,' by Roald Dahl

* `The Wingdingdilly,' by Bill Peet

* `Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day,' by Judith Viorst.