The best way to set your kids up for success is to nurture a love of learning and literacy. The ability to read, understand and learn independently is a lifelong gift.
There are simple things you can do every day to teach your kids strong literacy habits. The five early literacy skills (reading, writing, talking, singing and playing) can all be woven naturally into daily routines.
1. Live by example. Let your children see you reading and learning. Modeling these habits sets an expectation in them to continue learning.
2. Read aloud. Read anything out loud—books, instructions, signs, menus, lists and everything else you see. Doing this will also show kids where they can look for information. For example, the signs in the grocery store hang from the ceiling, while the library shelves are labeled on the end.
3. Talk with your kids and encourage storytelling. Share your kids’ stories and encourage them to create their own. Learning how to tell a story to others is different from reading out loud.
4. Make reading visible and regular. Turning on subtitles when watching TV, labeling important objects, and pointing out when you reference text around you are all great ways to add more engagement in everyday situations.
5. Listening to an audiobook counts as reading. Listen to audiobooks in the car and at home. Encourage your kids to ask questions about what they hear. Grab a print copy of a book and check out the audiobook. Listen while you read the print. Some audiobooks are full-cast with different actors for each character.
6. Word games. Play word games with your kids. This can be as simple as the alphabet game when driving (find every letter A-Z in order on road trips), rhyme challenges or song-based word games. These activities help build phonological awareness in a fun way.
7. Talk about the meaning of words. When having a conversation, and a new word for your child is introduced, talk to them about what it means. They can learn a lot about breaking down words and figuring out their parts and meanings.
8. Point out and teach new words. What do you do when you run into a word you don’t know? Show your kids and explain the process.
9. Before reading a book, talk about the parts of it. Look at the cover and read the description. Talk about what they think is going to happen. Read the book and discuss it as you go. Ask them to summarize the story you just read.
10. Additional languages. Speaking, reading and writing in a language other than English helps with learning English. If you speak, read or write another language, teach your kids what you can. Exposing them to different sounds and sentence structures will help them learn.
11. Come to the library. You don’t need to own every book that sparks your interest. The library offers access to countless books and resources. Encourage them to select their own books, read in the library, and attend our programs, where we incorporate literacy into everything we do.
Add a comment to: 11 Ways to Incorporate Literacy