0-2 YEARS
A meaningful beginning
Welcome little one! This is the time to share your love for reading with your little. Talk, sing, snuggle. It will all make a meaningful impact on their future reading skills.
Pick one activity to focus on each week. As you stockpile activities in your memory, play them anytime. (You're going to be the fun mom.)
TUB TIME, CAR RIDES, DINNER TIME, STROLLER RIDES, ANYTIME!
Talk
HOW: Sounds silly, but just talk.
WHY: Builds sound recognition muscles and vocabulary. Language is natural, the more they hear the more their ears will tune into the sounds.
TAG: Vocabulary, Phonological Awareness
Reading Routine
HOW: Pick the same times each day to read to your little. You can even pick the same book for certain routines, like bedtime. (Ours was The Going to Bed Book, by Sandra Boyton. Everyday for almost three years.)
WHY: Start building book awareness. Set up the love for reading now, tie it to a special time, most important 'why'- bonding.
TAG: Print & Book Awareness
Sing!
HOW: Sing songs (preferably ones that rhyme)
WHY: Start tuning your little's ear to language, more specifically sounds
TAG: Rhythm, Phonological Awareness
Recite
HOW: Recite nursery rhymes (Humpty Dumpty, Hey Diddle Diddle, etc)
WHY: Builds rhyming and predictable text skills
TAG: Phonological Awareness, Rhythm, Predictable Text
Read Rhyming Books
HOW: Pick books that have rhythm and rhyme
WHY: Tunes ear to both rhythm and rhyme (this will pay off big time!)
TAG: Phonological Awareness, Print & Book Awareness
Clap ABCs
HOW: Sing the ABC Song and clap with each letter.
WHY: This starts to bring your little's attention to each individual letter.
TAG: Alphabetic Knowledge
*The Page Turner
HOW: Let your little one be in charge! Encourage him to turn the pages as your read.
WHY: Start engagement early. Your little one will get to know stories you read often, by the pictures on the page, or your intonation and be able to learn the cue on when to turn the page.
TAG: Print & Book Awareness