READING: AGES 0-3
Nurturing a Good
Reader
Today's Snack: (Age-appropriate!) Teach your
child that the warmth in a toaster that can turn a plain piece of bread into a
yummy piece of cinnamon toast is like the love of a mother or father for a
child, or the love of one friend for another. Toast that slice of bread, and
lovingly spread a little soft butter on it, and sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar.
This is yummy when it comes with a cup of warm cocoa!
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Supplies:
Print out this tip sheet, and tape
to the inside of a cupboard
where you might keep books
Security. It doesn't seem like there's any link between constantly soothing and
cuddling a newborn baby, and producing a student years later who really loves
to read and can learn really fast. But it's for real. The more you can do to help
your newborn feel secure so he or she learns to trust you to take care of him
or her, the sooner that infant starts paying attention to the world at large. A
child who feels safe is a child who can devote energy to learning. Security
comes from familiar faces, familiar surroundings, no loud noises, no arguing,
prompt diaper changes, meals on a regular schedule, and so forth. Some people
even believe in the rule "six months under the blanket." They try NOT to take a
baby outside the home for six months!
Baby talk. People may mistake your baby talk as nonsense. But
there's a lot more going on with baby talk than meaningless goo-goo and
pattycake. You are setting up your child for interactive learning skills -
learning by listening, seeing, touching, and responding in conversation - even
if the syllables don't make sense for a while. So talk to your baby whenever he
or she is awake. A really great way to communicate is to sing to him or her, softly.
Babies love to hear your voice and will try to imitate the sounds and tones you
make. The sooner your baby starts to try to talk, the sooner your baby's brain
will organize itself into a vocabulary-memorization machine. And that's REALLY
good! To encourage that process, show your infant that what he or she says is
important. Exaggerate your delight or surprise to encourage your baby to try
more and more to speak and communicate. When he or she coos or babbles, repeat
the sounds made. But if your baby turns away or rubs his or her eyes, that's
your clue that Baby is "maxed out," and you should stop.
Label Baby's world. Chitter-chatter as you go about your daily routine
is really great for your baby to hear. Set up your child in an infant seat,
bounce chair or other safe perch from which to watch you . . . and listen to
you. Describe what you're doing, and tell him or her the names of things.
Phrases such as, "Here is your bottle" and "Put your arm in your jacket," give
babies a beginning vocabulary. As your child grows, you can gradually make your
end of the conversation more complex, requiring more thinking and
problem-solving to respond - even if your child doesn't have a lot of words yet
and can only point or gesture back. The whole time, he or she will be building a
bank of words to call upon when learning to speak and read.
Rhyming songs and games. There's a lot of language power in nursery rhymes.
Our language is very rhythmic, and those simple little poems pack a punch in
developing your child's grasp of the pattern of words that come together into
meaning. So . . . recite and sing Mother Goose poems as you gently rock or
bounce your baby. Play Pat-a-Cake, Peek-a-Boo, and This Little Piggy. As your
child gets older and can say words, you can have fun creating little rhymes
with your child, and coming up with new endings for lines of verse that are
really funny. The more practice your young child has on mastering the sounds
that our alphabet letters make, the easier it will be for him or her to
recognize the written symbols for those alphabet-based sounds - which we call
"written text."
First Books. Buy chubby, hard-to-damage board books and let your young child hold
them and play with them. These first books should be inexpensive enough for
your baby to chew on them, throw them on the floor, or whatever.
Start a Read-Aloud Habit Early. Cuddle your baby and read books with pictures of recognizable
objects, board book versions of classics like Goodnight Moon, and
touch-me books, such as Pat the Bunny. At around 12 months, add books
with lift-up flaps for your toddler to open, such as the Where's Spot? series.
Be a 'Voice Talent.' Read with expression. That makes it more fun for you, and more engaging and captivating for
your baby. Your child will associate books with your voice and your closeness.
Besides varying the tone and pitch of your voice, and acting out the different
characters in a book with different voices, ask questions of your child, and
respond in the same "different" tone to sustain the impression that the
character in the book is really interesting and fun.
Help From Other Adults. It's a fun idea to ask your child's caregiver or
preschool teacher for the titles of some of the books your child loves;
purchase copies of those same books and read them with your child because kids
love repetition. Also, befriend the children's bookstore staff member nearest
you, and ask for suggestions.
Don't Break the Bank. You'll never regret an
investment in books! But there's no sense overspending. To save money, frequent
garage sales and online marketing of gently-used books. Whenever birthday or
holidays are coming up, suggest gifts of specific books to grandparents and
other gift-givers.
Book Swaps. You can always get together with neighbors, friends,
and other parents from your child's day-care center, preschool, Sunday School
class, or anywhere else parents are found, and arrange "book swaps" - if you
bring in 10 gently-used children's books to the swap, you can bring home 10
"NEW" gently-used children's books donated by other families.
