Is reading to your preschooler important?

Since November is National Literacy month, let’s talk about literacy. At Friendship Garden Nursery School one of our favorite past times is reading and the activities that accompany story time. To read for pure joy with enthusiasm make learning speech, language and per-literacy skills fun.

Along with The American Library Association I will share some tips for enjoying books with young children.

First you will need reading material! Have your child select books. Choose a variety of subjects, some that your child is familiar with and others that will broaden their knowledge or prepare them for an upcoming event, like going to the dentist. Choose books with a variety of illustrations, humor, color and information. Young children enjoy rhyme and repetition. The library is a great resource!

Next find a comfortable place to sit, most young children like to be close, in our nursery school we allow for closeness at story time. Please recognize that some children need space and are uncomfortable with being to close so be sure to accommodate for that as well.

Make sure that there are no distractions or at least minimize them! Silence phones and make sure that there will be no one passing through your space. Be sure to take care of both yours and your child’s physical needs such as the bathroom and a drink of water.

Hold the book so your child can see all pages clearly. In nursery school this means holding the book in such a way that all can see the illustrations. We always start by orienting the book by locating the front and back. Read the name of the author and illustrator along with the title. Let your child predict what the book might be about by looking at the picture on the cover.

While you are reading, have your child point to objects, talk about the pictures or repeat common words. Bring your child’s attention to look for certain things within the book, (like the blue ball). Use descriptive words. Don’t forget to read with expression. Nursery school children love to hear you make different voices. Allow them to repeat phrases, make animal noises or anything else that seems natural to enhancing the story.Vary the pace of your reading as this helps to hold their attention as well. Increase your child’s vocabulary when you encounter new words give a brief definition of the word. Ask a variety of wh- questions (who, what, why, when, where), answer questions, make predictions and in general have fun reading.

Your child will ask to read the same book again and again, reread your child’s favorite books whenever asked repetition is the key to learning so read books over and over again! Soon you will be able to recite or sing rhymes from your favorite books.

After reading help your child to retell the story in sequential order using his/her own words. Ask your child if he/she enjoyed the story and why.

Reading is the backbone for all learning, make reading a habit.