For Parents

Birth to early childhood is a critical phase in literacy development.  Parents can help their child’s awareness of language and literacy to prepare them for a long and productive life. 

Tips for parents and caregivers include:

• The key to understanding written language starts in understanding that objects have names. Name familiar items to your child as you are pointing to them. She’ll catch on quickly when you do it over and over – children at this age love repetition. Naming objects pictured in books helps too – the child will come to understand quickly that the pictures represent items in the real world. From there, it’s a short step to the child paying attention to the starting letters in names – especially his or her name. Print it out for her, and let her know what letters make up her name.
• Comment on what's happening in the book, ask questions about where the story is headed, and for children who are starting to speak, encourage them to talk to you about the story. Repetition becomes key at this point, and children in the early years will want to have the same stories read to them over and over.

Looking for even more tips? Visit our publications page and check out parent resource sections.

Last updated: Sunday, 26-Jul-2009 18:51:21 EDT