Early Literacy Skills Literacy Development Story What Parents Can Do: Tell stories with your child, encourage pretend Keep using books in routines. play, let your child be the storyteller. These Read at bedtime. activities will foster the narrative skills your Ask “What's happening in the story?” child will need later for reading, and eventually, Relate books to child’s everyday life. for writing. Continue to encourage writing and drawing. Let child tell the story. Sounds Carry snacks, toys, books everywhere. Sing songs, play games with words, and share Prepare child for new experiences with brief rhymes to help your child focus on the smaller explanations in advance. sounds in words. These fun activities will foster Practice sharing and taking turns. the phonological awareness necessary to Give choice between two things whenever prepare for reading, model good diction, and possible. create positive associations as motivation for later learning. What Your Child Can Do at This Age: ACTIVITY LOG Listens to longer stories. Books Can retell familiar story. Find books that speak to your child’s interests Understands what text is. and share them often. “Read it again” from a Pretends to “write” name. 31-36 MONTHS child tells you that you are successfully fostering Moves toward letter recognitions. print motivation.

Direction Books for This Age: The process of brain development for Help your child discover how to hold a book Books about other children. reading starts before birth through and turn the pages. Occasionally, run your nger Concepts, how things work, going to school quiet talking and singing to your baby. under the print as your read. All these activities or the doctor, siblings. foster print awareness in young children. Books about making friends, and the It continues after birth through touch, challenges of friendship—arguing and making love, eye contact, one-on-one Words up, sharing, dealing with a bossy friend. interaction and repetition. Say the names of things and describe them. Books with simple text. This develops vocabulary, which the child needs The ritual of talking together and to speak, and later, to read. Remember… sharing books starts early. Model the behavior you want your child to Letters learn. Never use spanking or other physical Help your child identify the rst letter in punishment. Learning to read comes later. his/her name. Make a game of nding it in Mary Ann Boersma, MS, CCPS books, on street signs and package labels. Child Development Specialist Show your child numbers and make a game of Cleveland County counting the number out on ngers, toes, and Child Guidance Division other things. Both are considered letter knowledge, which a child needs as a building block to reading. STORY BOOKS SOUNDS DIRECTION WORDS LETTERS

[ ] Have your child create a book [ ] Make [ ] Clap your [ ] Beat [ ] Read an [ ] Cover a cookies or a child’s name as syllables of information cookie sheet AT with paper and with sand or crayons. Let your snack using a you say it. words as you book about a shaving cream, HOME child dictate or recipe. Point Try other read rhymes subject that and use ngers scribble a story out the parts names and or stories. interests your to draw letters and then color of a recipe words. child, i.e. trains, and numbers. Write your child’s the pictures. to your child. dinosaurs, dance. name.

[ ] Play “what [ ] See how [ ] Sing songs [ ] Let your [ ] Play “guess [ ] Sing the ON THE would you do if” many words you together. child look at what.” Give A B C Song.* ex: “you were at and your child a picture your child GO the beach and can nd that dictionary. simple clues it started to rhyme. to guess ACTIVITY LOG rain?” familiar objects. 31-36 MONTHS Check o the activities as you [ ] Let your [ ] Cuddle and [ ] Attend a [ ] Explain [ ] Read an [ ] Read an do them with your child. child create a read a book story time. how the books information opposites AT THE story about while waiting are organized. book about (concept) Choosing an activity from each LIBRARY going to the for story time. one of your book. library. child’s column to complete six across interests. will strengthen pre-reading skills in your child.

Continue until you have lled in [ ] Ask your [ ] Have your [ ] Play [ ] Explain the [ ] Ask your [ ] Look the whole chart. child to tell you child point out rhyming process of mail. child to help through what will favorite foods games with Let your child you shop. magazines or IN THE happen next or items as you the items at send a letter to “Can you newspapers. Think up similar activities until STORE as you shop. shop. the store. friends or nd….” Read the your child is developmentally relatives. comics. ready for the next activity log.

[ ] Tell a [ ] Read a [ ] Sing songs [ ] Ask [ ] Ask your [ ] Ask your bedtime story. bedtime story. or listen to a questions about child to nd child to point AT lullaby CD. the action in the familiar letters out letters as pictures before or objects as you read a BEDTIME reading the text. you read a bedtime story. Say, “What do book. you think happens?”

This Activity Log belongs to: *See the Growing Like a Read stand-up book.