Babies & Toddlers Beginning
to Read
My children love to
read…well pretend to anyway. But both of them know their alphabet, the sounds
of the letters, and can sign most of it. They have a great interest in books
and are very eager to begin reading them on their own.
Sing the Alphabet
Song
With both kids, I sang the alphabet to them on a daily basis
since they were infants. Although they were not able to say it themselves, they
instantly lit up when they heard me singing. My son is only 14 months old and
can sing the entire alphabet song, in both English and Spanish. This is simply
from me singing it to them daily.
Sign the Alphabet
Before my children could really talk they did try to mimic
my hand as I signed the alphabet as I sang. Especially now, they love that they
have a hand motion to go with the song they are singing. My 2 year old can
completely recognize a letter just by me signing it, and my son knows a few
letters as well. It is a great way to reinforce what they are learning.
ASL ALPHABET
Here is a great video on teaching your toddlers to
read using sign language:
Alphabet books
Alphabet books help children see the letter, hear the
letter, and recognize the letters in a fun method. One book I will highly
recommend is Dr. Seuss’s ABC. As soon
as I began reading this, I noticed my 2 year old not only being able to
recognize the letters by sight, but she also began to remember the sounds each
letter made.
I also found Leap
Frog products to be very helpful as well. And their shows are great for learning several different
subjects. There is one called Scout &
Friends Phonics Farm where they go through each letter of the alphabet and
sound out the letters. I was shocked at how quickly my daughter picked it up through
their catchy songs and child friendly storyline. These shows are all available
on Netflix too!
Have a Letter of the
Week
Every Sunday, as we begin our week, I explain what the
letter of the week is, what it sounds like, and what it looks like to the
children. I bought one of those posters of the Alphabet from the dollar store and
I read it while pointing to the letters until we get to the letter of the week.
So if the letter of the week is “C” I would read and point to “A, B, C. C is
the letter of the week it sounds like ka ka. As in ka ka - cat, ka ka - cookie,
or ka ka – cup.” With my 1 year old, I then give him a picture of something
that starts with “C” and let him color. With my daughter I give her the option
to color, find something in the house that starts with “C” (with my
assistance), or practice writing “C.”
Reading Aloud
BELLA READING
Reading to your children is the best way to get them
interesting in learning to read. I read my kids at least 5 books a day, because
they ask if I will read. Both of them
love to take the book and “read” it to me afterward.
Sounding out Letters
To begin their journey with phonics, it is important not to
forget to also say the sounds of the letters out loud to them. This will help
them recognize the letters in words and begin to sound out the full word in
time.
Free Learning
Materials
Here are a few links to some great educational websites with
print outs and free educational games for your toddler to play and learn!
No comments:
Post a Comment