Children may:
- Take pleasure in listening to rhymes, stories, and songs that contain repetition and patterns
- Preview books and pretend to read and write
- Scribble actively
- Use a combination of words and short sentences to communicate their needs
- Show happiness in talking and being listened to
- Increase their oral vocabulary to around 1,000 words. Children’s oral vocabulary will always be larger than written vocabulary.
- Begin to use basic plurals and overgeneralizations
- Understand that environmental print carries a message and is a form of communication
- Comprehend that their name written pertains specifically to them
Strategies for Parents to Help Kids Develop Their Literacy Abilities
- Focus on providing your children with read alouds that contain simple story lines or rhyming books that are easy to be memorized. Older toddlers love engaging with the text with their ability to predict what will happen next in the story. As you are reading aloud, ask your child questions that pertain to the text, such as pointing to certain familiar objects or colors.
- Books that concentrate on counting, the alphabet, shapes and sizes are an excellent resource. As you are reading the story, take relevant breaks to have your child interact with the text. In a counting book, reiterate the sequence of counting up to five and the repetition so that you are able to model and then provide guided practice to help your child learn to count. Alphabet books will help your children comprehend that each letter in the alphabet corresponds to the initial sound of the common object in the illustration, such as C is for cat.
- A variety of books should be offered to the older toddler including cardboard, pop-up, pull-the-tab, touch-and-feel or scented books. These types of engaging books can be found at your local library to be checked out. What is great about these styles of books is that they will aid in the fine motor development of your toddler, focusing on turning the individual pages, pulling the tabs to reveal the picture underneath, feeling the texture of the illustration or scratching the picture to uncover a specific smell.
High Quality Children’s Books for Parents and Children to Read
Hines, A. G. (2008). 1, 2, buckle my shoe. New York: Harcourt.
This counting book follows the popular verse from the nursery rhyme “One two buckle my shoe.” On each page, there is a beautiful quilt with a number ranging from 1 to 10 as the background of the page, which corresponds to the number of buttons on each quilt.
Toddlers will enjoy following along and listening to the tone of this popular nursery rhyme. As you are reading the book aloud, stop and ask your child who is learning to count to point and count using the concept of one-to-one correspondence the total number of buttons that are sewed along each quilt. In addition, ask your child to indentify various colors in the vibrant quilts. A follow up activity that can be completed following the text includes having your child begin a button collection. As a parent, you can help your child collect a variety of buttons and help them count the total number of buttons that they have.
Harris, R. H., & Bang, M. (2008). The day Leo said I hate you!. Boston: Little, Brown And Co.
The Day Leo Said, “I Hate You” is a kid-friendly text that many toddlers can relate to. It is comforting to understand that other toddlers and preschoolers may become equally as frustrated when they hear the word “No” from an adult and how manage their feelings and words.
As the parent is reading aloud the story, have the child interact with the text by asking him or her questions. For example, you can ask how do you think Leo’s mother felt when she heard him tell her “I hate you?” In addition, a question that is open ended such as why do you think Leo becomes frustrated when his Mommy tells him “No” is a great question to get your toddlers mind going. This story opens up to a great activity and conversation that you can have with your children about the word “No” and why it is used. Make sure that your child understands how they are able to manage their feelings and words, rather than saying not-so-nice words that are hurtful including “I hate you.”
Martin, B., Archambault, J., Ehlert, L., & Charles, R. (1991). Chicka chicka boom boom. New York: Little Simon.
Chicka Chicka Boom Boom is a rhyming book that teaches children the 26 letter in the alphabet, and identifying both the upper and lowercase letters. This is a classic children’s book that is adored, simply because of its rhythmic and sing along tune.
During the read aloud, ask your child basic questions pertaining to the illustrations in the text, such as show me where the palm tree is. Also, have your child identify various letters in the alphabet, starting with lowercase and moving to uppercase. This is useful to see if your child is able to distinguish between lower and uppercase letters. For an activity, recite with your child the letters of the alphabet. Take time each day to go over what the letters in the alphabet are and practice performing them together and independently.
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