We all want our children to have the best start in life that they can. Many of us see learning how to read as a great start in life because it opens up a world of information to our little ones. Knowledge is power. There is something so special about when our children learn how to read. I was able to help teach my children to read at various levels by age 3 years old. From there they continue to learn and grow. It was a slow, and stress-free process to achieve this goal in my home. I want to share with all the parents how I did it while keeping the children happy and interested in being life long learners. This post starts at the newborn stage. Here is what you can do today with your newborn to help set the foundation for early reading skills.
What is reading? We know it’s a skill we use on a daily basis, but let’s take a closer look at it as we prepare to support our little ones learning how to do it.
How does black marks on a white paper in a fiction story get your imagination going and take you mentally to a far off land? Let’s start at the beginning…thought and memory. First we must have thoughts or memories that generate the desire to speak. For speech we require a speaker and perhaps a listener as well (if you aren’t talking to yourself). The next level is writing, which makes speech portable and timeless. The writings of Shakespeare transcends space and time. Writing precedes reading. Reading examines the thoughts and memories of others or ourselves. It is the receiving end of communication.
For English, reading requires you to know how to phonetically decode as well as memorize sight words and frequency words. Not every word in English follows basic decoding rules, so you need both. To lay a good phonic foundation, you first need to introduce your little one to Phonemes. I will discuss phonemes in a later post so make sure you have subscribed to the newsletter (you can also email me at bkellyinfo@gmail.com if you want to subscribe to the newsletter). For now, we are focused on building the correct foundation for early reading skills to be built upon.
The Benefits of Learning to Read from 0-3 years old
Some people may wonder why any parent would choose to teach their child reading skills at such a young age. There are so many reasons such as building confidence for academics when they are school age, developing a natural interest in reading and learning, and kindergarten readiness, to name a few. Only about 5 minutes a day over time can yield great results, which is much less stressful on the parent and the child than 45mins to an hour of drilling when they are in kindergarten. Also, this opens up more time for play and building their creative skills.
How to start:
We can begin laying the foundation for these reading skills in infancy. This is a great time to start, because it helps parents to build a routine and become consistent, which is key. Development in these 4 areas help to lay this foundation:
- Visual Tracking
- Listening Skills
- The Joy of Reading
- Communication
Visual Tracking
Reading goes from left to right and from the top to the bottom. Practice visual tracking of an object going in this direction: left to right, top to bottom to mimic reading movement.
When displaying a book and reading, use your pointer finger to touch each word as you go. Only do this for a short period of time to maintain interest.
Face your baby when reading to them so that they are able to see your mouth and remain interested. Newborn babies cannot see very well. Try to use objects that are high contrast such as black, white and red. Keep the object close to them because they are somewhat nearsighted. Their vision improves as they get older. There is a stage around 8 weeks old (from their due date) where you may notice that they can see their surroundings better. It’s such a sweet thing to be aware of, so if you have a younger baby get ready for this moment.
Listening Skills
One of the best ways to encourage early reading skills is to first focus on speech. You should aim to directly speak 30,000 words per day to your baby. You can achieve this goal by narrating your day. Make sure to give eye contact to your baby when talking or reading. Try to make your facial expression very expressive so that they are fully engaged.
Joy Of Reading
Although it is great to develop a routine around reading, never force it when they baby is disinterested or upset. We want to maintain a love and joy around reading. Try not to be inflexible, if it has been a bad day then just wait until tomorrow or a better moment to introduce a book.
Consistency is very important. The only thing that is more important is protecting their love of learning. Never allow an inflexible schedule to ruin their desire to participate in an early learning experience.
Communication
If you have been a subscriber of mine for a while then you know I love teaching babies American Sign Language (ASL). It is a great way to begin early communication, even before your baby can talk. If you teach your baby ASL they will be able to respond to you that they understand what you are reading or a question you are asking. Even though babies 3 months old and younger usually cannot sign yet (they lack the hand control to do so), it is a good time for you to make signing a natural part of the way you communicate with them. Always say the word and the sign, do not sign in silence. Later on you will see your baby magically signing back to you and it’s the best. It ties together with early reading skills so well.
I hope these tips not only help lay a foundation for early reading skills for your baby, but also build a strong bond between the two of you with one-on-one, face-to-face activities and enjoyment. This is a magical time in their lives that we never get back. Have fun and enjoy!
