Baby Storytime

Toddler Storytime

Preschool Storytime

Yoga Storytime

Early Literacy Tips of the Week

Talk – Take advantage of the nice weather together: take a nature walk and talk about all the things you see. Use descriptive words to talk about the weather, the sights and sounds, the colors, everything around you.

Sing – Sing to or with your child while they take a bath: Bert & Ernie’s “Rubber Duckie” or Bobby Darin’s “Splish Splash” are particularly fun bathtime songs, but any song will do!

Read – Share some of your favorite childhood books with your children, even if you don’t read them aloud. Kids love to hear about when their parents were young like them – bond with books by telling your child what you liked to read as a kid.

Write – When your child draws something, write the word for it next to the picture. For instance, if your child draws a house, write “house” or even “this is a house.”

Play – Save some of your recyclables to play grocery store with.

Baby Storytime

Toddler Storytime

Preschool Storytime

Yoga Storytime

Early Literacy Tips of the Week

Talk – After reading a book together, ask your child to tell you the story in their own words.

Sing – “Little Bunny Foo Foo” is a fun seasonally appropriate song to sing (though I certainly sing it year round)! Check out this cute video version! Lyrics:

• (sing) Little Bunny Foo Foo
• Went hopping through the forest
• Scooping up the field mice
• And bopping them on the head
• (speak) Down came the good fairy and she said,
• (sing) “Little Bunny Foo Foo
• I don’t want to see you
• Scooping up the field mice
• And bopping them on the head
• (speak) I’ll give you three chances and if you don’t behave, I’ll turn you into a goon!” The next day…

Repeat the whole thing from the beginning 3 more times. On the final time, the fairy says, “I gave you three chances and you didn’t behave. Now you’re a goon – POOF!”

For added fun, use your index and middle fingers to make bunny ears that hop along, then turn your hand into a scoop and “bop” it on top of your other hand.

Read – Don’t read just books! When you’re out with your child, point out text wherever you can, showing your child how important learning to read is. For instance, point out signs on the road.

Write – Put some flour on a baking sheet and help your child trace the letters of their name with their index finger.

Play – When children play with toys, they come to understand that one item represents another, just like letters represent sounds. Play with blocks and pretend they’re different common items, such as by holding one up to your ear to pretend it’s a telephone, or pushing it across the floor with a “vroom” sound to represent a vehicle.

These new weekly posts will share books we read in storytime, highlight some of our latest children’s books, and offer early literacy tips for pre-readers.

Baby Storytime

Toddler Storytime

Preschool Storytime

Yoga Storytime

New Books – Spotlight on Visual Literacy

Visual literacy is the ability to interpret images and make meaning. Check out some of these great new books that encourage young children to answer questions using clues they can find in the pictures. These books are designed to encourage interaction with the images, but all picturebooks help with visual literacy, since the pictures often add details not included in the text.

Next time you’re reading with your child, pause to ask them questions about the pictures. The simple question “What’s happening in this picture?” works wonders! Follow it up with, “What do you see that makes you say that?” to encourage your child to explain their understanding of the image.

Wordless picturebooks are a great way to engage kindergartners and elementary students, while graphic novels are wonderful for developing older children’s visual literacy skills.

Early Literacy Tips of the Week

• Talk – talk aloud to or with your child as often as you can when you’re together.
  • For instance, when driving, narrate what is happening around you: “The light is red. We have to stop. First we have to slow down. Now the light is green and we can go. We’re speeding up and going faster now.” Making observations aloud helps children learn new vocabulary and understand how the world works.
• Sing – sing in the car, sing during bathtime, sing a lullaby, make up your own songs!
  • Music helps children learn language by breaking words into syllables.
• Read – don’t just read to your child – let your child see YOU reading for fun, too.
  • You are your child’s best role model! When children see adults they love reading for pleasure, they make positive associations with reading.
• Write – even pre-writing children benefit from “pretending” to write.
  • Encourage scribbling from an early age to help your child’s fine motor skills (playing with crayons helps children learn how to hold a pencil, for instance).
• Play – children learn so much through play!
  • Playing with blocks helps them learn about building things and the force of gravity, for instance, and pretend play helps children develop empathy.