Literacy - Friday

In many ways our world is made up of words, so it is crucial we provide a strong foundation for our little ones when it comes to reading and writing.

To be honest, the very best way to do this with your kid (in my opinion) is to read and read and read and read some more. I try my best to read with Little Miss I for 30 minutes each day - usually broken into two 15 minute chunks at naptime and bedtime.

Because providing access to quality books is so important, I decided that each Thursday I'd start with a quick book recommendation in the list of our literacy activities. 

book knowledge and appreciation

PBS Skill(s) Targeted:

• "By the end of this year, many children label pictures when asked, "What's that?" Some children may comment when asked, "What happened?" or "What is _______ doing?"
• "Interest and enjoyment of books is highly variable, depending on availability of books and whether adults spend time sharing these with children in positive ways."
  
  Book Reccomendation:
  
  Llama Llama Books - by Anne Dewdney
  
  
  
  
  We love the llama, llama books. With darling rhymes, a focus on family relationships and lots of discussion about emotional and social growth, these books are perfect for toddlers and must-have for your library.
  
  PLUS - Anney Dewdney has an awesome site with interactive activities to go along with each of her books.
  
  

   Alphabet Knowledge

  PBS Skill: " Has no specific knowledge of alphabet letters as a distinct group of graphic patterns. How quickly a child acquires this knowledge is influenced greatly by how much experience the child has with looking at and examining graphic patterns in the world around him or her. This experience lays the foundation for learning later that some of these patterns have symbolic functions that communicate meaning."
  
  Activity:
   Find the Letters
   
  Directions: 
  For this activity you'll need some sort of alphabet letters - fridge magnets, foam pop-outs, printed paper letters, etc. all work for this game. You can also often find pop-out paper letters (like those used for bulletin boards) at the dollar store or teacher education materials stores.
  
  Pick a room in the house and "hide" the letters around the room.
  
  Bring your little ones in and let them "find" the letters. Young toddlers can't be expected yet to identify many (or any) letters, but this sort of activity helps build their awareness. As they discover each letter be sure and name the letter: "You found a B!"
  
  

  writing

  PBS Skill: "Has an emerging understanding of the uses and formats of writing. By the end of the year some children make marks, present these to an adult and say "A letter for you" or "My name.""
  
  Activity:
  Dramatic Play
  
  Description:
  Kids love dramatic play activities, and they are an excellent opportunity to foster imagination and storytelling skills. Today's dramatic play suggestion also seeks to interweave writing into pretending.
  
  Hats Tipped To Livestrong.Org (yes, Lance Armstrong's website) for these great suggestions, copy and pasted below.
  
  
  Dramatic play allows a child to pretend she is someone else. Writing fits in well with many dramatic play situations. You might set up a pretend restaurant and provide your child with a small notepad so she can write down the order. The small notepad also works for a police officer scenario so your child can write tickets for traffic offenders. A chalkboard works well as a dramatic play prop for a school situation.