Building Vocabulary through Reading
For children with 3 or more words
Language development starts very early in your child’s life. It’s important to remember, if you don’t say
it…they won’t learn it. We have to the say the words, use the words and ask them to repeat them. The
more words you say and show your child, the bigger their vocabulary will be.
Reading a book is a social interaction between you and your child.

Pick a Book
Encourage your child to pick a book from a
choice of 2-3 books you know would be of
interest to him/her. Have a selection of books
about families, animals, sports, toys, food,
events (going camping, seasons, holidays,
picnicking, vacation sites, etc.) Consider
making a book with your child/family in it (e.g.
going to the zoo.) Choose books that introduce
color, shapes, numbers, opposites, rhyme,
nursery rhyme, simple prepositions, functions of
objects, categories, descriptors,
similarities/differences, etc. Books need to have
colorful pictures that your child is interested in.

Make it fun.
Make it a fun part of your routine such as
bedtime or before nap or first thing in the
morning. Put as much expression as possible
into your reading. Read every day.

Name everything:
When you come to a word that is sophisticated,
draw it out. Take the word "scrumptious," for
example. Say it slowly as part of the sentence
and then add a comment like, "Scrumptious.
Hmm, that means really, really good. Look at
that apple pie. It sure looks scrumptious to me."
You can also look for instances in which a
challenging word is repeated in a story. Call
your child's attention to it each time it appears.
Use the pictures to help build a deepening
understanding of the word's meaning. Try to use
the word later during normal conversation

Explain New Words
Use kid-friendly terms to explain new
words. For example, if you are teaching your
child what“zebra” means, avoid a dictionary
definition such as: a horse-like African mammal
of the genus Equus. Instead, try a simple
explanation: a zebra is an animal. It looks like a
horse. Zebras have black and white stripes.

Children are active learners
Don’t expect your child to sit still for a book.
Children need to move. So don’t worry if they
act out stories or just ______romp or tumble as
you read. They may be moving, but they are
listening.

Ask Questions
As you are reading a book, ask your child who,
what, where, when and why questions. Feel free
to tell them the answer if they don’t know it.
“Why is he crying? (because he is sad). “Where
is the cow going?” “Who do you think will get
there first?” Be sure to allow plenty of time for
your child to respond. Count to 8 in your head.
Great Books for this level:
Giraffes can’t dance
If you give a mouse a cookie (series)
Stone soup
The big blue truck
Rhyming dust bunnies
Big mean dust bunnies
Tumble Bumble
My truck is stuck!
Green eggs and ham
Cat in the hat
One, fish, two fish, red fish blue fish
Bear snores on
The very hungry caterpillar
The pocket book
The little mouse, the red ripe strawberry and the big hungry bear
Pete the cat (series)
A porcupine named fluffy
Stand back said the elephant I’m going to sneeze
Way down deep in the deep blue sea
A mouse told his mother
The old lady who swallowed a fly
Dear zoo
Goodnight, goodnight construction site
The boy who wouldn’t go to bed
Roaring rockets
I’m dirty
Pirate boy
I love you stinky face.
No, David (series)
Tip tip, dig dig by Garcia Emmer
Animal dads by Sneed Collard
Fire truck by Jango Cohen
I love trains by Philemon Sturges
Ballerina Dreams by Lauren Thompson
I love bugs by Philemon Sturges
Animal babies in the rain forest
Anaimal babies in grasslands by Jennifer Schofield
Zoo borns
Silly Sally
Big red barn
Books by Eric Carle
Use your QR (Quick Reader) Reader app for a short video that demonstrates how to read to your child. You can get a QR
reader app for free. This will link you right to the video. Enjoy!!!
This is a short video that talks about the importance of reading to your child. It will give you some fun hints and tips for
reading with your child. Thanks for watching!!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FjJD1UDwVKg&list=PLMkDsbkTNxiDPhbFbE7b5EJxg2zpzVjh&feature=player_detailpage