Phonological Awareness
Pre-Schoolers:
Ages 4 - 5
Sound out words slowly so your child can
hear the smaller parts of the word.
Say a word slowly and then say it fast
repeatedly. Try simple words like “airplane” or
“monkey”.
Read books with rhyming sentences and
let your child guess the rhyming word.
Sing songs with repeated phrases.
Play the “I Spy” game and find objects that
start with the same sound.
Try these books with repeated words and rhyming
words:
Try these books that include songs:
Vocabulary
Look at a picture dictionary with your child.
Print Awareness
Name unusual foods at the grocery store.
Point to food signs in the grocery store.
Speak in your first language.
Try these books with pictures that flow from left to
right across the page:
Blue Sea by Robert Kalan
Bunny Cakes by Rosemary Wells
Rosie’s Walk by Pat Hutchins
Letter Knowledge
Sing the alphabet song and
Old MacDonald with your toddler.
Try these books that expand vocabulary:
Fancy Nancy by Jane O’Connor
Scaredy Squirrel by Melanie Watts
Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak
Print Motivation
Let your child choose which story to read.
Eat alphabet soup and talk about
the letters you see.
Try these books that promote
letter knowledge:
Alphabet Under Construction
by Denise Fleming
B Is for Bulldozer: A Construction
ABC by June Sobel
Chicka Chicka Boom Boom
by Bill Martin Jr.
Print Awareness
Read books with illustrations that flow from
left to right.
Read billboards, street signs, and labels
with your child.
Point to words in books as you read them,
especially words that are repeated.
Try these books with pictures that flow from left
to right across the page:
Have a wide variety of books available for
your children to read at home.
Bark! George by Jules Feiffer
Tops and Bottoms by Janet Stevens
What! Cried Granny by Patricia Lum
Make cookies or a snack together by
using a recipe.
Letter Knowledge
Read alphabet books together.
Encourage your toddler to play with
magnetic letters.
Catalina Magdalena Hoopensteiner Wallendiner
Hogan Logan Bogan Was Her Name by Tedd Arnold
Mortimer by Robert Munsch
Oh, the Places You’ll Go! by Dr. Seuss
Read picture books together every day.
Let your child hold the book and turn the
pages as you read.
Use your finger to sweep under the words in
books as you read.
Mississauga Library System
Phonological Awareness
Sing songs and clap out the rhyme.
Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?
by Bill Martin Jr.
One Gray Mouse by Katherine Burton
Where’s My Teddy by Jez Alborough
Pre-Schoolers:
Ages 4 - 5
Try these books with pieces to feel or die
cut pages:
Joseph had a Little Overcoat by Simms Taback
Kitten’s First Full Moon by Kevin Henkes
We’re Going On a Bear Hunt by Michael Rosen
Narrative Skills
Read stories with predictable patterns.
Have your child draw a picture and tell you
about it.
Read favourite books again and again.
Try these stories with patterns:
Maybe a Bear Ate It by Robie H. Harris
Goodnight Gorilla by Peggy Rathman
The Little Red Hen by Paul Galdone
Make letters out of play dough.
Have your child practise printing his or her
first name.
Help your child print words of interest like
“truck” or “dinosaur”.
Try these books that promote letter
knowledge:
ABC of Canada by Kim Bellfontaine
Alphabeasts by Wallace Edwards
Eating the Alphabet: Fruits and Vegetables
from A to Z by Lois Ehlert
Every Child Ready to Read® @ your library® is a ® program of the Public Library Association and the Association for Library Service to Children, divisions of the American Library Association. Every Child Ready to Read® @ your library® is a registered trademark and is used with permission.
Toddlers: Ages 2 -3
Parent Guide
www.mississauga.ca/library
Original content and design modified with support of the Hamilton Public Library.
Help Your Child
Get Ready to Read!
Babies: Ages 0 - 2
Babies: Ages 0 - 2
Phonological Awareness
Read nursery rhymes and emphasize
the rhyming words.
Reading together is the most important gift that you can
give your young child. A child’s learning starts at home
and you are your child’s first and best teacher. We hope
that you will introduce your child to the magic and wonder
of books as early as possible.
Sing songs with repeated phrases.
Share bouncing rhymes and fingerplays.
Research shows that children get ready to read years
before they start school. There are six pre-reading skills
children need in order to learn to read.
Try these books with repeated words and rhyming
words:
Vocabulary:
Knowing the names of things.
Overboard by Sarah Weeks
Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown
Time for Bed by Mem Fox
Print Motivation:
A child’s interest and enjoyment in books.
Narrative Skills:
The ability to describe things and events and to tell
stories.
Phonological Awareness:
The ability to hear and play with the smaller sounds in
words.
Print Awareness:
Noticing print, knowing how to handle a book and how to
follow the written word on a page.
Letter Knowledge:
Learning the sounds of letters, the names of letters and
the ability to recognize them everywhere.
Why are parents and caregivers so
important in helping children get ready
to read?
Children learn best by doing things – and they love
doing things with you!
You know your child best and you can help your child
learn reading skills in the ways that best suit your
child.
How to get your child ready to read:
Use the helpful tips in this guide to enrich your
reading time together.
Attend story times at the Library – children’s
programs introduce the six Every Child Ready To
®
Read pre-reading skills in fun ways!
Use the language that is most comfortable for you. The
library has children’s materials in languages other than
English.
Visit the Mississauga Library System often! No child is
too young to have a library card of his or her own.
Visit the Library online at www.mississauga.ca/library
Toddlers: Ages 2 - 3
Vocabulary
Talk about what is going on around you.
Talk with your baby.
When you read to your baby, point to the
pictures and name the things you see.
Ask your baby lots of questions.
Speak in your first language.
Try these books that expand vocabulary:
Print Awareness
Let your baby hold the book as you read.
Point to the words and the pictures in
the book.
Encourage your baby to play with
wooden block letters.
Baby Talk by Judith Hindley
Babies on the Go by Linda Ashman
Counting Kisses by Karen Katz
Try these books with pictures that flow
from left to right across the page:
Print Motivation
This Little Chick by John Lawrence
I Went Walking by Sue Williams
Peek-a-Moo! by Marie Torres Cimarusti
Make book sharing a special time and
cuddle your little one as you read.
Begin reading books early – even when your
child is a newborn.
Point to pictures and talk about them in an excited
voice.
Try these books with flaps or colourful pictures:
Letter Knowledge
Sing the alphabet song with your baby.
Read alphabet books together.
Place magnetic letters on the fridge
door.
Try these books that promote letter
knowledge:
Narrative Skills
Jazz Baby by Lisa Wheeler
Flora McDonnell’s ABC by Flora McDonnell
Peek-a-Little Boo by Sheree Fitch and Laura Watson
Name things (real objects and pictures in
books).
Read favourite books again and again.
Try these books with simple story lines and
patterns:
Everywhere Babies by Susan Meyers
This is the Farmer by Nancy Tafuri
Hello Baby by Mem Fox
Name objects and colours you see.
Repeat what your child says with more
details.
Explain unfamiliar words.
Try these books that expand vocabulary:
If You Give a Mouse a Cookie by
Laura Numeroff
The Napping House by Don and Audrey Wood
The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle
Print Motivation
Read together often and have fun.
Clip-Clop by Nicola Smee
I Kissed the Baby by Mary Murphy
You and Me, Baby by Lynn Reiser
Talk to your baby about what you are doing
throughout the day.
Vocabulary
Try books with flaps or die cut pages.
Point to pictures and encourage your
toddler to talk about them.
Try these books with flaps or simple pictures:
Red is Best by Kathy Stinson
Monkey and Me by Emily Gravett
The Wide-Mouthed Frog by Keith Faulkner
Narrative Skills
Using a book your child knows well, let your
child point to the pictures and tell you the story.
Ask your child to tell you about something
that happened today.
Ask your child “what” questions as you read a
story. (What do you think will happen next?)
Try these books with simple story lines and
patterns:
Bear Snores On by Karma Wilson
Busy Little Mouse by Eugenie Fernandes
Grumpy Bird by Jeremy Tankard
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