GREAT BOOKS FOR EARLY LITERACY
Good Night, Gorilla
by Peggy Rathmann
Chicka Chicka Boom Boom
by Bill Martin Jr.
Shout! Shout It Out!
by Denise Fleming
From Head to Toe
by Eric Carle
Pete the Cat:
I Love My White Shoes
By Eric Litwin
Bark, George
by Jules Feiffer
Early Literacy Tips
for Young Children
WHAT IS EARLY LITERACY?
Learning to read and write begins
well before kindergarten. It begins
at birth, when children use language
as the building blocks for literacy.
There are five basic early literacy skills
that all young children need to be
successful readers and writers.
Use some of these simple early literacy
activities to incorporate learning
into your everyday routine!
Children are made readers on
the laps of their parents.
-Emilie Buchwald
www.abbe-lib.org
TALKING
Children can understand spoken words
before they learn to talk. Talking is an
easy way for children to learn new words,
learn to express themselves, and learn
how to hold a conversation.
 Ask questions about the story or
pictures while reading a book.
 Dialogue what you are doing while
cooking, driving, or doing laundry.
 Have your child name items, actions,
feelings, etc.
WRITING
Reading and writing go together! Children
will often learn to write letters and
numbers before learning to read.
 Encourage drawing and scribbling.
 Practice writing by tracing letters in
sand or shaving cream.
 Strengthen finger muscles by playing
with dough or doing up zippers and
buttons.
READING
Reading with your child every day is the
most effective way to help them become
proficient readers. Reading aloud
together develops your child’s vocabulary,
comprehension, and general knowledge.
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Read print from signs, menus, and
newspapers.
Have books available in your home
(borrow for free from the library!).
Let your child tell the story while
following pictures in a book.
PLAYING
Children learn about the world through
playing. It helps them to process what
they see and hear each day.
 Act like a dog, a pony, or an elephant!
 Use objects as props (a block for a
phone, a box for a racecar, etc.).
 Act out your child’s favorite story.
SINGING
Singing slows down language and allows
children to hear different sounds within
words and learn about rhyming.
 Sing with your child even if you aren’t
the best singer.
 Make up silly words to your child’s
favorite tune.
 Use songs to do tasks around the
house (clean up song, brushing our
hair song, etc.).