Reading Together

Last Updated on Friday, 16 October 2009 06:31 Saturday, 07 July 2007 09:54

Pick one of your child's favorite books.  If you child is uninterested in books or doesn't have a favorite book then choose a book about something your child is interested in.  Sit down with your child.  Take the book and turn the pages and "read" using 1-2 word phrases to describe what is happening.  For instance

If the book is a book about trucks your "reading" may sound like this:

Truck (turn page)

Big Truck (turn page)

Truck, Truck, Truck (turn page)

More truck (turn page)

Go truck (turn page)

Truck, truck, truck (turn page)

You get the picture...

If the book is about Elmo your "reading" may sound like this:

Elmo (turn page)

Hi Elmo (turn page)

Elmo run (turn page)

Elmo eat eat (turn page)

Elmo ball (turn page)

Elmo bed (turn page)

Bye bye Elmo (turn page)

The purpose here is not to read the words on the page, but to give your child lots of verbal input.  If you can "read" this book to your child every night before bed.  Repetition is very important in building language.  If your child wants this book read again and again then you have a great opportunity to provide more and more language cues to your child.