When Your Tot Pretends To Read
In this Article
The importance of having books in our lives cannot be overlooked. Thus, developing the love for books and reading in toddlers from an early age is necessary. When you find your toddler pretending to read, or flipping pages of a book, you know it’s a good time to start! Encouraging a 23-month-old toddler to read can be made easier with a few simple activities.
It doesn’t matter whether you love reading books or not. Instilling the habit in your child from an early age can work wonders for her overall development. What’s more, it will also help her keep pace with her peers when she grows up. However, getting age-appropriate books and reading to your child is not enough. You also need to teach her to read. There’s no need to wait for her to start school for this. You can do it at home!
Teaching Your Toddler to Read: The Right Way to Do It
1. Wait for the Right Time to Start
You might have been reading to your child for a long time now. However, in order to teach her reading, you may have to wait for some time. There could be no more opportune time than when you see your 23-month-old tot trying to read from her favourite book. She’ll be more eager to learn.
2. Read out Loud
According to child experts, one of the best ways to teach a toddler to read faster is by reading a book out loud. It’s believed that even before a child learns the alphabet, she has the ability to get acquainted to words and their sound. So, by reading out a book clearly you’re actually helping imprint the words in her mind. It also enhances her listening skills.
3. Point at Words
Though most adults don’t do this when reading themselves, it’s always a good idea to point out words when you’re helping your toddler learn to read. In fact, it’ll help her understand that reading actually means deciphering the printed words.
4. Teach Easy Words
If you read to your child every day, she’ll soon become acquainted to phonetics. Using this skill, you can point out words that sound similar. Once she understands the word ‘cat’, move on and point out similar sounding words in her books like ‘bat’, ‘hat’ and ‘mat. Ask her to say the words aloud if she sees related objects when you go for a walk or a drive. You can also start teaching her simple sight words like ‘is’, ‘in’, ‘on’, ‘a’ and ‘an’. Don’t rush through the exercise, but teach one word at a time.
5. Read in Tandem
Once your toddler is quite well-versed with a story, ask her to read it along with you. This is one of the best activities to teach a toddler how to read. When you read together, your child can easily correct the mistakes she makes and can avoid making them the next time. Remember to read at a slow pace to match her reading speed.
Make reading a fun activity by picking up books with lots of pictures and repetitive words. Ask your little one to repeat the catchy phrases. You can also encourage her to speak about the pictures.
