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Ways Parents Can Help Their Preschool-age ChildrenThere are many things parents can do to help their children learn at home. Some of the most important instruction goes on at home with parents being the child’s first teacher. Many parents wonder how they can best help their child not only prepare for school, but also develop the ability to be an independent learner. Reading The counsel that is heard most often is: Read to your child. Often parents don’t realize what an impact this simple activity can have on children. If parents have books in the home and spend time reading to their children, the message comes to the child that books are valuable and the ability to read is important to their family. This is especially true if children can also see their parents reading for their own enjoyment and instruction. Children get a much stronger message that reading is important from seeing their parents reading than if the parents only say reading is important. A good example is not the only thing that children see when their parents read and read to them. A preschooler develops an understanding about how we read and what those black marks on the pages mean. The simplest lessons that children can pick up when a parent reads to them include how books are put together and how reading works. We read books left to right and top to bottom. They learn that the written words represent spoken words and that letters represent sounds. This may sound very basic, but it has been shown through research that children who are read to at home are more ready to read when they enter school than those who have not had that experience at home. Another important activity for preschool-age children is learning the alphabet. Most people assume that everyone sings the alphabet song with their children. This may happen but is not necessarily the case. Parents should be encouraged to work on letter recognition. This doesn’t need to be a structured activity. Many beginning children’s books are, in fact, alphabet books. Parents can also focus on letters at various times during the day. Asking a child about the letters on the cereal box or finding letters on signs as you’re walking or driving can help provide a focus for an active child’s energy. The local library is a wonderful resource for families with preschool-age children. Most libraries offer story hours and activities for pre-schoolers. Checking out books is a free source of materials for those families on a tight budget. For families who can afford to buy books, for children who have learned to love books and reading, books make wonderful gifts. Reading to your children is an activity that can’t be stressed enough. Children learn about the reading process, topics, how story structure is developed, and the entertaining nature of reading. These are important. Equally important is the fact that time spent reading to your child shows your child that you value reading and spending time together. |
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