Professional Development by Johns Hopkins School of Education, Center for Technology in Education

Language and Literacy It’s easy to think of language and literacy as learning to read and write. That’s part of it, but the reality is that our kids start building language and literacy skills from the womb — even before birth. They hear sounds, start sensing feelings, and once they enter the world, communicate by cooing and crying. All of this forms the foundation of the language and literacy skills our kids need to succeed in and out of school.

Language and literacy for young children involves:

•  Reading-related skills like listening to and understanding stories, recognizing that words are made up of letters and sounds, and noticing rhyming words

•  Expressing feelings, thoughts, and ideas •  Listening to other people as they talk or read aloud •  Starting to produce letter-like shapes and symbols •  Drawing to tell stories or communicate ideas •  Beginning to understand the differences between things like singular and plural (e.g.,

one cat vs. four cats); to talk in complete sentences; and to ask questions with simple words like how, what, and why

•  Using pictures and clues to figure out meaning

Talking to our kids, listening to them, reading and making up stories, exposing them to letters, exploring different sounds — these simple things give kids the learning base they need to go on to become strong readers, writers, listeners, and communicators. When kids don’t get this foundation at a young age, studies show that catching up becomes incredibly difficult.

Professional Development by Johns Hopkins School of Education, Center for Technology in Education

What can you do at home and in the community to help your kids succeed?

While running errands or doing chores around the house, challenge your family to a rhyme game. Have someone start with a word — “bat,” for instance — and then take turns naming a word that rhymes. See how far you can get. When you’re out of ideas, come up with a new word (“two” and “tree” are other good ones for young kids). Keep the game going — and watch time fly as you conquer your chores.

Rhyme Time

Read a new story to your child, stopping at various points to ask what he or she thinks will happen next. Will the polar bear make it home? Will the train make it up the hill? Let your kids be the judge, and encourage them to back up their prediction with clues from the story. Then read on to find out whether the prediction is right!

Predict It

Go to an art museum or just look at pictures in a book. Then ask this simple question: What’s going on here? After your kids respond, follow up with: What do you see that makes you say that? Maybe “there’s a bad storm” because they see dark clouds and lightning in the sky, or perhaps “the girls are having fun” because they’re all smiling. Whatever the case, take the time to look closely — and see what you can learn just by talking about what you observe.

Look and Learn

Instead of asking your kids the usual question — What did you do today? — have them draw some parts of their day that stand out. Did they play outside? Eat watermelon for a snack? Go to the library? Challenge them to think of and draw at least two things, and then start a conversation about what you see. Consider “drawing your day,” too, to make this really fun!

Draw Your Day