Reading to Your Baby

1. Reading to Your Baby Ways to develop your baby’s vocabulary and prepare him for kindergarten, and develop life-long essential reading skills.

2. So little time • The road to becoming a reader begins the day your child is born and continues through the end of third grade. At that point, your child must be able to read with ease and understanding to succeed in the 4th grade and beyond. • Those early years in your child’s life are the most essential years for reading and writing development!

3. Learning to read and write starts at home, long before children go to school. • Children learn the sounds of spoken language when they hear family members talking, laughing, and singing • They begin to understand written language when hear adults read stories to them and see adults reading newspapers, magazines, and books for themselves.

4. What the research shows • To become skilled and confident readers, babies need LOTS of opportunities to: • Listen to adults/parents talk and imitate those sounds • Children who do not hear a lot of talk or who are not encouraged to talk often have problems with learning to read.

5. Print Awareness • Understand basic standards such as holding books right side up, reading from the front of the book to the back, turning one page at a time, reading lines from left to right • Children who know about print understand that the words they see in print and the words they speak and hear are related • Make connections and meanings from billboards, storybooks, labels, magazines, cereal boxes, etc .

6. Phonemic Awareness • Research shows that how easily children learn to read depends on how much phonological and phonemic awareness they have. • Some words rhyme. Sentences are made up of separate words. Words have parts called syllables. Bag, ball, and big all start with the same letter. When a child notices these things, he is developing phonological awareness.

7. Alphabetic Knowledge • Children who go to kindergarten already knowing the shapes and names of the letters of the alphabet, and how to write them, have a much easier time learning to read.

8. Reading Aloud • Reading aloud to children is the SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT activity for building the knowledge required for success in reading. • Have children participate actively to help them learn new words, learn about written language, and see the connection between word that are spoken and written. • We will discuss this more in – depth in a few minutes.

9. Vocabulary • Time and again researchers have found strong connections between the size of children’s vocabularies, how well they comprehend what they read, and how well they do in school. • Children who are poor readers usually do not have the vocabulary knowledge they need to get meaning from what they read.

10. What to do at home • Talk to your baby

11. Talk to your baby: • Begin talking and singing to your child from birth • Play peek-a-boo and pat-a-cake • Recite nursery rhymes and other verses that have strong rhythms and repeated sounds. • Sing lullabies and other songs. • What songs do you guys sing to your children? What are their favorite ones to listen to ? Which songs to they ask you to sing?

12. Talk to your baby: • Let your baby know that you hear her babbles, coos , and gurgles. • Repeat the sounds she makes. • Smile back. • When you respond to her sounds, she learns that what she “says” means something and is important to you, even though it is unintelligible. • Example: When your baby stretches her arms towards her bottle and says “ga-ga-ga”, say “Oh, you want some more milk? Here’s your milk. It’s soooo good, isn’t it! Milk is so good for you!” (expand on what they “say”)

13. Talk to your baby: • Play simple talking and touching games • Point out the names of different parts of the body • Example: Ask “Where are your toes?” Then touch your child’s toes and say “Here are your toes!” Repeat several times, then switch to fingers, ears, eyes, nose, etc.

14. Talk to your baby: • Point to familiar objects and name them. • When a child hears an object called the same name over and over, he learns to connect the spoke word with its meaning. • Example: “Here’s your blanket. This is your favorite blanket. It’s such a soft, warm, blanket. You love your blanket.”

15. Talk to your baby: • When your child begins to speak, build his language. • A child starts talking by using single words and short sentences. You can help by filling in missing words and using complete sentences. • Example: child says “cookie”. Mom says “Oh, you want another cookie? Ok, you can have just one more cookie”. Child says “go car”. Parent says “Yes, we’re all going to the car. But first, you have to put on your coat.”

16. Talk to your baby: • Encourage your child to talk with you • Ask questions that show you’re interested in what she says and thinks. • Ask her questions that require her to talk, rather than just give you yes and no answers. • Listen carefully to what she says. • Examples: “What do you want to do?” What do you see flying in the sky?” “What do you want to eat for breakfast?” (Teach them specific names for specific foods so they can respond with those new words (pancakes, Kix, orange, banana, etc.)

17. Talk to your baby: • Answer your child’s questions. • Listen to your child’s questions and answer them patiently. • Take time to explain things to him as completely as you can. • Keep answering questions that your child asks again and again, because children learn from hearing things over and over and over.

18. Talk to your baby: • Show no shame! • Don’t postpone the conversation and lose valuable learning time by waiting until your baby is able to respond. • If you get funny looks for talking to your 2-month old as you stroll through the grocery store, big deal! Talk about anything and everything to them!

19. Talk to your baby: • Speak slowly, clearly, loud enough, and enunciate. Raise your pitch slightly – babies love it! • Talk about what you’re doing as you move through the day . Identify common objects over and over again. • Repetition equals remembrance. • Use a lot of inflection in your voice to keep it interesting.

20. Talk to your baby: • Maintain a positive, upbeat tone so baby associates speaking with calm and happy feelings. • Use short, simple phrases. Talk about objects he can see so that it means more to him than describing intangible concepts. • Be demonstrative. Use exaggerated facial expressions and gestures to hold baby’s interest and convey meaning.

21. Talk to your baby: • Baby loves the sound of your voice! • Narrate everything. Research shows that kids benefit most when parents use about 30,000 words per day while around their child. • For comparison, most adults utter 16,000 words daily. • You have to make the mental effort and reminders to constantly talk/narrate things to your baby.

22. Talk to your baby: • For example: “Let’s give you a bath. First we have to make the water the right temperature. Let me grab your toys, soap and towel. Does the water feel good? Let’s pour some shampoo in your hair. Let’s wash your belly.” • Talk about anything and everything you do with your baby! Don’t feel ridiculous having a one-sided conversation with your baby when they are young. Your words matter. Even hearing your inflection and tone of voice are important for language development.

23. Talk to your baby: • Keep the focus on what is in front of him right now, rather than mentioning something out of context. For example, say “You’re playing with a ball. That’s a red and bouncy ball! Look at how you can squish the ball.” Don’t say “This weekend we’re going to go to grandma’s house.” • Make eye contact with your baby when talking to him. • Get down on his level and look him in the eye.

24. Talk to your baby: • Ditch the baby talk. • Instead of repeating quasi-words like “ba-ba”, respond back to her with “Here is your bottle.” • Ineffective: “Hi, my widdleoochy-gooch-smoochie-woochie. Does poopsywannatoyzie-woyzie?”

25. Talk to your baby: • Skip infantainment. TV is not an effective tutor. • A study of more than 800 children in the Journal of Pediatrics found that watching TV has a negative impact: Babies who spend more time parked in front of the tube, no matter what they’re watching, have fewer language skills at age 3. • A recent Pediatrics study found that DVDs that claim to promote language development have no benefit.

26. Is TV really that bad? • Children learn b y interacting with you and their environment, and television is completely passive. • In 1970, the average age at which kids started watching TV was 4 yrs. Today, it’s 4 months. • The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends NO TV before age 2, and no more than 2 hours afterwards. • 74% of infants and toddlers watch TV before the age of two.

27. Is TV really that bad? • Researchers at the University of Washington discovered that for every hour per day spent watching educational baby DVDs and videos, infants 8 to 16 months understood an average of 6 to 8 fewer words than infants who did not watch them. • 32% of kids 6 and under live in homes where the TV is on most of the time. • 43% of children under age 2 watch TV every day. 18% watch videos or DVDs every day.

28. Is TV really that bad? • What can you do ? • Don’t expect those “educational” DVDs to teach your baby (under 2) anything. • Telling your baby about the laundry you’re folding is much more educational than any video that supposedly boosts his intellect. Real world experience and in-context talking is how babies learn.

29. Is TV really that bad? • Don’t feed your kids in front of the TV. • Researchers believe the food marketing found in commercials leads to childhood obesity. • Eating while watching TV can interfere with a child’s ability to respond to cues of fullness, potentially causing him to overeat. • Research shows kids eat more while the TV is on.

30. Is TV really that bad? • Don’t let them watch commercials. • DVR or DVDs are better than TV shows with commercials. • The way commercials interrupt programs makes it hard for babies to follow a story line. The part of the brain that retains short-term information isn’t developed in kids, so kids see each commercial as a whole new story, and forget the program. This is also an early contributor to disorders such as ADD. They are trained to have their attention disrupted every 30 seconds for a different commercial.

31. Is TV really that bad? • DO turn the TV off when the show is over. • Kids 2 and over should have exposure to no more than 2 hours of TV a day. • Even having the TV on in the background counts. Researchers at the University of Massachusetts found that background TV shortened the intervals that kids would play with toys, and it made imaginative play less likely.

32. Is TV really that bad? • DO choose programming carefully. • For kids 2 or 3 and beyond, choose programming that has straight-line storytelling, which takes the kids from point A to point B with no flashbacks. • Choose programs with participation, such as pauses built into the show where kids can respond to a question.

33. Is TV really that bad? • Chose shows with labeling, which means whatever is being discussed is visually present on the screen. • Chose shows with engagement: characters and ideas should be interesting to the child. • Chose shows with repetition and review • Chose nonviolent content.

34. Is TV really that bad? • DO watch TV with your kids. • Having social time with people who love them is vital for kids’ development. • Add some context, describe what you see, and ask their thoughts. Point out new vocabulary words and objects. Talk to your kids throughout the program to make it more educational.

35. Bring out the books! • It’s never to early to start reading to your child! • The more you read to him, the more his vocabulary will grow. • Reading to your baby will help you reach your daily word goal. • It will expose him to words we don’t use in every day language.

36. Bring out the books! • Reading at bedtime is a wonderful way to relax and bond. • Daytime storytelling is also a great idea, because they are more alert and better able to absorb new words and information. • Make reading a pleasure. Read in a comfortable place. Have a designated “reading chair.” Have her sit on your lap or next to you so she can see and point to the pictures.

37. Bring out the books! • Show enthusiasm when you read to your child! Read the story with expression! • Talk in voices the characters would use. • Make sound effects. • Make expressions with your face and hands.

38. Bring out the books! • Read to your child often! Try 2 or 3 times a day, for 5-10 minutes each time. • Talk with your child as you read together. Comment about what is happening in the story. You don’t have to read every word on every page. Summarize pages for younger children. • When you child is ready, have him tell you about the pictures he sees and what’s happening.

39. Bring out the books! • Encourage your child to explore books. Give your baby sturdy books to look at, touch, and hold. Allow her to turn the pages, lift the flaps, look through the holes. • Keep books on low shelves or in baskets where he can see them and get them out for himself. (yes, it’s a headache to always clean them up , but it’s worth it in the long run!) • Praise and encourage your child for “pretend” reading a book, even before they know the words or storyline.

40. Bring out the books! • Read favorite books again, and again, and again. You might get tired of them, but children love hearing the same stories over and over. • It helps them to learn by hearing familiar words repeated and seeing what they look like in print. • Keep a plethora of books accessible to your baby! Go to garage sales and “bulk buy” stacks of children’s books for cheap, cheap! Keep a low, secured, accessible, FULL book shelf for your baby.

41. Homework Assignment: • Have a family member take a short video of you reading to your child. Demonstrate some of these “BEST PRACTICES” we have discussed today in your video. • You will bring it in to Mrs. Flynt, and I will upload it to my computer . I will upload the best examples to the library website. I will tell Ms. Hemmingway those students who completed the assignment and those who didn’t. DUE DATE IS MARCH 31st!

42. Works Referenced: • Pregnancy and Newborn, March 2010, p. 74-76 • American Baby, September 2010, p. 66-70 • American Baby, February 2009, p. 69-74