0

Language and Literacy Activities for Infants 3 months onwards.

We have received many questions from parents on how they can assist their preschoolers to gain an interest & love of reading. You may be surprised but you actually can start language and literacy activities for infants as early as a few months old.  In this instance what we mean is that you start reading books to them for 10-15 minutes every day.

Case Study Example: Karen, who is a highly skilled infants teacher has implemented this with her daughters who have 4 children aged between 3 months & 4 years of age. Bree, who has 3 boys aged between 4 months & 4 years began reading stories to Hendrix when he was only a few months old. The books were basic readers with colorful pictures that assisted in gaining Hendi’s attention. Hendrix is now 4 years of age and he and his 2 year old brother Harrison love snuggling together as their mom sits between them and reads a story every night.

When Hendrix turned 2 Bree began to practice the sounds different words made still using simple readers. As the sentences and stories are generally very short Hendrix began to remember the words (as children develop favorite stories that they love to have read to them repeatedly). Now he is able to point out words that he is recognises.

His 2 year old brother Harry is now commencing the same process with Bree. Both boys appear to have developed a love of books which is so important with the digital distractions so readily available  nowadays.

Next in line is Franklin, who although at only 4 months may not appear to be responding to having Bree read a short story to him every day she expects he will develop the same love of books as his 2 older brothers.

Karen says that many parents turn up to school with expectations that it is the education systems responsibility to teach their children to read and make no effort to help their own children. She agrees that ultimately it is their responsibility but the parents can make it so much easier & less stressful for their own children if they just undertake this relatively simple and loving task that can have such a positive impact on their children’s future learning prospects.

What are some literacy activities

• Sing to them daily at home 
• Talk to them daily home
• Write to them at home
• Reading aloud at least 10-15 minutes a day
• Play with them at home
• Visit story time at a public library

Why is literacy important for children’s development

According to research studies, babies from the wealthiest and poorest families have a 30million words gap by the time they are 3 years old. By 18 months, it will start to display some vocabulary and language skills disparity. It worsens dramatically when the child reaches 24 months. (Source) . 

The study, conducted by researchers at Stanford University, tested the language processing of 18- and 24-month-old toddlers using pictures, instructions, and eye response. The 18 months old toddlers belong to well to do families while the 24 months old toddlers are chosen from poorer families. They film down the whole process and realise that the 24 months old toddlers have the same performance as the 18 months old toddlers.  

The results above are important for parents to know as vocabulary development at a very young age contribute to their better reading skills and school success in future.

What kind of activities promote literacy in early childhood

Before we touch on the activities to promote literacy in early childhood, we have to understand the huge role played by parents at this stage. According to research studies, 86% – 98% of a young child vocabulary is picked up from their parents..(Source)

To sum it up, underprivileged children without literacy activities in the early stage are already lacking behind before joining preschool. At this point, most infants have already develop part of their five senses and ready to associate themselves with sound and voices. It helps when using objects or written words to help them connect visuals with what they heard. 

The following language activities are what you can do to bridge the gap in inequality and prevent your child from falling behind as they grow up.

Sing to them daily at home

Cheerful singing and music is a great way to start building their vocal cords. You can do it when changing diapers or while playing developmental toys with them. They may develop some baby talk language and also imitate some humming sounds from you. This will let them have space to explore the different chords and melodies from songs and music. 

Singing and making music are among the most enjoyable learning activities because they have both elements – enjoyment and learning.  It is an essential way of reinforcing basic skills in numeracy and literacy for your little one. It also helps to improve their creativity, imagination and expression of ideas.

Talk to them daily at home

Whether it is bringing them to go for a walk on stroller or running errands at the supermarket, you can talk to them on a frequent basis. Describe what you see to them, it can be pet dogs, buildings or vegetables you bought. Even though they cannot reply to you now, constant repeating will help to reinforce the vocabulary in their brain.

Write to them at home

At this stage, you can start off with writing basic alphabets or numbers in front of them. Read out to them aloud with proper pronunciation and do this on a daily basis. They will learn to pick up the pronunciation and associate with the written alphabets or numbers gradually.

Play with them at home

Whether they are learning to crawl or learning to stand or walk, positive language and affirmations from you help to build their self confidence. They learn not to be afraid of failing or falling. This will be useful when they are trying to speak in the toddler stages. Using toys for babies learning to stand or walk can help to extend their attention span. 

Read aloud at least 15 minutes a day

When you are reading aloud to your baby in a way that engages them, it helps to improve their emerging literacy and language development. And strengthen the bond between baby and parent.  

In other words, reading bedtime stories may not only soothe your little one to sleep. It helps to build their language skills and ability to read. Even more, it helps to develop their lifelong love of reading books. If you are running out of books to read to them, you can go to the library to borrow or use flashcards. (Get 58 free flashcards that you can use on your phone or tablet here)   

Visit Storytime at a public library

Whether it is your baby getting restless at home or you want to get some fresh air, you can visit storytimes at libraries near your house. Check out the time schedule on their website before heading down. This will allow your newborn to be exposed to a wide range of books besides what you have at home. 

Final tip on language and literacy activities for infants

Research has shown that parents that invest in newborn literacy program are more effective in increasing maternal engagement in literacy activities. They are also most likely to spend significantly more time reading to their babies. (Source).

If you are still hesitant on how to build a good language foundation for your newborn, you may like to consider investing in an inexpensive newborn literacy program like reading headstart (affiliate link). You can find out more by checking out their free video here. What are some literacy activities you have done for your infant? Share your experience below.

You may also be interested on Nutritional needs for babies 6 12 months and when can baby sit in stroller without car seat.