What to Do with Babies
- Talk. Talk. Talk. They need to hear words to help their brains develop.
- Repeat the sounds they make back to them.
- Talk about what you are doing as you unload the groceries, cook dinner or go through town.
- Use books to provide back and forth interactions.
- Read aloud using a sing-song voice to grab their attention.
- Help them hold the book, listen to the story, turn pages and chew on the corners(that is ok)!
- Sing songs.
- Make animal sounds and connect back to the animal.
What to Do with Toddlers
- Give them books to hold, turn pages and look through.
- Let them make up their own stories.
- Look at the book, point to objects you see and name them.
- Words matter and help build a child’s vocabulary.
- Say rhyming words and make up a silly rhyme.
- Take books everywhere you go.
- Ask questions about the book to help them understand what is happening in the story.
- Say look at the ladybug. It is read with five black spots. What do ladybugs eat?
What to Do with Preschoolers
- Make reading and books part of your everyday life.
- Put books everywhere.
- Visit the local library or book store.
- Model reading through family reading time. You read, they read.
- Let them use the pictures in a book to tell their own a story.
- Tell stories to each other.
- Talk to each other and ask questions.
- Make story time fun and interesting. Make sounds, noises and sound out words.
- Spend time together cuddled up with books.