Literacy begins at home
You are your child's first and most important teacher.
Literacy doesn't begin when your child learns the alphabet or goes to school. Literacy begins when you talk and sing to your baby, teaching her about the sounds and structures of language. Literacy develops when you read to your toddler, teaching him about print and its functions. And literacy gains strength when your child engages in everyday activities with you and language and print become part of her everyday life.
In a literacy rich home:
- Children are surrounded by oral language, books, and print. A variety of reading and writing materials are available throughout the home for children and adults.
- Adults share their ideas and feelings with children and encourage them to express themselves.
- Children see adults reading for pleasure and for practical and specific purposes, such as paying bills or learning about the news.
- Families accept children’s efforts to read and write without correcting mistakes or providing direct instruction.
- Families talk with children about the print they see around them and explain how it provides information (e.g., signs on buses and streets, labels on food packages, and coupons).
Long before children go to school, the early years are critical for future literacy development. For children to be successful in school, they must have early experiences with language. Creating a literacy rich home sets your child up for success in school and in life.