Enhance Reading Time, + A GIVEAWAY!

 Last week, I talked about the connection between reading and a child’s speech and language development. If you missed that post, read it here. I wanted to follow that up with some real life examples of how I incorporate speech and language activities into her reading time. One of her favorite books is “Ten Little Ladybugs” by Melanie Gerth. We received this book from a dear friend, and it has been a huge hit with L! In fact, she loves it so much that it is literally coming apart at the seams. 

Reasons I love this book:

• Texture: it has 3D ladybugs on each page providing tactile input
• It uses everyday insects and animals 
• It introduces counting
• Each page ends with a rhyme 
• Bright colors fill the pages
• The plot involves counting down from 10 to 1 which lays groundwork for inferencing and prediction skills

When I read this book with L, I may focus on one element throughout the book. For example, I might point out a green item on each page, or point out each time I see a tree. I can target counting and emphasize the numbers. I will take her hand, and help her touch each ladybug on the page and count them out loud. Asking questions throughout the story like “where is the caterpillar?” and then providing the response “there it is!” while using my finger to point helps foster a verbal and visual connection.

The second book I want to highlight is called “Goodnight Manger” by Laura Sassi. This is a Christmas book focusing on the birth of baby Jesus. 

Reasons I love this book:

• This book helps explain the Christmas story in a fun and playful way
• Many animals and animal sounds are depicted throughout the book
• Each page ends with a rhyme
• Vibrant colorful pictures are found throughout the book
• It revolves around a mom, dad, and a sleepless infant- a relatable story!

When I begin to read the book, I let L help me hold it. This helps her learn the the orientation of a book (front, back, upright, reading left to right) which is an important pre-literacy skill. Since this book features farm animals, I say the animal sound as I say each animal and prompt L to imitate me. I focus on one animal throughout the book and point it out on each page. I give the direction “point to ___” and then help her do that. I also give the direction “turn the page” each time we turn the page to promote following directions and keep her engaged. L loves to do what Mommy does, so turning the pages is fun! When the book is over, I say “all done” or “the end” to bring closure. Anytime she tries to imitate a sound or word, I provide positive encouragement, and then repeat the word back to her correctly. These simple things can help your child begin to develop pre-literacy skills and speech! 

These books are great for older children, too 

With an older child, I ask follow up questions at the end of the story to check for understanding. For example: “what insects did the ladybugs encounter in the book?” or “ Who came to visit baby Jesus in our story?” I may also ask questions that require some inference, such as “What would have happened if…”. It is also important to check for basic understanding of vocabulary words. The word “manger”  or “rouse” might not be familiar to your child, and that can affect her overall understanding. Finally, if you have multiple children you can have older children read to younger children, so they can practice reading skills and bond.

I don’t want to just talk about these books today; I want to give away a book! The winner of this giveaway will have the choice between  “Ten Little Ladybugs” and “Goodnight Manger”. If you personally don’t have a need for this book, it would make a great gift for a friend or family member who could use it! There are two ways to enter:

1. Like “Momma and Me, SLP” on facebook, and Subscribe to my blog here. 
2. Like “Momma and Me, SLP” on facebook, and share this article on your timeline.
3. When you are done, send me a message and let me know so I can enter you into the drawing!!

If you do both of these things, you will be entered twice (YAY!!!) 

This Giveaway will close next Sunday, December 14th, at 8:00pm, so get busy! Winner will be announced in next Monday’s blog post.

Click on the images below to purchase these books online (This is not an affiliate ad.)