Learning to read doesn’t involve just sitting and reading. Young children learn a lot about reading and literacy in many ways. Here are some tips for encouraging very active preschoolers to enjoy books.
- Since the children in your child care program are very active, try reading books to them as they are playing. You may be surprised at what they will remember, even though they may appear not to be listening.
- If you choose books about topics the children are interested in, they may be more inclined to stop playing and look at the books with you.
- Use voice inflection for different characters to help the story come alive.
- Help preschoolers learn to read by helping them recognize letters on signs, cereal boxes, toys, and so on.
- Introduce books, letters, and sounds in more active ways. Some children enjoy plastic books that can be used in the water table, writing letters with their fingers using water or sand, or listening to a story before being interested in having it read.
Keep in mind literacy is a process over time. The more you recognize and use listening, writing, reading, and speaking in your everyday child care environment, the more you will interest children in these literacy skills.
For more ideas on how to encourage reading, check out the eXtension Alliance for Better Child Care article on Helping Young Children Learn to Love Literacy.
