Advice needed - toddler learning

[standswithfist]

Hi - I was wondering if any seasoned parents can advise me - my daughter is just over 3 years old and loves to read. She will sit and read to me i.e. tell me what she is seeing in the book. I feel like I could now take it up a notch and teach her letters and words but I am just not sure how to teach her to read - any suggestions would be greatly received. This is my first child and we don't have any family around (or I would have asked them!).

Thanks in advance

[Pickle]

You could start with the basic phonics...

http://m.youtube.com/index?desktop_uri=%2F&gl=GB#/watch?v=Djz82FBYiug

This is what they use in the school nursery my kids have been at, starting from the age of 3. It then develops from individual letters to blends, and eventually whole words which they focus on at reception age (4/5ish).

Have fun, but be warned that the songs will haunt you in the middle of the night!

[beec]

I started giving my son the foam letters in the bath - I did about 5 or 6 at a time and when he secured those, I gave him a few more. Initially I would just tell him what the letters were and then after a while, I would test him on it and then give it to him when he got it right (or correct him and then give it to him). I know it sounds really Tiger Mum like, but it worked. At the age of 22 months he recognised about 15 upper case letters and now he is 32 months, he recognises 22 upper case letters and about 10 lower case letters. I only ""play" this game once a week or so but he seems to really get pleasure out of getting them right and "pleasing mummy"! I also point to the letters whilst singing the Alphabet Song.

I think I will start doing it phonetically soon, although I hope I have not confused him by doing it this way!

[Ondine]

I didn't try to teach my 2 to read but just concentrated on embedding a love of books. Trips to the library and/or lots of your own books, looking for vsriety - everything from Dr Seuss to traditional stories, tactile books, those first picture dictionaries. I also swear by audio books - both my kids have excellent listening skills (other than when being asked to do chores of course) and I'm sure this is from the audiobooks. In fact the younger one was listening to an audiobook on her iPod coming home from school yesterday. She was tired and grumpy from a long week and it calmed her right down.

[Fuschia]

Eye spy games

Finding rhymes

As well as the other suggestions

[Sol]

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Reading-Lesson-Teach-Child-Lessons/dp/0913063029/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1331386085&sr=8-1

This book is excellent, and has excellent reviews

[Growlybear]

I watched Sesame Street each day with my daughter from a very early age, and she had very basic books, which helped her to know all her letters by the time she was 2. When she was about three and a half, I started buying the Ladybird Peter and Jane books (the successors to Janet and John) and we gradually moved up through the series. I found the structured approach really good, and my daughter was reading fluently long before she started school.

[Jacks50]

We've been told by son's teachers (he's at nursery within a school) that its really important for them to understand rhyming before they start learning the letters sounds. So read lots of books with rhymes, get them to try and finish the sentence, make up silly rhymes together, etc etc.

have fun with it!

[mima08]

Hiya - we are a bit off learning to read yet.... but there is a great website called Brillkids with lots of resources (and a lot of free ones, rather than the expensive programmes) and a very helpful forum.

mx

[chantelle]

Wow, my son is 3.5 and starting school in September and only knows a couple of letters reliably. Not sure there is any need though, at least one school specifically said they don't want or expect it.

[nunheadmum]

If you know what school you're going to send them to (or hope to...it is ED!), maybe try and find out how they prefer to do things. I know that my daughter had learned her letters and basic reading at nursery (she loved doing it and it was a game, not work) but when she went to reception, she spent the whole year repeating what she'd already done. I guess they wanted to be sure she'd covered it all their way. It led to some issues when we went into year 1 as she'd been able to coast in reception and got a shock as she had to do some real work!

It sounds like what you're doing, getting her to 'read' the book from the pictures is a great start. The rhyming focus is good too. Also maybe ask her little questions about the stories you read to check she's understanding them or things like how the characters feel, what could have happened if different things happened in the story etc......essentially things that get her thinking and using her imagination.

With that kind of start, she'll probably pick up the reading bit fast enough once she starts.

If you do want to start with letters and reading, I found the Jolly Phonics DVD really useful - 6 or 8 episodes based around the letter groups as they're taught in phonics. It's quite basic but my daughter loved it and she always asked for it as she knew I'd be more likely to agree to it than other less constructive ones!!

[minder]

Nunheadmum - to learn letters and basic reading at nursery is quite exceptional. Well done to you for the input to your daughter's learning.

I worked in a Reception class a few years ago and could tell the ones (maybe a quarter of the class that had this input) but to be fair most Reception age children should be learning through play anyway. Some didn't know basic things like colours, numbers, nursery rhymes, but still picked up once given the opportunity.

Would agree with Chantelle that only the basics are known i.e. a couple of letters or their name. If they can pick up and cope with more then that's good. The school can then build on this in their own way.

All the children should catch up by age 5/6 and will be on an even keel to start the learning in Year 1.

[standswithfist]

Thankyou all so much! Its been very interesting to read some new tips and know i'm on the right course.

Pickle - when I clicked on your link it took me to an anti violence video? can you post the link again?

Thankyou again everyone much appreciated!!

[EmilyE]

They do request at school that if you have done stuff before that the letters are identified phonetically (by the sound they make) as opposed to by name. So ah, buh, not ay, bee, if that's clear. Also that if they are doing writing that it's lower case, or with the capital letter at the beginning, as appropriate, but not all capitals.

Other than that, I think it's all good really, if they're enjoying it.

[Pickle]

Oops, not sure what happened there then! On my phone at the moment, but if you just search "jolly Phonics" in You Tube you'll find the videos. The first one is the "a a ants on my arm" one.

Hope that helps x

[dulwichgirl2]

We have deliberately held back all of our children to the extent that my smallest daughter (just 2) will bring letters to me and tell me what they are and I will say great, let's go to the park. I was scared they would be put off or bored by organised letter recognition sessions, hence this approach. I am a tiger mum but in reverse!