Expert Reading Advice for Ages 3-5
Answers to the most frequently asked questions posed to our panel of experts about language and literacy development in preschoolers.
How can I teach my preschooler the alphabet?
How can I best assess my children's reading skills?
How can I help my child learn to print?
Is writing an age-appropriate skill for a 3½ year old?
Q: How can I teach my preschooler the alphabet?
A: Learning the alphabet is one milestone that we tend to mark as an indication of a child's successful entry into the world of reading. A child who can name all 26 letters by the end of kindergarten will be equipped with an important foundational stepping stone toward recognizing sounds and printed words. It is important, however, to understand that at this age learning the letters is just one of many prereading skills that are important for your child to acquire. Try not to place so much emphasis on the alphabet that it takes the away from doing other things, such as simply talking to him so that he hears many different words and reading to him so that he hears and sees the beauty of written language.
When you do focus on the alphabet, make sure that your son is learning letters in meaningful ways and not just engaged in isolated memory tasks. Begin with uppercase letters, as they are easier for children to recognize.
- Look for letters every day. Observe your child as he engages in the world around him. Does he notice particular signs and logos, such as "exit" signs, restaurant logos, and so on? Take these opportunities to point out and name letters with him. Start with the first letter of the word.
- I know my name. Help your child learn to identify his own name and the letters that spell it. Begin by showing him his whole name in functional ways. You might put name labels on his backpack or lunchbox or inside the covers of favorite books. Show your son his name on any mail you receive, such as doctor appointment reminders, school calendars, even junk mail.
To help your child learn the letters in his name, write it slowly, saying each letter aloud as you go. Then give him the opportunity to copy the letters. Start big! The best way to help your child learn how to write at this age is to provide him with activities that help him feel the large motions of writing.
Magnetic learning. Once your child has a small bank of letters he can easily recognize (based on those in his name and those he can pick out from his environment), expand letter knowledge by playing with magnetic letters on the refrigerator, by writing the names of other family members and by spelling simple words, especially when your child wants to communicate something in writing. In these ways, you will be helping your child learn big ideas about reading, while learning the alphabet at the same time.
Q: How can I best assess my children's reading skills? We have 3½-year-old twins who are very different.
A: Take note of the whole range of their language and literacy abilities. To achieve success in learning to read, children must have strong oral-language skills, including a wide and deep listening and speaking vocabulary. They must have plenty of exposure to books, both hearing them read aloud and exploring them on their own. And finally they need to have plenty of opportunities to write and draw, using a variety of pencils, crayons, chalk, and kinds of paper. Reading is a complex set of skills that includes specific abilities, such as naming letters of the alphabet and knowing their sounds, as well as broader abilities such as understanding that there are different kinds of print (stories, newspapers, lists, labels, and so on).
Here is a short list of some preschool reading and language milestones — appropriate for when children reach four years of age. There is no linear approach to reach them and your twins will likely meet different milestones at different times.
- Recognize 10 or more letters of the alphabet
- Know some sounds that letters make
- Find the front cover of a book and leaf through the pages
- Retell a story by looking at the pictures
- Recognize one's own name in print
- Recite favorite nursery rhymes
- Predict what will happen next in a story
- Read or recognize print around them in the environment, such as a stop sign
- Make scribbles that resemble letters
- Make actual letters, such as those in one's name
Q: How can I help my child learn to print?
A: First, assess her readiness to learn to print by observing as she engages in drawing activities.
- Does she show motivation and desire by seeking out various writing tools, such as crayons and pencils? Does she spontaneously ask you for paper to draw on?
- Does she ask you to write her name? Is she aware of some of the letters as you write in front of her and show an understanding that what you are saying is connected to what you are writing?
- Can she hold a crayon or pencil in the proper position? If she picks up a writing tool and it is upside down, does she orient it correctly?
- Can she sit still for several minutes and concentrate on making scribbles? Is she willing to attempt making letters when you model them? Does she show a willingness to care for her writing materials (such as storing paper and writing tools in a special box) as well as the understanding that these materials are used in special ways?
When most of these behaviors are in place, your child will most likely be the one asking you to help her learn to print. Here are some things to keep in mind:
- Start with her name. If she has a long name and you have a shorter nickname for her, use that.
- Be an active model. Your child will need you to demonstrate the formation of letters over and over. Take turns together — you write a letter and then she follows.
- Begin with uppercase letters. They are generally easier to learn because their shapes are more distinctive and recognizable. They are also easier to print because they are made from simpler line constructions.
- Don't be alarmed by experimentation. Your daughter may not print in simple left to right fashion. She will likely experiment by placing letters all over the paper and in no apparent order. She will also mix real letters with squiggles and even incorporate letters in parts of her drawings. This is all part of the learning process involved in mastering written communication. For her, it is also part of the fun.
Q: Is writing really an age-appropriate skill for a 3½ year old?
A: As with any cognitive, social-emotional, and physical skill, children develop writing skills at their own pace and within their own time frame. What is considered normal development will vary widely across different children. But 3½ is well under the age at which one should become concerned over a lack of interest or progress in the development of writing skills.
Continue to offer plenty of opportunities for your child to write both at home and in school — but accompany those opportunities with good writing models. By this I mean that your child should see others around him — peers, older children, and adults — all writing for enjoyment and for specific purposes.
At home, you can take your child on a special outing to buy a birthday card. Then settle at a comfortable chair and table to write a special note. Or, you can ask your child what he would like to get on your next trip to the supermarket. Ask him to make a list so that you won't forget to buy it, and post the list on the refrigerator until it is time to go.
These things will awaken a desire to write in your child. If there is some hidden motor problem or difficulty, you will better be able to determine what is happening as he attempts to write — and you will be able to use these observations if you later need to seek guidance.
