Literacy is one of the most important skills we can help our children develop.
Reading and understanding language transforms our world and opens the door to lifelong learning. Sometimes, however, we can focus so heavily on worksheets and chapter books that we can forget all the ways we foster literacy every day with our children. From those beginning conversations with newborn babies, narrating their world to them from the safety of our arms, to reading a recipe while making dinner with our 8 year-old sous chef, parents build the foundational skills necessary for a lifetime relationship with words.
Literacy is more than just classrooms and standards, and when we, as parents and educators, expand our imagination beyond the traditional tools, we open up a world of literary engagement to a new generation.
Check out some nontraditional literacy tool options below:
LISTEN with GRPL’s Phone-A-StoryLiteracy begins with hearing words and listening to stories. Knowing this, every week a youth librarian from the Grand Rapids Public Library reads a story aloud for preschool aged children who call in. Stories are read in both English and Spanish, and children can choose their preferred language when they call. Find the phone number here. | ||
WATCH with Storyline OnlineSometimes hearing the story isn’t enough, and you want to see those pictures, too! For those little ears who crave more engagement, check out Storyline. The SAG-AFTRA Foundation’s Daytime Emmy®-nominated and award-winning children’s literacy website, Storyline Online® offers short videos of acclaimed actors reading children’s books. Watch videos here. | ||
PLAY with PBS KIDS Reading GamesSometimes the best way to encourage literacy growth is turn it into a game, and PBS KIDS has done just that with their collection of themed reading games. Whether they are exploring the Alaskan Wilderness with Molly, building a story with Elmo and Cookie Monster, or diving into a comic book with WordGirl, kids will be engaging with the written word and having fun at the same time. Play the games here. | ||
WRITE with 826 Michigan’s Publishing OpportunitiesLiteracy is not just consuming words and stories; it can also be developed by producing and sharing the stories already inside us. That is where 826 Michigan comes in. Believing in the transformative power of seeing your work in print, the organization publishes the work of young authors in two yearly anthologies. See the guidelines here. | ||
CONNECT with family activities from PBS KIDSParents are their child’s first teacher, and one of the strongest ways to build literacy is to spend time together talking, listening, reading, and writing. Whether toddlers just beginning to form speech or children translating speech to paper, parents have the power to develop those skills just by being present and engaged. Try out these family activities: |
