Welcome to Day 3 of Organizing Your Home to Promote Literacy. If you missed Day 1 and/or Day 2, just click on the image above or HERE. I am honored to be joining 21 other bloggers this week as we GET ORGANIZED!!
Today, my focus is Organizing & Integrating Literacy into Your Everyday Routine.
Let’s get one thing straight before we start. My plan is not to guilt you into adding one more thing to your plate. If you’re anything like me, it’s already f.u.l.l. These are mainly literacy activities you can weave into your day.
Spell It Out Loud!
From an early age, my oldest two kiddos have been able to spell the word go. Why? Because, I integrate spelling into our every day conversations. Listen, “Okay, in five minutes it will be time to G-O (go) to Target.” I actually spell the word aloud, then say the word I just spelled in my conversation. Just the other day, while in a restaurant, my 3 year old said, “Hey, mom! There’s the word go. G-O!”
A Few Other Suggested Words that Integrate Well
A Child’s Name: A friend recently commented that her 4 year old son was having the hardest time learning how to spell his name. My suggestion: spell his name instead of calling it. “S-e-a-n, it’s time to eat!” down– “Would you please get d-o-w-n?” “Please sit d-o-w-n.” time– “It’s t-i-m-e to wash hands.” stop– “Please s-t-o-p hitting your brother.” no– “N-o, you may not have another cookie. You’ve already had 20.” yes-“Y-e-s, you may have a third serving of broccoli.”Teach During the “Free” Moments
- Swinging or Playing Outside? Check out Amy’s Swinging and Clapping Post
- In the car? Snake. Now, you give me a word that starts with the letter s. OR Listen to a book on CD.
- Waiting at the Doctor’s office? Read a book together, make up a silly poem, or practice writing letters/words.
Integrate it Naturally into Your Day
Sing a Song: Just recently, I posted how you can integrate rhyme into your daily routine. By singing rhyming songs together, you are giving young children the building blocks needed to read.
Clean Up Time: Use this time to introduce new vocabulary or practice letter sounds within words. Can you put away all the toys that roll? OR Can you put away all the toys that start with /p/?
Technology Time: Utilize time on the computer or iPad for your child to play learning games. You can click here for some of my favorite learning websites for my kids.
Writing: Is someone’s birthday coming up? Does a thank you note need to be written? Is there some who’s sick and in the hospital? Does the grocery list need to be made? Does your son’s bedroom door need a sign, “No girls allowed! (except mom)”? Writing has such a natural way of integrating itself.
Sometimes, You Just Have to Make the Time for Literacy
Reading To: When kids are young, reading together comes pretty naturally. But what about as kids grow as readers? Do they still *need* us to read aloud to them? The answer? A resounding YES! We can still model important things like reading with fluency or figuring out the meaning of an unknown word. And there are great books out there, even for the preschooler who can’t sit still!
Reading With: Did you child come home with a book today from school? Try reading it with her. Take turns reading every other page. For more, check out Jodie’s Shared Reading ideas and Tips for Reading With Newborns to Age 5.
Silent Reading: Try to integrate a quiet reading time for your child. This may not happen every day. It may only happen on the weekends. Create a cozy spot together, like this one, in your house that makes your child want to read. Some simple ideas may include: buying a few throw pillows for a corner of the room, setting up a tent to read in, buying a cool light to place near the area (making sure there’s plenty of lighting).
Now, it’s your turn: What are some ways that you organize literacy into your routine? I’d love to hear your ideas!
Stay tuned tomorrow! We’ll talk about organizing your toys by transforming them for literacy.
If you enjoy these activities and printables, I would encourage you to follow along in one or more of these ways so you don’t miss a thing!
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~Becky
My son and I enjoyed playing Starting Sounds I Spy. “I spy something that begins with ‘mmmm’.
Oh, Vicki! I like!