Early Childhood Lesson Plans: Start Reading Earlier

It was just a short time ago an 18-month-old girl made the papers by demonstrating her grasp of the English language — she was actually able to read and iterate written words. While most babies are babbling and making a word or two at this stage, this child was reading cereal boxes at the store.

Many parents wanted to know what their secret was. Well of course it probably had something to do with genetics, it also had something to do with their early childhood lesson plans and habits they established. Both parents were linguists and decided to read and play videos on sign language with the child. Little did they know that these little lessons built amazing thought and speech pathways in the child’s brain, and before they knew it they were on Good Morning America having her read flash cards, blowing viewer’s minds.

Beginning Tips

So the previous lesson is definitely an extreme. Just because your child is not reading at 2 is definitely nothing to worry about. Fostering a normally bright child comes at a slower pace, and reading should be part of the good habit formation at home. Here are some tips when you first start:
— Start as soon as possible, the earlier the better
— Read as if you are excited about the story, it will fall over on the child engaging them
— Be habitual about the time you read, children remember this and find this groove to get into, possibly even reminding you when it’s time
— Talk to your librarian about books that are a good match for your children, they can even help you establish reading as part of your early childhood lesson plan
— Put the books in proximity with the rest of you children’s toys, ideally with the cover facing them so they will be consistently interested
— Books on the go is great, pull one out at the Dr’s office, riding on the commuter train, hanging out at the park etc.

It’s never too young to read. It may seem odd but some experts actually think that reading while the child is in utero may be a good shoe-in for reading as a baby, toddler and beyond. That may also be a good way for connecting the parent’s voices while still in the womb. At least it’s good habit for the parents, especially if one of the parents is not an avid reader. You know the cliche, like father like son, well this may be true regarding the parent’s reading habit, and if the child picks this up later in life by copying the example parent.