Written by:
Janet Hanna, Extension Educator
Source: NebFact Communicating with Children
University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension
Building Strong Families
Oral language is
key to later literacy development. Infants focus on and develop language
mostly because they want to communicate.
Infants
- Babies want to look, touch, taste and listen to everything that
they encounter (reaching, grasping, mouthing).
Toddlers
- Discover that stories have a beginning, middle and end.
- Learn to love
stories and rhymes.
- Enjoy books
with familiar characters, objects and events.
- Find predictable
routines and rituals very comforting.
- Love to practice
new skills and knowledge.
- Learn about
feelings and like to hear stories about emotions.
- Learn the
difference between real and pretend.
- Enjoy stories
about make-believe (e.g., animals who dress up and talk like people).
Young Children
- Show an interest in pictures by looking, patting, pointing or
cooing at them.
- Look at and
recognize pictures in a book.
- Learn about
books and stories by actively listening and interacting with books.
- Understand
the picture represents a real object
Caregivers
- Exaggerate voice and actions to keep toddlers interested.
- Involve toddlers
by encouraging them to join in familiar phrases or words.
- Act out an
action in the story.
- Find things
hidden in a picture.
If you wish to
leave feedback about this TIPS for Families, click on the TIPS
Feedback Form link below. For
more information on communicating with children go to the University
of Nebraska-Lincoln publication website at www.ianrpub.unl.edu
and click on Families.
