Five Early Literacy Practices You Should Do with Your Child at Home

Early literacy is one of the most important areas of development in the life of a child. Early child development happens in the child’s first five years and into their early school years. Early literacy refers to the development of a child’s skills such as creating a rich vocabulary, developing self-expression, reading comprehension, and communication. 

As a parent, all you want for your child is to have a successful and happy life ahead of them. Your child’s environment, living conditions, the amount of time you spend with them, and the resources available may affect the quality of early literacy that you can provide. In fact, a study found that families who live in areas with little resources and little long-term investment face more obstacles when trying to get their kids involved in early literacy initiatives.

Regardless of your financial standing or social status, one thing remains certain: you play a crucial role in your child’s early literacy development. Studies show that 95% of the child’s brain develops by the time they reach 5 years old. So, the first five years of life offer a special opportunity for you to instil important literacy skills that will last for life. 

There are five key areas of early childhood literacy that every child must develop in their early childhood years: reading, communication, writing, singing, and playing. These key areas are important because they are the building blocks of a child’s literacy which they can benefit from for the rest of their life. 

Reading is one of the core skills of every person, it is where other forms of knowledge are learned. A person’s reading comprehension is one of the basic things that he/she must develop early on in their childhood. In fact, it affects how well the child performs in school and later on in their career life as adults. Helping the child create a love for reading at a young age should be a priority for every parent. Reading can easily be developed in early childhood. In fact, childhood is the best time to create a love for reading because the child’s imagination is most active in these years. Your goal as a parent is to provide the child with the opportunity to develop their love for reading. 

The first step to developing a love for reading is to choose the right book for your child. Studies show that children love books that they can relate to. In fact, reading comprehension is increased by 40% when the child is reading personalised books vs non-personalised books. The logic behind this significant increase in reading comprehension is that children are more engaged in books with personalised elements (National Literacy Trust). A personalised book gives the child the “sense of ownership” in the text that they are reading. Ownership of the text is an important part of perceiving oneself as a reader (Dymore and Griffiths, 2010). 

Another important skill to develop in early childhood is talking or better described as the child’s ability to communicate. Effective communication does not only affect the child intellectually but more importantly, their emotional well-being. Communication is developed most when you spend more time talking to your child. Bedtime reading is one of the most practical ways to improve your communication with your child! 

Writing is a basic literacy skill necessary for every child. It’s one of the basic things that’s taught in school and can also be taught at home before the child enters school. The skill of writing can be developed through practice. For infants and toddlers, you can start with simple exercises that prepare the child’s hands to hold a pen for writing. Introduce the child to large pens first with soft tips because those are the safest. When the child is comfortable holding up a pen, you can transition to a marker or a pencil and practice the child by tracing on practice sheets! 

Singing and playing are also important skills to develop in early childhood. It’s best acquired through social interaction, like enrolling the child in social groups such as playgroups and daycares. 

These five skills form the literacy foundation for every child. The best thing about it is that these skills can actually be taught by any parent to their child at home. It’s important to invest in your child’s early years by ensuring that they are equipped with all these necessary skills that would give them the advantage that they will need in school and later on in their lives.