6–12 months 12–24 months 2–3 years 3–4 years 4–5 years 5–7 years 7–8 years Board and cloth
books; brightly- coloured books; books with photos of baby faces or familiar objects; nursery rhymes
Sturdy books to touch and carry; books with images of children doing everyday activities like sleeping or playing; books with rhyme and simple text
Picture books with stories; books that rhyme; look-and- find books
Picture books with longer stories; alphabet books; counting books
Picture books with more characters, complex themes; poetry; fairy tales and legends
Picture books with more complex themes; poetry; fairy tales and legends; non-fiction
Read chapter books together; read a variety of text; magazines, online; series by favourite authors
Smiles, coos, gurgles and babbles Knows familiar voices
Responds to name Responds to photos of baby faces
Follows simple requests, like
“please” and
“wave bye bye”
Speaks basic words; starts to say simple phrases Hands books to parents to read Names and points at pictures Holds book right side up
Tries about 20 new words each week
Picks the same book
Begins to understand rhyming Can identify familiar things Remembers how familiar stories and sentences end
Recites favourite sentences from stories
Begins to learn letter names Pretends to read books
Has a vocabulary of 300-1,000 words
Recognizes rhyme
Able to sit and listen for longer periods of time Learning numbers, letter names and sounds
Retells familiar stories
Uses longer and more complex sentences Can rhyme Has listened to 1,000 stories
Begins to read independently Can predict what will happen next Relates to characters Prefers certain books
Learns the relation between letters and sounds Tells stories with beginning, middle and end
Begins to read more fluently Begins to read simple chapter books
Summarizes stories and recalls main ideas Knows difference between fact and opinion
Identifies
confusing parts of the text and asks questions Take turns talking,
making eye contact Point at and identify items Read, sing, talk, play and LOVE Play back-and- forth games like peek-a-boo Use lots of repetition
Read aloud every day
Let your child choose the book and turn the pages
Make books a part of routines like bedtime Name things and familiar pictures Respond when your child points and talks Use books for calming
Get a library card
Ask questions that are easy to answer, like
“where’s the cat?” Read and reread favourite books Continue using books as part of daily routines Talk about the pictures and the story
Encourage your child to choose books
Ask “what do you think happens next?”
Create your own stories from the pictures Look for words and pictures that begin with the same sound Point out numbers and letters
Connect the stories to your child’s life Encourage your child to tell the story
Draw and write together
Identify the letters in your child’s name
“Can you find an
‘A?’ “Can you find a letter in your name?” Buy books as gifts
Continue to read with your child Talk about the characters and messages in the stories Encourage and praise your child for figuring out new words Encourage writing stories, letters, and emails. Don’t worry too much about spelling
Continue to read to your child Keep reading fun Read to find answers to questions Discuss big ideas using how and why questions Encourage self-selection Use books to talk about feelings and complex issues like death and divorce Comforted by a
familiar adult Cries when upset and seeks comfort Quiet when picked up Laughs aloud May comfort self with blanket or thumb sucking Expresses different emotions Gives affection and love
Able to play alone for a few minutes Starts to show independence Says “NO!” Plays next to other children but doesn’t share Reacts to changes in routine
Hugs and kisses familiar people
Expresses wants Starts to show awareness of own feelings and other’s feelings Rapid mood shifts May show some fears (dark) Begins to show empathy for other children
Likes routines Begins to separate more easily from parents
May become shy and start to whine
Shares toys and takes turns with help Can be bossy and defiant Less self-centred More even tempered Begins to form friendships Begins to name emotions
Emotions can quickly swing May stretch the truth
Strong desire for independence May develop a favourite friend Become more cooperative with peers
May have trouble taking turns
Able to share and take turns
Play is more involved and includes roles and props
Shows lots of affection towards others
Shows empathy for a hurt child or pet
Proud of accomplishments Likes to entertain others and make them laugh Greater sense of right and wrong
More comfortable spending time at other’s houses Compares performance against others By age 8 prefers being around peers Start to feel sensitive about how other children feel about them Able to identify more kinds of emotions
Milestones
What to ReadCommunication and CognitionWhat Can Parents DoSocial Emotional Development
Let your child SEE YOU reading.
READ, TALK, SING, PLAY in your home language.
ing tracker
Title and Author of Book Date
Read Notes
a b c d e
f g h i j
k l m n o
p q r s t
u v w x y
z
pee
wee
TMLETTER HUNT
Can you find the letters of the alphabet in the book you just read? What about in other places around the room?
Play Animal Sounds!
Did you know that animals make different sounds in different languages just like people do? Because of the ways that
different vowels and consonants combine in different languages, playing with animal sounds – hearing them and making
them – is a great way to practice phonological and phonemic awareness!
English woof woof meow cock-a-
doodle-
do
oink ribbit tweet squeak
French ouah ouah miaou cocorico groin groin croa croa cui cui cheep
German wau wau miau kikeriki grunz quaak
quaak
tschiwitt piep piep
Japanese wan wan nyaa nyaa ko-ke-kok-
ko-o
boo boo kero kero pii pii chu-chu
Russian gav-gav miyau kukareku nrgu-nrgu kva-kva fiyt-fiyt pi-pi-pi
Spanish guau miau kikirikí oinc-oinc croá, croá pío cui-cui
Make the sounds in different languages and have children guess which animal might be making the sound! You can also
play with as many animals as you can make the sounds of. Take turns – what sounds can the children make? Can you
guess those animals?
Images created by Phạm Thanh Lộc for the Noun Project
Nursery Rhymes that help practice letter sounds
Wee Willie Winkie runs through the town
Upstairs and downstairs in his nightgown
Rapping at the window, crying at the lock,
“are all the children in their beds,
for now ‘tis 8 o’clock?”
Swan swam over the sea… swim, swan, swim!
Swan swam back again, well swam, Swan!
Land of the silver birch, home of the beaver
Where still the mighty moose wanders at will
Blue lake and rocky shore, I will return once more
boomdidi boom boom, boomdidi boom boom
boomdidi boom boom boo-oo-oom
To market, to market, to buy a plum bun
Home again, home again, market is done.
Jack, be nimble; Jack, be quick;
Jack, jump over the candlestick!
There was an old woman lived under a hill
And is she’s not gone then she lives there still!
Eena, deena, dina, do, catla, weena, wina, wo
Each peach, pear, plum, out goes Tom Thumb.
Hushabye, don’t you cry, go to sleep, my little baby.
When you wake, you shall have all the pretty little horses;
Blacks an bays, dapples and grays,
coach and six white horses.
Hushabye, go to sleep, my little baby.
Two little blackbirds, sitting on a hill
One named Jack, and one named Jill.
Fly away, Jack! Fly away, Jill!
Come back, Jack! Come back, Jill!
Hey, diddle diddle, the cat and the fiddle,
The cow jumped over the moon;
the little dog laughed to see such sport,
And the dish ran away with the spoon!
Thistle-see, thistle-seed, fly away, fly!
The hair on your body will take you up high;
Let the wind whirl you around and around,
You’ll not hurt yourself when you fall to the ground!
All the baby chicks say cheep, cheep, cheep
When they’re cold and hungry, when they want to sleep.
Mother Hen goes hunting to find them wheat and corn,
Then she wraps her wings around
to keep them safe ‘til morn.
Nursery Rhymes are full of rare words, some of which we only hear nowadays in rhyme like these! They’re great for practicing rhyming: repeat them a few times to become
familiar with them. Then pause at the end of a rhyming line to have a child “fill in the blanks” – they’ll use their skills to remember or predict what word is missing!
pee
wee
TMCut out the cards and place them colour-side up. Pick a card and look at the picture – don’t show anyone!
Begin to describe the picture but don’t say its name! Try to get the other players to guess! What letter does it start
The Name Game
pee
