Provide Great Books, Focus on Interests and Ask the Right Questions to stimulate comprehension, communication and motivation in the early years. Preschool and Kindergarten reads can combine for family fun!

Find Great Books

You can’t start too early to instill love of reading and learning in children. Fill their environment with great books and let them choose having reads whenever they want. Where to begin? Check our Preschool-Kindergarten booklist for ideas and visit your local library to check out any of the titles. You can check many titles out at a time, enough to fill some book baskets and bookshelves throughout your home. Most libraries have story times as well that you can time your visits to hear a wonderful title being read and inspire even more finds. Check out books relating to family and kids’ interests or similar issues that your family is having such as Harry the Dirty Dog or Go Dog Go for dog lovers or Madeline if you like Paris, or are facing a hospital stay, Ira Sleeps Over for first sleep over issues, Alexander, Who’s Not (Do you hear me? I mean it!) Going to Move for those having to move, or Fancy Nancy’s Favorite Fancy Words for those who want to build their vocabulary. Focus on your child’s favorites and yours, a great way to read enthusiastically. Look for the new, fun and funny. Bob Dylan’s Man Gave Names to All the Animals has provided hours of fun for kids and The Cat in the Hat is still a classic fun book that never loses its charm. The movie lends itself to more fun and comparison when asking the right questions.

Ask the Right Questions to Spark Motivation and Build Comprehension

Rent the movies of the books you read to your children and let them tell you how the movie is different from the book to begin to instill comprehension and critical thinking. Make connections to the places, plot, characters and themes to the book. Questions such as: Who do you know that is like a character in the story? or What place have you been that is like a place in the story? connect the read to our personal life. Internalizing how to connect to stories in this way maximizes comprehension skills before children learn to read. Any of the Kindergarten-Preschool books can be enjoyed and connected to with the whole family. A family read of Miss Nelson Has a Field Day had 4 year old Lisa remark : “Let’s go to our Lulu’s” a family favorite restaurant with the same name as the one in the book (place). Charlie, older brother, said that UCLA needs a coach like the story after their great loss on Saturday to USC. (theme) For many more questions that work for any book and can incorporate the whole family if you have 3,4 and 5 year olds, see The Preschool Kindergarten Edition of The Book Club Game.