Teaching your child begins at birth. Everything you say and do in their presence is a learning experience for your little one and while you might not make every moment a fascinating lesson in something deep, you can certainly choose what you are teaching them. One vital area is through reading.
Most parents read to their toddlers, but what you read is important. Charlotte Mason referred to quality books as “twaddle-free” books, meaning books that actually have some substance to them and that are worth reading. As opposed to mindless junk.
Toddlers are constantly learning and it makes sense that the books you read to them and expose them to will make an impression on them. So what kind of books are great for teaching your little ones?
Numbers/ABCs
Books that make counting fun and display the letters or numbers in bright, easy to see illustrations are great for the littlest kids in your home. They`ll enjoy “reading” the books on their own. It`s not uncommon around my place to hear my boys reciting numbers or letters as they flip through a favorite book.
Common Concepts
As adults, we take for granted things like big and small, rough and smooth. Kids are still learning these concepts and while you can certainly teach them this in every day life, why not reinforce it with books?
There are plenty of books on opposites and such, so look for ones that your kids can relate to and enjoy.
New Vocabulary
Well-illustrated books not only keep toddlers interested, but will help to illustrate new vocabulary. At this age, little ones are learning very quickly, so you want to encourage that. But let`s face it, not all of us have giraffes in our back yard or live near a train station. That`s where a book can come in handy for introducing new things that children wouldn`t normally be exposed to in their every day life.
Most vocabulary based books are themed, so you`ll likely end up with a lot of them! My kids particularly liked transport and baby animal books, but yours might prefer something completely different. The idea here is to get them learning.
Books that Encourage Thought
You might not think that board books encourage a lot of thinking and you might be right. But just because your children are little doesn`t mean they can`t enjoy books that boost brain power. Some of the best books for this are ones where the child has to find things . . . like Where`s Waldo. The Waldo series is probably a bit too advanced for a toddler, but there are some excellent “I Spy” books that let children search for specific objects within the pictures.
This is great for teaching kids to focus and for helping them to use their imagination. They need to think of what the object would look like before they can find it on the page and that`s great for their brains!
Story
Of course, some books are just for entertainment. But even here, you can exercise your homeschooling right and look for books that are not only entertaining for your toddler, but also informative.
For example, a story about a bunny learning to work his way through feelings of jealousy over a new sibling can be a great way to teach your little one that it`s not bad to have feelings and that you can learn to control how they affect you.
One thing that many parents do is underestimate what their child can handle. You might be surprised at how long your two year old can sit still to listen to a story with fascinating illustrations. And don`t worry if you think the vocabulary is too advanced . . . it`s just another learning opportunity!
Tags: books, homeschool, pre-school, toddlers