Early Literacy Activities for Families

Are you looking for a fun and easy way to introduce basic math concepts? We love these books to introduce basic shapes, multiplication and division through a repetitive song and the Ten Magic Butterflies shows the many ways you can group by 10.  Turn that 15 minutes of reading time into math time.

We love to use everyday things to teach the simple concept of adding and taking away. Try a few of these tips: Start with a handful of blueberries, carrots, pretzels, or your child’s favorite cereal. Count and point to each object. Remove one and ask how many are left. Repeat again. Fun fact: We love […]

One of our favorite books is Goodnight, Numbers by Danica McKellar. It turns everyday moments into math moments by sneaking fun math activities into everyday moments like reading, cooking dinner, or going to the grocery store. And it is a rhyming book too. Here Are a Few Fun Ways to Sneak Math into Everyday Activities: […]

How did the story make you feel? What was your favorite part? Why? What was the problem in the story?  Did they fix the problem? How?

Books without words give you the opportunity to create your own story. How? Look at the pictures and talk about what is happening. Describe the characters. Ask “why” questions.  Predict what you think will happen next. Let your child tell their own story. Ask what questions they have about the book. 

When you spend 15 minutes a day reading with your child starting at birth, you are setting them up for success. Reading aloud for just 15 minutes every day accelerates reading gains, boosts vocabulary and maximizes brain development.  Here are a few reading tips: Find a cozy spot. Use a different tone of voice as […]

Give them lots opportunities to identify alphabet letters by name, shape and sound. How? Read the book Chicka Chicka Boom Boom and point to each letter falling from the coconut tree. Say: This is an Aa and sound each letter out. Make your own coconut tree filled with letters. Go on a Letter Hunt. Identify […]

This is what we call Banking Time for Families, Teachers and Children. A 10-15 minute strategy to build interactions and bonds between children and the adults around them. Interactions between adults, teachers and children matter. When you look at these images, it speaks to the importance of the “serve and return” happening as the teacher […]

We are going through a letter and sound maze!  The entire class made a maze of alphabet letters. As they walked through the maze, they recognized letters and sounds.  The next step (literally) was to listen to each sound and connect each letter to the sound to make a word.  Then they made words to […]

There is a reading crisis in Virginia. 40% of Virginia students cannot read proficiently by third grade—it is even worse in some communities.  Reading is a predictor of academic and life success. When our kids cannot read, they will struggle in K-12, higher education, the workforce and life. The single most important factor influencing a […]