Bookstores, both new and used, are a downfall for me. I am most likely the only female that can go to Paris and return home with books instead of fashion. At a recent garage sale I found a whole set of alphabet books for kids. This time, tho, there is some balancing force at work. My first thought was how I could easily use each of these books for ideas for helping kids get ready for school. Now, I’m discovering that finding skills that help prepare children for kindergarten that match with the letters in the alphabet is hard, very hard. But I will confess to a stubborn streak and a quirky nature so here’s to the letter A for August.
Auditory skills are ones that come to mind for A. Two foundational skills for reading are auditory memory (remembering what we hear) and auditory discrimination (sorting out the sounds we hear). Some reseach is showing that poor readers struggle with knowing which vowels they hear. What does reading have to do with hearing? We think that reading starts with the eyes, but it really starts with the ears, (Succeedtoread). Today, pay a bit more Attention to talking with your child. Squeeze in some time for some books And stories. Play A few word games such as rhyming, making up silly works like mun, zish, or tafe, and words that start with the same sound. Sing the Alphabet song and say the names of the letters. Listen carefully to All the sounds that you hear as you work and play. A=Awesome. What are some questions that you have this month for other skills?