A Storyline Created By Me!

Why would you want to “read” a wordless book with your four-year old?  I’ve heard parents say in the past that wordless books are just for babies.  But this is not true at all! In fact, wordless books are ideal for early childhood development because they help your child connect and interpret pictures, decipher cultural expectations, and link literacy with the spoken language.

When young children first play with books it’s important for them to understand how to handle it.  Where is the front cover?  Is the book upside down or right side up?  How do we turn the pages to tell the story?  How do we show respect for the book? You may recall giving your toddler board books as these early literacy skills were developing.  The board books encourage book-handling skills and are created for success for little hands.

Once your child  has understood the basics of book,  introduce to him other books with thinner  paper pages.  Usually, I bet, you read the words to your child as he listened attentively.  At various points throughout the story you may have asked him what he thinks would happen next.  Then you’d check to see if his prediction was correct.  These are all important skills for book knowledge.

Now, introduce a wordless book to your child for more skill development!  A wordless book is a pure children’s book with no words- only illustration.  It’s a perfect addition to your child’s at-home library.  Your child can explore the book visually and draw inferences from the pictures.  There is no rush to the “reading” and pictures can be studied at length.  In fact, sometimes children may see things in the illustrations that adults may miss.  Encourage your child to browse the pages just taking in the illustrations.  Next time through the book, enhance the experience by making up a story to go along with the illustrations.  Your child is “reading”!  Now you take a turn making up a different story for the book and “reading”.  In addition to enhancing literacy skills, wordless books can strengthen your bond with  your child as you fully immerse yourselves into the illustrations.