Yes! Yes! Between 3 and 6 years of age, your children are capable of absorbing knowledge like huge sponges. Although their attention span may be short, they can quickly grasp information and are eager to learn. Your job as a parent or caregiver is to provide interesting tools, like crayons, markers, and a picture dictionary, but don’t stop there! If you are observant and aware, you will know when they are ready to begin creating their own dictionary and their own stories.
You may begin by allowing them to trace the words and pictures with colored markers or crayons in their dictionary as they say the words indicated. These suggestions expose them to understanding color, shapes, and understanding words as well as reading readiness skills. Important Note: Keep teaching sessions very brief, remembering to be enthusiastic and cheerful while encouraging even if initial efforts seem more like scribbling. Expecting perfection can delay results and may cause frustration and roadblocks to learning in the future. Pictures and words that may be too difficult to trace can often be touched as you say the word.
After mastering 3 and 4 letter words like cat, dog, pig, cup, shoe, foot, sock, leg, toe, hand, heel, door; you may introduce more “body” words and pictures like finger (show them how to trace their finger, hand, foot for their own original dictionary). Later, add other body words like shoulder, chest, stomach, ankle, even a compound word like fingernail can be introduced and then familiar environmental words like refrigerator, stove, chair, table, oven, stairs, floor, wall, corner, cabinet and then trees. bushes, flowers, etc. Once they realize a word means something real that they can see, feel and say, it really doesn’t matter whether it is a one syllable or 5 syllable word………..There really is no limit to what your child will want to learn if you open the way for them to explore and create.
