|
How Can You and Your Child Get the
Most out of the Storytime Experience? |
| What parents or
caregivers can do after Storytime: |
| 1. Practice the fingerplays, songs, and
other activities from storytime at home. This further enhances your
child's enjoyment and understanding of the program. |
| 2. Check out books (and magazines and
audio, too!). Storytime is designed to inspire a love of books -
follow through by having your child select books afterwards! |
| 3. Storytimes often feature music.
Check out children's cassettes & CDs. (Some experts say that
some musical abilities are established by age 5!) |
| 4. Talk to the youth services librarian
(storyteller) afterwards and have her help you find books and other
materials. That's what we're here for! |
| What parents or
caregivers can do during Storytime: |
| 1. Be on time to avoid distracting the
other children. |
| 2. If children (or babies who come along)
are unable to sit quietly, it's best to take them out of the program
area. Try them another day when they're more ready to sit
quietly. This helps us keep the other's children's attention. |
| 3. Encourage your child to sit towards the
center and near the storyteller. (Hint: the mats are pre-placed in
the best positions for viewing and for keeping children engaged!) |
| 4. Parents and caregivers can join in on
the songs, fingerplays, and group participation activites!
|
|
Read-aloud Tips |
| Why read aloud? |
|
Reading aloud is often the most-cited factor for
the development of early reading. |
|
Kids' listening levels are much higher than
their reading levels. |
|
It improves their reading, writing, and speaking
skills. |
| . |
Children imitate what they hear
and see |
| When? |
|
Start when they are infants. They won't
understand the words, but the rhythm of the language will make an
impression on them. |
|
When to stop? Never - both for the
reasons cited above, and because it's wondrous to catch your kids in the
spell of a good story. |
| Tips |
| Preschoolers: . |
|
Use repetitive chorus lines, props, sound
effects, stuffed animal audiences, etc |
| FOR MORE INFORMATION and a book
list click on Reading Aloud |
| Older kids: |
|
If they haven't been read to regularly up to
this point, it's best to start out with something simpler (but a good
story) and then to build to the "classics." |
|
Use food! Think of it as good stuff going
both the body and the brain. |
|
Read in a darkened room with just a flashlight or
a reading light, or with kids under a blanket. |
|
Read on trips. |
|
Read regularly, or at special times, but make
sure it's the "right" time for your child. |
|
FOR A BOOK LIST click on: Read-Aloud
Chapter books |
