Rhyming: more than just your favorite pastime

Rhyming is such a fun skill for students to learn, especially in early childhood! It is also another important stepping stone to reading. Rhyming and word play help students' language skills early on as well, and helps them develop phonemic awareness. These foundational skills are so important, especially as they enter Kindergarten. Some of the most common ways parents and teachers practice rhyme is through the use of nursery rhymes such as "Hickory Dickory Dock" and "Little Miss Muffet". These little songs and poems are great for acting out and retelling.

More ways to rhyme with your child:

-Books are one of my favorite ways to introduce and practice rhyming: Rhyming Dust Bunnies, Dr. Seuss books, There Was an Old Lady Series, and more! Ask your local librarian for some suggestions.

-Rhyming games and songs like "the name game" classic nursery rhymes, and lots of songs are available on YouTube

-Read or write poems, change out words for sillier versions that also rhyme!

Scholastic has some other links, books and suggestions on their website. Check it out here.

Play Based Learning

This is one of my favorite topics in early childhood education because it is SO crucial to students' learning. Play based learning is often seen in preschools, daycares and early childhood centers but unfortunately tends to get lost as students enter elementary school (yes, even in Kindergarten). So, what is it?

Play-based learning is an educational approach that places play at the center of the learning experience, and recognizes that play as a natural way for children to make sense of the world and develop a range of skills. In a play-based learning environment, activities are age-appropriate and open-ended, allowing students to explore and learn. Play can take various forms, including imaginative play, constructive play, and collaborative play. Educators focus on creating a flexible environment with a variety of materials for students to interact with authentically, and act as facilitators in learning. Play-based learning emphasizes the importance of the process rather than just the end result. It encourages curiosity, creativity, and a positive attitude toward learning. The University of New Hampshire has some great resources about how this is used in the classroom, which is really helpful if this is a teaching method.

This approach to learning incorporates games and dramatic play as well, which is one of my favorite parts of early childhood education. As a teacher, it can be so difficult to stick to the curriculum and add enough play for students. Luckily, parents are able to use more creative techniques at home. Check out this month's favorite book along with the at-home activities and printables!

Retelling: A Fun Way to Read Together

Retelling is an important pre-reading and early literacy skill for students to learn. It is one of my favorite skills to work on with students because there are so many different ways to practice this together at home. Retelling is really just being able to tell the important parts of a story in order (including the characters and setting depending on age). Children can do this orally, by using their fingers to track each event, or using a retelling rope, graphic organizer, or some other type of visual aid. Again, this will depend on your child's age and ability.

There are so many fun ways to act out stories at home as well, from making puppets to using felt boards or props. Parents and children can use different voices to act out different characters and model for children how to bring the story to life. Not only is this practicing literacy skills, as well as reading and listening comprehension, but it brings age-appropriate play pretend skills as well. Too often these days pretend play is forgotten in academics and retelling is an amazing opportunity to bring books to life and allow children to really get creative. One of my favorite projects I did while teaching was having students reenact the Three Billy Goats Gruff. We printed paper puppets and the children cut and colored them on their own. Then, we taped them to popsicle sticks or q tips. After their puppets were complete, the kids met with a partner to build a bridge and retell the story together. They had so much fun and we could really see how much they remembered from the story. I love doing this with stories that children love such as The Gingerbread Man, The Mitten, and There Was an Old Lady series.

The Thompson-Nicola Regional Library offers some other ideas about how parents can work on these skills at home. Libraries are such great resources for getting a variety of books and your local librarian should be able to offer ideas for new and interesting reads! Check out some of those ideas here: https://www.tnrl.ca/literacy-at-home-retelling-a-story/

Keep an eye on the February resources for a retelling graphic organizer!