Many parents want to give their child an advantage before starting school by teaching reading at home. While pushing a child to learn any skill is a bad idea, encouraging the development of literacy and showing children that reading can be fun can provide lifelong benefits. It's never too early to introduce a child to books. With younger infants and toddlers, the emphasis should remain on enjoyment, not on the development of specific skills.
Step 1
Provide a home filled with many types of books for both adults and children. Exposure to a variety of fiction and nonfiction, especially if the child sees mom and dad reading the books, makes the idea of reading seem fun and exciting to a young child.
Step 2
Read to your child, starting at an early age. According to BabyCenter, infants as young as 6 months old can start to enjoy hearing parents read a story or say the words in a board book while they look at the pictures. Make reading and books seem fun, rather than insisting that a child sit quietly while being read to.
Step 3
Add rhyming books to your daily reading list when your child is between 1 and 2 years old. At this age, his brain can process language enough to appreciate rhymes. Your child will enjoy playing with sounds and may begin to associate them with the letters in the book.
Step 4
Introduce books with simple story lines between the ages of 2 and 3 years old. These books are ideal for the neural development of children in this age range and may allow the child to start associating specific printed words with specific pictures or actions in the story.
Step 5
Label household items with the word and a short, basic sentence related to the word. Encourage the child to read the word and sentence aloud whenever you encounter the items throughout the day. An example would be a label in the bathroom that states "Mary takes a bath," along with signs for "bath" and "bathtub." Using the child's name in written sentences can help her learn to recognize the written version of her name and engage her in learning to read the signs.
Step 6
Play word and letter games with your child. Ask him to come up with words that rhyme with a simple word like "cat," or time how fast he can think of 10 words that start with a specific letter or sound. Encourage your child to find examples of letters when outside of the home, having him point out any time he spots the letter "M', for example.
