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Build early literacy skills with fun children’s books

Welcome to the Hanen Book Nook! Each month we choose a fun children’s book and talk about how parents and educators can make the most of it to build important early literacy skills – the skills that prepare young children for learning to read and write.

What Are Early Literacy Skills?

Early literacy skills (also called emergent literacy skills) are the tools that prepare and support children to learn to read and write when they’re ready. The better these skills are in the preschool years, the better children’s future literacy abilities tend to be. This why early literacy skills are a key part of school readiness programs.

Early literacy skills include:

Meaning Related Skills

  • Vocabulary – The more words a child knows, the easier it is for them to learn new words and to gain meaning from the stories they hear and will eventually read on their own. Books help to expose children to the higher-level words they’ll encounter when they start school.
  • Conversation – As children engage in conversation, they draw on their knowledge and experience to make new connections, form new knowledge and build language skills. This lays a strong foundation for understanding the stories they will hear and read on their own.
  • Story comprehension – Understanding not only what is happening in a book, but why it’s happening, and why characters act and feel they way they do. Story comprehension means being able to read “between the lines” to figure out messages that aren’t explicitly stated, and understanding the larger meaning of the book.

Decoding Skills

  • Print knowledge – The ability to identify letters, words and symbols on a page and to understand how print works – for example, understanding that print is read from left to right and that letters combine to make words.
  • Sound awareness – Understanding that words can be broken down into syllables and smaller sounds, and that letters correspond to certain sounds.

How Do Children Learn Emergent Literacy Skills?

Children can learn some skills by listening to an adult read a book from start to finish, but the best way to support early literacy is to turn book reading into a conversation. This means reading with the child, rather than to the child. It means pausing to have conversations about parts of the book the child is interested in, and using comments and questions that encourage the child to think about the book.

In our Book Nook posts, we share strategies for building emergent literacy skills using engaging conversations about the book. As with all Hanen strategies, fun is at the heart of it – when you go with the flow, focus on what your child is interested in, and avoid testing questions that pressure the child, you’re sure to have the kinds of enjoyable interactions that support your child’s learning best.

Explore Book Nook Posts For Building...

Story Comprehension

Developing Story Comprehension with I’m Not Scared, You’re Scared!
Bear might be scared of a lot of things, but is it possible he’s braver than he thought? Come along for the fun as we share strategies for helping children learn about story structure with this charming book.


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Vocabulary

Introducing Rare Vocabulary with Big Words for Little Paleontologists
Does your child have a special topic that interests them, like animals, space or dinosaurs? See how you can use the Hanen strategy, “Shoot for the SSTaRS” with a special interest book to help your child learn the kinds of higher-level words that prepare them for school success.

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Conversation

Turn Book Reading into a Conversation with Not a Box
Did you know that engaging your child in a conversation about a story greatly increases the likelihood they’ll understand it? Read on for some tips to turn book reading into a conversation with the fun book, Not a Box.

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Print Knowledge

Building Print Knowledge with My Truck Is Stuck
When you read with your child, how much attention do they pay to the words on the page? Do they realise that the written words play an important role in telling the story? Part of supporting your child’s early literacy is helping them understand that print has meaning. Use these tips to build your child’s awareness of print and lay an important foundation for reading and writing.

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Sound Awareness

Building Letter-Sound Awareness with an Alphabet Book
Studies show that children who start school with strong sound awareness skills tend to become better readers and writers. Learn more about what sound awareness is and use a fun Hanen strategy to help children learn this skill while you’re looking at print, both in books and at other times throughout the day.

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More Resources For Building Early Literacy

The strategies in our Book Nook posts are drawn from our practical, research-based guidebooks for building emergent literacy in the classroom and the home.

ABC and Beyond™ Guidebook

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I’m Ready!™

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