... . ... Take an active role in your children's development. Use this site to help your child learn to: Listening ability is an important pre-reading skill. We need to be able to listen and hear the sounds of letters and how they combine to make other sounds. You can build your child's listening skills by taking time to: Play rhyming word games with them. Related ONLINE ACTIVITY: Recite Nursery Rhymes. Give your child a job with one-step directions (e.g.: "Bring me your shoe.") Give them a two-step direction (e.g.: "Pick up your toy and put it in your room.") once they can follow one-step directions easily. Give them a three-step direction (e.g. "Put your shoes on, get a sweater, and get in the car.") once they have learned two-steps. You are building listening skills and memory skills which are very important for all learning. Gather objects that make different sounds; let your child become familiar with their sounds, then have him/her close their eyes while you make a sound with one object. Let them guess which object was sounded. Play a different kind of music each day as you eat lunch together. Have discussions with your child about whether they like or dislike that kind of music. Occasionally give information in a teeny, tiny voice so your child has to listen very hard to hear it. Go on nature walks with your child and listen carefully for sounds you hear. Write them down (or record them with your cell phone) and the next day try to imitate the sounds together (helps build memory skills, too). Listen for the sounds the next time you walk. Related ONLINE ACTIVITY: Compile a Nature Notebook. tailored to your child's interests. Ask questions before you read a story so your child will be listening for the answer. Parent's Guide Introduction Language Skills Listening Skills Writing Skills Reading Skills Social Skills Thinking Skills Math Skills Back to Top ©1998, 2018, Susan Jindrich. All rights reserved. ... . ...