Let's Look at a Book

Materials You Need: One or more picture books (If you do not have, you can make a simple one by pasting magazine pictures onto pages and putting them together, or drawing simple pictures)

What You Can Do Together: Looking at picture books is an activity that your child will enjoy at this age, if you share it with her or him.  As you read or talk about the pictures, encourage your child to turn the pages.  Make it exciting: for example, “Oh, let us see where the cat goes now.  Can you turn the page?” Demonstrate, and guide your child’s hand if needed.  You can say “Thank you for turning the page.  Now I see the cat is in the tree!” As your child becomes interested and able to turn pages, make this part of your everyday storybook reading. You may also see your child becoming eager to turn book or magazine pages independently.

What Your Child is Learning:  The action of turning pages is a new fine motor skill, using your child’s hands more skilfully. Your child’s thinking is also strengthened as he or she makes connections between what is on the pages and the step of turning to see a new picture.