My daughter is, and was, an early reader. Precocious literacy has always been her passion and her gift. However, her journey into the world of reading wasn't one she took alone. It required diligent attention and home education by me. Now, at age three, she can read and write very short words. I expect that she will read fluently before she begins kindergarten.
Many toddlers are capable of reading at a young age, but not all are ready. Many very healthy, very intelligent kids can't read until kindergarten, first grade, or even later. Here are a few signs, in my experience as a mother and home-educator, that your toddler may be ready to start reading.
He understands the concept of rhyming. Before kids can begin reading, they need to understand that words are made up of specific components. Your child is not ready to read until he independently begins matching rhyming words. You can encourage this by playing simple, fill-in-the-blank rhyming games. When my daughter was two, I would entertain her by making silly rhymes, such as, "I hang in the sky and rhyme with spoon. I'm not the sun, so I must be the ____." These can help clue your toddler in to rhyming and word structure.
She identifies letters and connects them to sounds. Before your toddler can even think about reading, she must be able to identify every letter of the alphabet, and to be able to understand that it has a specific "sound," or phoneme, associated with it. Early on, this may start with your child knowing that "T is for tiger." Later, your toddler may know "The letter T says 'tuh.'" But, if your toddler hasn't quite begun to understand or identify letters, don't sweat it. She'll get it in time.
He can tell you what different words begin with. Before your toddler starts reading, he should be able to guess the letter that unfamiliar words begin with. Shortly before my toddler learned to sound out words, she had an epiphany that "Pig, puppet, and piano all begin with P." After that realization, something clicked in her mind, and she was suddenly able to understand how words are made. This was among her most important pre-literacy skills.
She sight-reads common words. Even toddlers as young at 18 months can recognize logos and familiar images. When your toddler starts sight-reading the titles of books or the names of restaurants, it's a sign that she understands the significance of written language. Letters aren't just a meaningless jumble; they signify a thing, an event, or a concept. Before your toddler begins reading, she will probably be able to identify her name and a few other words on sight.
He genuinely wants to read. Parenthood isn't a race. I taught my daughter to read early because it is what interested her and what she excelled at. But, at the same time, she struggles to use scissors and to jump in place. All children have their own unique sets of gifts and abilities. If your toddler's skills don't lie in amazingly precocious literacy, that is absolutely okay. You and your child will both end up stressed and groggy if you try to force early reading on a child who isn't able or interested.
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