Reading Milestones
While every child is different, here is what preschoolers do with books and what to expect when you are sharing a story:
At 3 and 4 years, your child:
- handles books and paper pages with ease.
- understands that the words on the page mean something.
- begins to recognize letters.
- enjoys longer stories with characters and plot.
- likes discussing books.
At 5 years, your child:
- sounds like she is reading when she pretends to read.
- begins to recognize a few words.
- understands that print is read from left to right and top to bottom.
- begins to recognize rhyming words and beginning letter sounds.
- can retell simple stories.
Illustrations from WILD ABOUT BOOKS by Judy Sierra and illustrated by Marc Brown, Copyright © 2004 by Judy Sierra, illustrations copyright © 2004 by Marc Brown. Reproduced by permission of Random House Childrens Books, a division of Random House, Inc.