Helping your toddler understand language

We all know how important it is to read to our kids and often I hear from parents "you have to many books" or "she doesn't need any books - she doesn't read them." Well, I always have to bite my tongue because how is a child to learn to love reading if no one ever reads to them? How are they to learn to focus on what they are hearing and start understanding instructions, descriptions, what people are saying to them if no one reads to them?

Today's books are dedicated to the smallest readers. Baby's and Toddlers. Yes, they don't read yet - but their vocabulary is growing 7 words each day. They are learning to pay attention, to listen, to focus and proper sentence structure. Reading is important to all children regardless of their age but especially to the 0-6 year old child.

Ten Tiny Toes

by Caroline Jayne Church

ISBN: 978-0545536011

$7.73 board book

About the book:

Caroline Jayne Church brings her adorable toddler art and lovely rhymes to this joyful twist on the tried-and-true classic, HEAD, SHOULDERS, KNEES, AND TOES. From ears that wiggle to bellies that giggle, TEN TINY TOES is sure to inspire little ones as they learn to celebrate their "mouth, ears, eyes, nose, and a love that grows and grows."

My thoughts:

This adorable book is one of 2 year old Gianna's favorite books. The pictures in the book are of an adorable baby that really connected with Gianna and she will mimic the actions of the baby – one page shows him waving his arms and she will do so, another shows him touching his toes and yet another he’s  balancing on one leg. When we are finished we sing the "Head and Shoulders, Knees and Toes" song. This would make a really cute book for a baby shower or a first birthday gift.

God Made You Just Right

by Jill Roman Lord

ISBN: 978-0824919764

$7.99 board book

About the book: A bright and cheerful reminder that God made each of us special and unique

Here is a message that every parent will want to share with his or her child: You're brilliantly created and there s no one else like you! With easy-to-understand descriptions and simple, rhyming text, Jill Roman Lord shares the message that God created each of us in just the right way in a manner that even the youngest child will understand. Bright and engaging illustrations from Amy Wummer pair perfectly with the text and enhance the appeal of the book. Ages 2-5.

God made you very special

And I hope you know it’s true.

Your’re brilliantly created,

And there’s no one else like you!

My thoughts:

This book is for the slightly older infant or younger toddler. Gianna still hasn’t really connected with it but I don’t think it will be much longer. The story itself has quite a few more words with each page consisting of 1 long sentence that requires a little more ability to focus on the picture and comprehend what the phrase is saying. The words are a bit bigger too and unless your child is used to you using “bigger” words like brilliantly, perfect, special, blessed they may not understand them till they are closer to 3 or 3 ½. Gianna has been speaking in full sentences since she was just 2 and she regularly uses these kinds of words – but she is not yet sitting to listen to longer passages of words

This is a wonderful book that encourages and shows children that they are special to God. He took the time to plan each child and knew their purpose and needs before they were born. The images in the books are full of joy and emotion and kids can easily see the description of what the text is saying.

I personally think this book is for kids 2 ½ and up – if your child is not ready to sit and listen to lots of words it would be very easy to share the books and talk about the pictures. What is the child doing in this picture? Are they happy or sad? You can also encourage your child to act out what’s happening on that page: He made your two legs super strong (accent the words Super Strong) to RUN and JUMP and PLAY. This is an example of a sentence that you can say to your child as well as your day goes on – it’s great for interaction, practicing word combinations and helping your child understand or comprehend what you are saying.

I received a copy of each of these books to read and review on GivingNSharing. I received no money and was just asked to give my honest opinion of each book. Thanks for reading!

Noah, The Wordless Book

Noah, The Wordless Picture Book
by Mark Ludy
ISBN: 978-0874866391
$14.36 (hardback)

About the book:
A hundred years before the Great Flood, a man named Noah came home talking crazy. God wanted him to build the biggest ship the world had ever seen. The future of humanity depended on it. How would his wife respond? What would the neighbors think? Was it even feasible? This lavish re-imagining of one of the greatest stories of all time will fascinate children and adults alike. Nuanced and playful, yet meticulous in following the biblical narrative, Mark Ludy's world-class art digs deeper than the Sunday-school tale of cuddly animals, exploring Noah's relationship with his family, the natural world, God--and a formidable engineering challenge. Immerse yourself in this stunning wordless epic. Whatever your age, you'll never read this story in the same way again. 

My Thoughts:
This has to be one of the most beautifully illustrated books I've ever read. The level of detail and depth to the expressions on the animals & people's faces is amazing and sure to catch a kid's attention. It will definitely stay on my bookshelf for when Gianna gets much older. My only concern if you show this to younger kiddos is the huge double page spread of the flood itself. It shows kids and adults as the water begins to overtake them and you can actually see the fear in the the adult faces. Be prepared for lots of questions as your children try to understand what is happening in that scene. 

The nice thing about wordless books is that children really have to think about what's happening in the book. You can talk about each scene, do a Seek & Find game (where are the snakes, the elephants, the mice?) talk about the food that each animal ate, the cages that they lived in on the ark, answer questions like "where did the animals poop?". Your kids will be thinking deeper about the story and I believe that the level of understanding your children develop when they aren't just being told a story is amazing. Plus the opportunity for kids to "tell a story" based on what they are seeing is awesome - they are learning to describe what they are seeing, guess what is happening next, learning sentence structure and so much more.

I highly recommend this book for any families bookshelf. It's ideal for family devotions, bedtime stories, car rides, airplane trips - I recommend it for kids 3-4 years and up. I'm looking for the next book & hope it becomes a series - I'd love to see Adam & Eve, Daniel in the Lion's Den, Joseph and Moses.

Learn more about the book & author as well as order Noah, The Wordless Book @ Mark Ludy's website.


About the author:
Mark Ludy has written or illustrated 8 children's books including The Farmer, The Flowerman, The Grump and Jujo; The Youngest Tribesman. When He's not immersed in his sketchbooks you'll find him in schools promoting art and literacy. He lives in Colorado with his wife, daughter and 2 sons.

Disclaimer: I was offered a copy of this book by Handlebar Publishing in exchange for my honest review. Thanks for reading GivingNSharing.