Welcome to 1,000 Activities Before Kindergarten with the Bondurant Community Library!
The 1,000 Activities Before Kindergarten program, formerly 1000 Books Before Kindergarten, is designed to be a fun, easy, and rewarding way to bond with your child and foster a lifelong love of reading.
The goal of this program is to focus on the 5 Early Literacy Skills (Sing, Talk, Read, Write, and Play) by completing 1,000 activities together before your little one begins Kindergarten. Assisting your child on their journey towards learning to read is far more than simply reading 1,000 books together. The 5 Early Literacy Skills all play vital roles in early reading readiness.
Singing, or making music together, helps children to understand the rhythm of language. Singing helps to draw out words and syllables and slows down the processing of language for those learning to read.
Talking together and explaining the way the world works to young children helps them gather background knowledge and provides them the opportunity to understand the meaning of what they read.
Shared reading is the best way to foster early literacy skills in children. Reading together and talking about what you read helps build vocabulary skills and reading comprehension.
While of course it is important for your child to eventually learn how to spell their name, drawing or scribbling and the sequential labeling and narrating of their drawing helps them to develop print awareness which leads to an understanding of the importance of written words on a page, not just the pictures themselves, when telling a story.
Through play, especially pretend or dramatic play, children learn about language. Talking through their play with a grown up who is an active participant can help them grow their vocabulary, sequencing of events, and print awareness, among many, many more skills.
Work at your own family's pace, track their progress, and celebrate your child's milestones along the way. With every 100 activities completed, come to the Library for a prize centered around the 5 Early Literacy Skills.