Benefits of Early Literacy Skills

Early literacy is the foundation of education. Instilling a love of reading in your child is the key to their success in the future. There are tons of advantages to developing early literacy skills at an early age. At the Martin-Pitt Partnership for Children, we help children develop reading skills during their first 2,000 days of life by increasing their access to quality early literacy materials. However, as your child’s caregiver, you are their first teacher. It is up to you to help instill a love of literacy in their lives. Some advantages of teaching early literacy are as follows:

Neurological

Reading to a child helps develop their brains. The brain forms meaningful connections very early in life, and a child’s brain grows at a much faster pace during their first five years than any other period. When you teach a child early literacy skills, the learning process influences the entire functioning and development of the brain.
Talking, singing, and reading to your child strengthens the existing links among brain cells as well as forms new connections. These links form the basis of all future learning and intellectual ability. Whether or not they can understand what you are saying, exposing your child to an increased number of words through books, songs, and everyday conversations will help them grow up with healthier brains!

Educational

When a child learns a love of reading at an early age, they will have greater general knowledge and expanded vocabulary. In addition, reading builds improved attention spans and better concentration skills. Literacy opens opportunities for academic success. This allows your child to pick up necessary knowledge and information by mastering effective literacy strategies. Exposing your child to reading will help them better comprehend what they are learning and help them to recognize a more significant number of words by hearing and sight. Early identification of common words helps enable children to learn more about their environment.

Psychological

Self-confidence and independence become rooted in your child when they learn to read. It promotes maturity, increases discipline, and lays a basis for moral literacy. Satisfy their curiosity with explanations of how things work while exposing them to problem-solving techniques. Your child’s creativity and imagination will bloom, as well as their curiosity about people, places, and ideas. Also, learning the foundations of early literacy at home alleviates the psychological pressures put on a child in a physical classroom.
Children who are not skilled in reading by third grade are more likely to drop out of high school. Increasing your child’s knowledge by incorporating reading skills into your daily routine can help boost their confidence when they begin kindergarten.

Linguistic

Your child will be exposed to the most books, knowledge, and ideas the sooner you begin reading to them. Exposure to literacy at a young age leads to improved linguistic skills, a richer vocabulary, improved grammar, higher quality writing, better spelling, and more precise oral communication.

The Martin-Pitt Partnership for Children

The Martin-Pitt Partnership for Children is a non-profit in Eastern North Carolina. We fund programs in quality early childcare and learning, assistance finding childcare services, parent and family support, health care, childcare provider training, and early literacy from birth to age five. We strive for a bright future for every child in our community. Contact us today to learn more about how our programs can help your child love to read!