My favorite Grow a Reader practice in the whole world is (drumroll please!) . . . PLAYING! Goofing off. Clowning around. Kicking up your heels.
But shouldn’t a pre-literacy practice require, oh I dunno—something like . . . practice?
Of course, playing comes very easily to most children. But don’t be fooled into thinking that because it comes naturally, playing doesn’t have value. Playing gives kids practice at thinking symbolically and using their imaginations. And, since words are basically just symbols for objects, actions, and ideas, learning to think symbolically is a priceless pre-literacy skill.*