The Secret to Academic Success for Toddlers

Foundational language skills in early childhood THAT carryover to early academic skills

What’s the secret to academic success for toddlers?

YOU + PLAY.

There’s no app.

There’s no educational toy.

There’s no flashcard deck to buy.

(And honestly, what a relief?!)

Research shows that parents engaging in play with their toddler can have a positive impact on academic performance. (Source 1) (Source 2)

Intentional interactions promote learning

THE ACTIVITIES WE PLAY MATTER.

Pretend play, describing, reading books together, sequencing steps, etc. You’re likely doing most of these things already! These are the things that help move the ball forward. (Notice there’s no specific toy to buy. It’s you as the caregiver that makes it happen!)

We get to elevate playtime and everyday routines by using foundational language and social skills. In doing so, we can keep our children on the track towards academic success.

HOW DO WE PRACTICALLY MAKE THIS HAPPEN?

A series of intentional interactions
Power words
Basic concepts
Pretend play
Real life experiences.

(If you’re not sure where to start, we’ve got a guide for that!)

For younger toddlers, we can focus using power words and basic concepts during play and daily routines! Truly, this is enough.

TIP: Check out this post and try the 2-1-1 for a flexible game plan.

For older toddlers who can speak in sentences and understand early basic concepts, consider the academic skills that are introduced in Pre-K and Kindergarten. With a bit of awareness and intention, these too can easily be incorporated into play and daily routines.

Keep reading & we’ll show you how!

Integrate early academics skills into play and daily routines

When we think about Pre-K and Kindergarten skills, letters, numbers, colors, and shapes often come to mind first. There are ways to begin working on these types of skills without worksheets and flashcards. We get to use the world around us! Remember your child only needs you! You can relate those beginning academic skills during play and real life experiences for your child. You are their first teacher. It’s a wonderful thing!

Practical EXAMPLES FOR EARLY ACADEMICS

Phonics/Reading Comprehension:

If your child enjoys music, sing the ABCs
Talk about the letters and the sounds they make as you see in your own environment
Call attention to words that rhyme while reading a story
Find items in the grocery store that start with a certain letter
Discuss & ask questions involving Who, What, Where, When in stories you read together
Read a story aloud, then flip back through the pages and have your child retell the story from the images/visuals
Use concepts, first, next, then, last to sequence the story.

Mathematics:

Point out what number aisle you’re on in the grocery store. (They’re usually in big print and easy for a little one to see).
Practice answering common questions like “How old are you?”. Talk about how old your child is and teach them to show “how many” with their fingers.
Describe the shape of real items. “Your plate is a circle.” or “The stop sign is an octagon.”
Count out how many spoons are needed for each table setting for dinner.
Add and subtract during pretend play scenarios while playing restaurant or ice cream shop
Use concepts like bigger and smaller to compare sizes of common household items.
Use concepts more and less while having lunch. “I have one less chip than you.”
Discuss how items are in different categories in the grocery store.
Find animals that are the same and different while walking in the park.
Use spatial concepts (above, below, next to, in front, behind) during a daily routine. “Your socks are next to your shoes”

Science: