| Stage Five |
From about Eighteen to Twenty-Four Months,
Many Toddlers: |
Adults Can: |
| I speak in
sentences. |
Increase their vocabulary rapidly
- Make up new words to name objects and experiences
- Use two-word sentences such as Go out or My puppy
- Use the same sentence to mean different things by varying
their expression
- Use negatives (no and not) and question words (Why?
What? and Where?)
- Talk about the present and, as vocabulary and language
skills increase, talk about past and future
- Understand and respond to many words, simple directions,
and questions
- Take turns during brief conversations with adults
- Imitate words and gestures they hear and see
- Use broad arm movements to scribble on paper with
crayons and markers
- Enjoy picture books and predictable books with words and
phrases they can repeat
- Help turn the pages in books
|
- Continue using any of the above strategies that are still
appropriate for this age group
- Talk to toddlers as much as possible (Describe what they
are doing, what you are doing, what other children are
doing.)
- Name objects, people, actions, and feelings.
- Ask questions and make requests.
- Give simple directions.
- Let toddlers know you understand them by restating their
words--Yes, that is your puppy.
- Answer toddlers' questions.(Remember that toddlers are
trying to learn as much as they can about the world, and
you are an important source of information.)
- Play games with toddlers by asking them to point to
familiar people, toys, or body parts--Where's your nose?
Where are your toes?
- Choose books with repetitive words and phrases
- Read the same books again and again so toddlers can
remember them
- Invite toddlers to join in while reading
- Store books on low, open shelves so toddlers can look at
the books by themselves
- Provide nontoxic crayons and markers and large pieces of
paper
|
| Stage Six |
From about Twenty-Four to Thirty-Six
Months, Many Two-Year-Olds: |
Adults Can: |
| I speak in longer
sentences. |
- Make three-word sentences by combining two-word
sentences or adding new words
- Continue lengthening their sentences
- Recognize that a pause means it is their turn to talk
- Begin using prepositions (in, on), different forms of verbs,
plurals (add s to words), pronouns (me, she, he), articles
(the, a), and conjunctions (and)
- May not use standard grammar
- Ask Why? and What's that? again and again
- Understand and use concept words such as in/out,
over/under, big/little, top/bottom
- Talk out loud to guide or remind themselves
- Follow two-part directions
- Tell stories, use language in creative ways, and express
their feelings in words
- Name the objects in picture books
- Follow a simple plot in a story book and join in while being
read to
- Coordinate eye and hand movements (string large beads on
laces) and gain small muscle skills
- Grasp crayons and markers in fist and scribble with greater
control
|
- Continue using any of the above strategies that are still
appropriate for this age group
- Hold longer and more complicated conversations with
children
- Let children know you are interested in what they have to
say
- Restate children's words using standard grammar (for
example, if a child says, No want juice, say, You don't
want any juice? That's okay. Would you like milk? (It is not
necessary to correct children's mistakes. Children will
master standard forms of grammar when they have had
many opportunities to listen to and use language.)
- Listen to children's stories and encourage them to play with
language, join them in making up silly words, and
introduce nonsense rhymes
- Help children use words instead of aggression to tell others
how they feel or what they want
- Read books about familiar experiences such as taking a
walk or getting ready for bed and books that introduce new
information and help children understand concepts
- Encourage children to make noises, turn pages, and repeat
words and ask children to tell you about the pictures on
each page and predict what may happen next
- Offer a variety of books children can look at on their own
- Provide materials such as small blocks and pegs and
pegboards that promote eye-hand coordination and small
muscle skills
- Encourage children to dress and feed themselves
- Invite children to help prepare meals and snacks
- Store a good supply of paper, crayons, and markers within
children's reach
|
| Stage Seven |
From about Three to Four Years, Many
Children: |
Adults Can: |
| I have a lot to
talk about. |
- Expand vocabulary rapidly
- Speak in complex sentences using different parts of speech
- Learn to use pronouns (I, you, he, she, we, they)
- Continue to learn about and apply rules of grammar
without direct instruction from adults
- Learn to apply different forms of negatives (I didn't do it)
- Make grammatical mistakes because they do not know the
exceptions to the rules
- Add information to what someone says in a conversation
- Ask and answer simple questions
- Use language to think, learn, and play with others
- May call attention to self, comment on or point out objects
or events, make requests, tell others what to do, make
plans, describe experiences, and invent dramatic play
scenarios
- Understand and use language to describe concepts such as
large/small, deep/shallow
- Tell brief and sometimes confusing stories about something
that just happened to them
- Talk about people and things not present
- Imagine what might happen in the future
- Recall past events and experiences
- Answer open-ended questions such as What might happen
if...
- Recite nursery rhymes, repeat finger plays, and sing songs
- Listen attentively to stories with simple plots about
characters and experiences they can identify with
- Like books with happy endings and lots of repetition
- Turn pages of book one at a time
- Retell familiar stories to self and others
- Hold a crayon or marker between first two fingers and
thumb to draw shapes (May combine shapes to make new
ones.)
- Copy squares, circles, and some letters
- Use scribble writing to imitate conventional writing
- Increase small muscle skills and eye-hand coordination
- Classify items primarily by color or size but also by design
and shape
|
- Continue using any of the above strategies that are still
appropriate for this age group
- Engage children in conversations to help them learn to take
turns, allow others to speak, and stay on the topic
- Recognize mistakes as signs that a child is making sense of
the rules of grammar
- Provide many opportunities for children to talk with each
other and with adults about present, past, and future
experiences and events
- Ask open-ended questions that can be answered in more
than one way and stretch children's thinking skills
- Offer stimulating dramatic play props and dress-up clothes
- Give children something to talk about--go on walks; visit the
library, park, and other sites in the community; do errands
and chores; and eat meals together
- Make comments and ask questions to help children add
more information so their stories make sense
- Teach children rhymes, finger plays, and songs from their families and cultures
- Have a regular story time and read upon request the same books again
and again and new ones
- Leave books where children can reach them so they can
retell the stories in their own words
Provide a variety of books in English and home languages
that match children's skills and interests and reflect abilities,
cultures, ethnic groups, and genders in positive ways
- Provide plenty of writing materials--paper, paint, brushes,
crayons, and markers
- Continue encouraging development of self-help skills such
as brushing teeth and zipping up clothes
- Offer play materials that build small muscles and increase
eye-hand coordination
- Offer a variety of interesting and colorful toys and materials
that children can sort and classify
- Place print that conveys meaning in English and children's
home languages throughout the environment (labeled
shelves and containers for toys and materials, calendars,
schedules, signs, posters, food containers, junk mail, and
bulletin boards)
|
| Stage Eight |
From about Four to Five Years, Many
Children: |
Adults Can: |
| I discover all forms of
language are
connected. |
- Master many rules of grammar (prepositions, possessives,
negatives, and past tense)
- Converse with other children and adults in long, complex
sentences and use words (and, then, because, but) to link
ideas
- Change tone of voice and sentence structure to reflect the
listener
- Refer to people, events, and things not present
- Tell long stories about real or imaginary experiences
- Enjoy word play and silly words
- Understand and talk about concepts such as tallest/smallest,
same/different, more/less
- Understand and answer complex questions (for example,
What would you do if . . . ? or How many different ways
can you think of to . . . ?)
- Sort, match, classify, and sequence objects, which
contributes to their emerging literacy
- Like story books that have plots they can follow, humorous
- and imaginative characters and events, and colorful,
detailed illustrations
- Like nonfiction books that provide information
- Retell familiar stories in their own words
- Can distinguish between drawing and writing
- Gain control of crayons, markers, and brushes
- Draw figures that represent people and then animals and
other objects
- Reproduce some shapes and letters
- Begin to organize their writing (for example, by putting
spaces between words)
- Learn about the relationship between speech and
writing--print is talk written down
- Understand that pictures, numbers, words, and letters are
symbols for real things and ideas
- Recognize a few whole words such as their names or words
on signs such as Stop or Exit
|
- Continue using any of the above strategies that are still
appropriate for this age group
- Involve children in activities--science, art, social studies,
music, cooking--that stretch their thinking skills and give
- them things to talk about
- Use routines and chores as opportunities to talk about
concepts and ideas
- Observe children's dramatic play and provide props to
expand their play or take it in a new direction
- Invite children to invent and act out stories alone or with
each other
- Use comparative words when talking with children--Is that
the tallest tree you've ever seen? or Which of these two
glasses holds more water?
- Ask open-ended questions that encourage children to think
of many different possibilities when reading books,
observing the results of an experiment, or talking about an
imaginary situation
- Provide materials that encourage children to sort, match,
classify, and sequence--lotto games, puzzles, cups of different
sizes, shell or rock collections, a basket of buttons
- Offer a variety of books in English and children's home
languages that match children's interests and skills and
depict abilities, gender, ethnic groups, and cultures in
positive ways
- Provide a wider variety of writing and drawing materials
- Write with children so they can learn how writing is used to
convey information
- Write children's names and descriptions on their art work
and record their stories in homemade books or on large
pieces of paper
- Demonstrate through the environment, words, and actions
how we use language skills every day
- Point out words on street signs, newspapers, notices in store
windows, food packages, and coupons
- Use English and children's home languages on signs, labels,
schedules, and so on
|
