A “Go to” Cure for Boredom!

KC and I made a book today beginning with, “Go to” and sometimes “the” and we hope you will join us in the fun! Now that she’s familiar with all 3 of these words individually (see previous “go”, “to” and “the” posts), we have put them together for KC to help write and illustrate her very own homemade book.

Here are 8 easy steps for your child to make a book of their own (see pictures below for reference):

1) Take 2 pieces of paper (we used card stock) and place 1 on top of the other horizontally

2) Fold the 2 pieces of paper in half

3) Staple the folded edge to make a book (you should have 8 pages now including the cover and back page)

4) Title your book. We titled ours, “Go to” and be sure to add “by [insert child’s name here].” Let your child watch you write “Go to” and then have them trace the letters. Also have them trace the word “by” after you’ve written it, and let them write their own name if they can.

5) Write, “Go to _____________” on the first inside page. Say each letter as you write “go.” “G-O” then point and say “Go.” Place you finger on the paper after “go” and explain, “Now I’m going to make a finger space after ‘go’.” Then say each letter as you write the next word, “t-o”, point and say “to.” Make another finger length space after “to” and draw a line.  Tell your child that this line is saving the place for them to finish the sentence. Ask, “Now where do you think we should go?”

6) If your child says “kitchen,” then ask them what sound they hear at the beginning of “kitchen.” Your child may make the “k” sound. “Good! What letter makes that sound?” Your child will probably say “c”, in which you can ask what other letter makes that sound. When they say “k”, repeat the entire sentence “Go to the kitchen.”  You can determine if the sentence they make needs the word “the” in it or not.

7) This next part is very important. Be sure to stretch the word out and say it slowly as you write it (do not spell it out). This will benefit your child later when he/she is learning to write on their own.  They will understand what it means to “stretch the word out” saying it slowly as they begin to write a difficult word. You will say aloud the stretched out words as you slowly write “the kitchen” on the line. Tell them that you put a dot called a period to mark the end of the sentence. If you have to go down to a second line to finish their sentence, explain that you ran out of room and need to go down to the next line. Point and say “Go to the kitchen” again. Have your child point and say “Go to the kitchen.” Point and say “Go to the kitchen” together.

8) Have your child draw or color a picture of the kitchen (or other word they’ve chosen) on that page before moving on to the next page. This way they will receive instant satisfaction! Also, try your best not to help them draw the picture even if they say they do not know how and ask for help. If you draw it, they may be worried in the future that their pictures are not perfect enough. Rather than draw it for her, I asked my daughter a few questions about the word “playground” like, “What sorts of things do you see at the playground? Great! Draw a slide and swing!”

9) Add a couple of sentences each day in your “Go to” book. Your child drew his/her own pictures so even if you can’t tell what they are, he/she will probably remember them! If they are stumped by a word in their sentence later on, show them that there are 2 clues. The first clue is the first letter of that word. They can say the letter and make the sound. The second is the illustration. The “p” sound and picture they drew of a playground are great clues to figuring out the word “playground” in their sentence.

10) Add the date and your child’s age on the back cover (you’ll thank me later) and enjoy your new book with your child! Children love these home made books because they helped write and illustrate them. Best of all, they can read them! We’d love to see your homemade book too!  – lifeasallison

Important tip: Be sure your child always points under each word as they read it.

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