Author: Mickie Stiers

Vocabulary

Vocabulary Grab & Go Station
Materials and books needed
Books:
If You’re Happy and You Know it by Jane Cabrera
Bouncy Baby: a First Lift-the-Flap Book
My Car by Byron Barton
How Do Dinosaurs Laugh Out Loud? by Jane Yolen
I Read Signs by Tana Hoban
If You Give a Cat a Cupcake by Laura Numeroff
Our Class Took a Trip to the Zoo by Shirley Neitzel
Materials:
1 bean bag or beach ball

Vocabulary

Babies
Activity #1
Playing with words can be fun with your baby. A great rhyme to do this is “Put Your Finger on Your Nose”
Put your finger on your nose, on your nose.
Put your finger on your nose, on your nose.
Put your finger on your nose, put your finer on your nose, put your finger on your nose, on your nose.
Then change what you put your finger on, such as eyes, ears or toes. This can be expanded to items in your house or even in your grocery cart. “put your finger on the chair,” “put your finger on the peas.”

Vocabulary

Babies:
Activity #2
Books are a great way to build vocabulary. Read If You’re Happy and You Know It by Jane Cabrera or Bouncy Baby: a First Lift-the-Flap Book. Point out all the fun words and actions to do with your baby.
Talking to your child and using different words for an object or concept can in crease even a baby’s vocabulary. For example, when a child points and says, “Bird”, parents can say “Yes it is a bird, it is a blue jay.”

Vocabulary

Toddlers
Activity #1
Parents can play “I Spy” with their
toddlers. Example of what parents can say, “I spy (or see) something square,” and have the child point to a square object in the room. If the toddler is
Talking, have the child say what the object is. As long as the
toddler follows direction and finds objects, continue playing.

Vocabulary

Toddlers
Activity #2
Books are a great way to build
vocabulary. Read Byron Barton’s My Car, Jane Yolen’s How Do Dinosaurs Laugh Out Loud or I Read Signs by Tana Hoban. Look at the illustrations and talk to your child about what can be found on the pages of the books.
Talking to your child and using different words for an object or concept can increase even a toddler’s vocabulary. For example, when a child points and says, “Bird”, parents can say “Yes it is a bird, it is a blue jay.”

Vocabulary

Preschoolers
Activity #1
Use a beach ball or bean bag and sitting on the floor roll or toss the ball/bag back and forth while saying rhyming words.
Example: cat, mat, bat, rat.
Do not worry if your child makes up words for now. Parents can have that conversation after the game is over. Move to bigger words if these are too easy.

Vocabulary

Preschoolers
Activity #2
Reading is a great way to build
vocabulary. Read Our Class Took a Trip to the Zoo by Neitzel or If You Give a Cat a Cupcake by Numeroff.
Once you have read through the story, pick out some words, talk about animals or items in the story and expand upon them. Example: what other animals would you find in a zoo? What ingredients would you need to make cupcakes?