Toronto Public Library Blue Logo

HomeAbout Ready for Reading

Sing

Singing is a fun way to make language come alive for you and your child, and helps to prepare your child to sound out words as they learn to read.

Singing helps your child hear the smaller sounds in words and builds their vocabulary. Being able to hear and recognize the beginning, middle and ending sounds that make up words helps children sound out words when they begin to read.

From birth, you child loves to hear your voice, so have fun singing together and don't worry about how you sound.

Activities

Discover Sing Activities

Singing Tips

  • Books are especially good for developing narrative skills have stories that are fun to tell over and over again. Let your child fill in a repeated part of a story, or complete a pattern. Encourage participation by saying a repeated line together. Ask questions like “What happened first? And then? What happened in the end?”
  • Singing songs is an excellent way to help children hear the smaller, different sounds in words because each syllable in a word often gets its own musical note. Don't worry about how you sound- from birth, your child loves to hear your voice.
  • Read and re-read your child’s favourite books. Your child becomes more familiar with the story, building her understanding and making it easier for her to retell the story.
Toronto Public Library © 2023