What should 4 year olds know about books?

At age 4, children have already been read to for 4 years and they already know quite a bit about reading. They are developing emergent literacy skills — important building blocks toward the day when they'll read independently. As we explore books at school, we are guiding children in their understanding of books and the role of written language in our lives.

We want children to go to kindergarten knowing:
Books are read from front to back.
Pictures should be right-side up.
Reading is done from left to right.
The language of books is different from spoken language.
Words have different sounds in them.
There are familiar and unfamiliar words.
All of these are emergent literacy skills — important building blocks toward the day when they'll read independently. How can you encourage further development of these skills? Just keep reading aloud.

Each class offers different routines to help children develop this knowledge and skills. In the Haifa class, thumbs up reading offers the chance for children to have a focused, quiet reading session, where they are choosing, holding, and looking at books independently.