Maya Payne Smart reminds us it’s always the right time to talk with our kids
Hear us out, learning to read doesn’t always take a book.
Reading together is critically important. But building vocabulary is an essential literacy skill we often don’t talk about enough. Now anyone close to a little one can tell you that kids pick up words just about anywhere—books, social media, music, video games, and TV. But one of the most important ways children learn new words is through everyday conversations with their families.
Read by 4th partners had the chance to speak with author Maya Payne Smart about her incredible book, Reading for Our Lives. Through personal stories, historical accounts, and scholarly research, her book presents the life-and-death urgency of reading and gives parents and caregivers practical tips to support literacy. One of our favorite takeaways from our discussion was Maya’s acronym, T.A.L.K: Take turns. Ask questions. Label and point. Keep the conversation going.
Research tells us that back-and-forth conversations can make all the difference in building literacy skills. The types of conversations that help little ones express their big ideas. Where us parents take the lead by listening and making sure our children feel seen and heard. From responding to baby babbles to answering questions big and small, conversations with our children are essential to raising readers.
As parents, we have big dreams for our children. We want the best for them at every stage. So as they grow, they’re ready to take on and explore the world. But between meal times, school, work, playdates, homework, and bath time, every day can be quite a whirlwind.
We love the T.A.L.K acronym for its simplicity. Because even on the busiest of days, it helps us remember that sometimes, our biggest dreams for our children can be supported with something as small as a conversation.
