The Read Aloud Factor by Rekha S. Rajan

Author:Rekha S. Rajan
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Chicago Review Press
Published: 2022-08-09T07:29:44+00:00

How a Listener Responds to Read Alouds

After a few weeks you’ll begin to notice that your baby responds with body movements when you talk and read to him. When parents talk directly to their infant, he can move his legs and arms in synchrony with their speech. Isn’t that amazing? Your baby will cry but shows you he understands by his movements.

What responses can you observe in a newborn? Depending on your infant baby’s waking or sleeping state, you may see that your baby appears alert or that she moves in synchrony with your speech. Responses may be very subtle at first. But know that every word you speak is being registered in your baby’s active, growing brain. The more you are tuned in to your baby, the more you’ll notice these small, sometimes subtle gestures of acknowledgment.

When you read to your baby, observe his arms and legs as you read. At this stage, reading Mother Goose rhymes or other poems with rhythm, alliteration, and rhyming words will encourage your baby to respond physically. The loving tones in your voice will help even an eight-week-old baby to focus on you, even if just for a few moments.1 The book ¡Pio Peep! (by Alma Flor Ada, Alice Schertle, and Isabel Campoy) has been recommended for years as a collection of lovely Spanish nursery rhymes and is often included in preschool classrooms.

Why read a collection of Spanish nursery rhymes if you don’t speak Spanish? It’s just an example of how to build language skills early on and begin to see how reading aloud, language, and music are all connected.

These traditional Spanish nursery rhymes are among the most popular in Spanish-speaking countries. Spanish-speaking parents and grandparents will remember these rhymes from their childhood. Alma Flor Ada, a renowned author of children’s books in both English and Spanish, selected them. Most of the Spanish rhymes have established, familiar, chant-like rhythms. Babies will soon grow to recognize and love these familiar sounds. Each Spanish rhyme includes an English translation that works well for parents using parentese in English. If you read the well-translated and re-created rhymes in English, you can even begin to make up your own rhythms.

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