What Are Pre-literacy Skills And How Can You Incorporate Them Into Your Daily Routine?
Before children learn to read and write, they build a foundation of preliteracy skills — the essential building blocks that prepare them for literacy success. These skills develop through everyday interactions, play, and conversation long before formal schooling begins.
Understanding and nurturing preliteracy can make a profound difference, especially for children at risk of language delay or dyslexia.
What Are Preliteracy Skills?
Preliteracy skills include:
Oral language: Vocabulary, sentence structure, and storytelling
Phonological awareness: Recognising and playing with sounds (e.g., rhyming, syllables)
Print awareness: Understanding that print carries meaning and how books work
Letter knowledge: Recognising letters and linking them to sounds
Listening and attention: Focusing on spoken language and following instructions
Narrative skills: Sequencing events and describing experiences
These skills are predictive of later reading success — and they’re especially important for children with speech, language, or neurodevelopmental differences.
How to Build Preliteracy Skills Into Your Routine
You don’t need flashcards or worksheets. The best preliteracy activities are woven into daily life:
1. Talk Through Your Day
Narrate routines: “Let’s put on your shoes. First the left foot, then the right.”
Use rich vocabulary: “That’s enormous!” instead of “big.”
2. Read Together — Every Day
Choose books with rhyme, repetition, and clear story structure.
Point to words as you read. Let your child turn pages and guess what happens next.
3. Play With Sounds
Sing nursery rhymes and clap out syllables.
Play “I spy” with beginning sounds: “I spy something that starts with /b/.”
4. Encourage Drawing and Scribbling
Offer crayons and paper freely. Talk about their pictures: “Tell me about this part.”
Label their drawings with simple words to build print awareness.
5. Use Everyday Print
Point out signs, labels, and menus: “That says ‘milk.’ It starts with M.”
Let children help write shopping lists or birthday cards.
6. Tell Stories Together
Ask open-ended questions: “What happened next?”
Use toys to act out mini stories with a beginning, middle, and end.
Final Thoughts
Preliteracy isn’t about pushing children to read early — it’s about laying a joyful, language-rich foundation. For children with speech or language delays, these routines can be protective and empowering.
If you’re concerned about your child’s language development or want tailored strategies, reach out to a speech and language therapist. Early support makes all the difference.
