Receptive language, Expressive language, Awareness of differences in sounds
Toddlers participate in a book sharing focused on the concepts of noisy and quiet.
[Invite several toddlers to join you in reading a book. Show the cover of the book and point to people and items you describe.]
There is a mommy and a baby and an older sister shown on the cover of our book. The mommy and sister are saying “shhh.”
Sometimes when we say “shhh,” we put a finger by our mouth. Let’s all put a finger by our mouth and say “shhh.”
[Demonstrate the finger placement as you say “shhh.” Encourage toddlers to do the same.]
The mommy and sister are putting a finger by their mouth. They want something to be quiet. We cannot hear something when it is quiet. Something must be making a noise. The mommy and sister want the noise to go away.
Let’s look inside our book to find out what is making a noise.
[Use the following strategies to engage toddlers in the book:
We looked at pictures of a family and the animals that live on their farm! The family has a baby. Why did the mommy say “shhh” when it was time for the baby to go to sleep? (The farm animals were noisy!)
Toddlers enjoy looking at and talking about pictures of animals. Use the farm animal noises and the “shhh” requests to strengthen toddlers’ awareness of the concepts of noise and quiet. The opening segment’s request to put a finger by our mouth while saying “shhh” will appeal to many toddlers. You may wish to incorporate this action into appropriate parts of the book sharing. You also may wish to build into the book sharing an opportunity for toddlers to point to bunnies shown on almost every page, as suggested in an Enrichment tip. This active engagement practice can help toddlers pay attention to picture details.
Extra support
Enrichment
Receptive language, Expressive language, Awareness of differences in sounds
Toddlers participate in a book sharing that includes opportunities to make different kinds of animal sounds, including quieter versions of the sounds.
Invite several toddlers to read with you the book about noises made by farm animals. Show and describe the book cover. Put your finger near your mouth and say “shhh” when you describe the actions of the mommy and older sister on the book cover. Explain that there are noisy animals on the farm where the family lives. The mommy and girl want the farm animals to be quiet. It is time for the baby shown on the book cover to sleep. The noisy animals can keep the baby awake. Talk with toddlers about why we want our room to be quieter when it is rest time.
Use your own words to describe book pictures. Emphasize the sounds made by farm animals with the following approach:
Repeat this process with all farm animals of interest to the toddlers in your gathering.
At the end of the book sharing, ask toddlers whether each animal made the same sound. Explain that each animal makes a different kind of sound. Make several animal sounds, previously introduced, to demonstrate a contrast in sounds. Then put your finger near your mouth, say “shhhh,” and invite the toddlers to repeat the sounds you made using a quieter voice.
Helping toddlers pay attention to differences in sounds can support the development of later skills in speaking, listening, and reading. Making animal sounds is an engaging way to promote awareness of sounds. The current activity option includes the additional practice of making quieter versions of different sounds. It is not necessary to make the sounds of the many different animals featured in the book. The goal of the activity can be pursued by selecting a small number of farm animals that are of interest to the toddlers and make distinctively different sounds. Toddlers who participate in Option 1 may more readily engage in the current option, which gives more attention to sounds than to details shown in the pictures.
Extra support
Enrichment
Materials Needed: several books with pictures of farm animals (such as Mommies Say Shhh! by Patricia Polacco), assortment of people and animal figures, toy barn
Arrange the books and play materials on the floor. Invite several toddlers to hold the people and animal figures. Review the book, emphasizing the names of the animals and other things of interest in the pictures. Help toddlers find animal figures that correspond to animals pictured in the book. Invite toddlers to repeat the animal names.
Materials Needed: Mommies Say Shhh! by Patricia Polacco, assortment of animal and people figures
Older children who join toddlers in Option 1 or 2 may enjoy describing some of the details of the richly-illustrated pictures to younger children. Infants may enjoy holding a farm animal figure or stuffed animal during the book sharing. As a follow-up to the book sharing, invite children to play with people and animal figures in the block area. Watch for opportunities to connect children’s play to pictures and actions shown in the book.