Picking the Right Book

Picking the right book is an important step in a child's early literacy development journey. We like to expose our children to books of different themes and genres. (Although some of them are only interested in the pictures.🙊)

However, if your child is starting to read on his/her own, let's try to keep his/her interest high and motivated by selecting suitable books. Books that are too difficult for your child's reading level might be a turn-off, just like tasks which are unsuitable for your child's development level. We want to encourage the learning of new words, and at the same time keep reading fun and relaxing.

The simple 5 finger rule is easy to apply whether you are choosing a book to read with your child or to encourage independent reading. It uses the number of words that the child cannot read yet to help us ascertain if the book is suitable for your child's reading level.

Simply flip open any page of the book and hold up a finger for every word that your child doesn't know.

Then, use this infographic to guide you.