Oak Tree Literacy
Share
Reading Tutor, Early Childhood Educator, Outschool Educator.
Supporting parents to raise confident and creative kids by building a strong literacy foundation through quality, everyday experiences.
09/23/2026
If we're serious about wanting our kids to grow up to be strong readers, critical thinkers, and problem solvers, then we need to stop rushing them into formal learning. Play grows literate kids, not worksheets, reading logs, or flashcards. If you want to know more about play and literacy, follow along. I'm an early childhood educator and a literacy tutor sharing info on how play grows literacy.
When we let kids play, we're not being lazy. We're giving them exactly what they need to grow the skills they will use later when they're learning to read. When kids play pretend, they are developing the ability to think symbolically, something they need to do when reading. So when your child cooks you a pretend meal or makes a mess in the bathroom mixing water and soap like a scientist, or uses a tennis racket as a guitar in their pretend rock band, they're not just taking a break from education. Play IS education.
We all want to help our kids become stronger readers, but we're not always sure what to do. So we buy workbooks, make flashcards, or download apps, hoping these things will help. But the research shows that parents can do a lot to help their kids without any special activities. One thing we can do is answer their questions! This helps them learn things that will make reading easier when they're older. And if you don't know the answers to their questions, you can explore together!
09/17/2026
Life is full of moments that fill our kids with curiosity. When my grandson was 3, I took him for a walk up the road to see a horse. He had never seen a horse up close before. He watched with fascination and wonder. As we walked back home, he asked a hundred questions. Why do horses eat grass? Do they eat anything else? Can it jump over the fence? What's on his head? Can we ride it? Where does it sleep? Sometimes kid's questions can be exhausting, but that curiosity builds their brain! Whether it's a horse, a bug on the sidewalk, a car, a book, or anything else that catches their attention, when kids explore, notice details, and ask questions, they're learning important information about the world around them, connecting ideas, building memories, thinking deeply, and learning new words. This is literacy in action! What's something your kids were curious about lately?
09/15/2026
To learn to read, kids need lessons in how to connect sounds with letters. But before they can learn how to do that, we need to get their brains ready. Reading experts want parents to know that they don’t have to do anything extra special to get their kids ready to learn to read. Everyday, ordinary experiences, like trips to the grocery store, walking the dog, chatting about the events of they day, reading and telling stories, singing songs, and eating meals together are all literacy moments. How? Because in these ordinary moments, kids are learning new words, learning how to communicate, learning about the world around them, and learning to regulate their emotions. In other words, these ordinary moments are building a foundation for reading.
The most important thing we can give our kids is safety and security. When kids have a strong foundation of love and support, they can focus, learn, understand, and remember. This is what our kids need at home to become strong readers, not more flashcards or worksheets.
Parents, your kids don't start learning important literacy skills when they go to school. They learn so much from you at home, starting right from birth. Every conversation you share with your child builds their language skills, teaches them new words, and helps them learn a bit about the world and their family. This makes it easier for them to learn to read and to understand what they read. Follow if you'd to learn more about early literacy and what it means for your kids.
09/14/2026
Parents, learning to read begins at home, long before your kids go to school. Every time you talk, listen, explain, wonder out loud, or share stories with your child about your family, culture, or even just the events of the day, you’re building the foundation they need for reading. Do you want to know more about how reading skills develop at home? Follow to discover what you’re already doing to grow a reader!
We often assume that kids who learn to read earlier have an advantage. But early readers are often just early readers, not better readers. If we want kids to understand what they read, then our focus should be on oral language development in preschool and kindergarten. Oral language, particularly storytelling, predicts stronger reading comprehension, not early decoding (Suggate, 2013). How does oral language develop? Follow for more!
09/10/2026
The push for kids to learn reading skills has trickled down in kindergarten and even preschool. This might seem like a good idea because we don't want our kids to fall behind. But research shows that reading early does not make our kids better readers. It just makes them early readers. But if the goal of reading is comprehension, then we need to focus on oral language in the early years, not reading skills. Oral language is the foundation, and we all know you can't build on a shaky foundation.
Click here to claim your Sponsored Listing.