Family Literacy Tips from A to Z

Family Literacy Day is on Monday January 27. Here are some great tips to help you enjoy literacy with your child!

Ask your child questions about the story you are reading to develop comprehension.

Book family time to read with your children every day.

Create a special reading place in your home.

Develop a love for reading by being a reading role model.

Engage in sing-along sessions with your children.

Follow a recipe with your child. This is a yummy way to practise reading and math skills.

Give the gift of time and read stories with your child.

Have a word contest. For example, challenge your child to orally make rhyming words or to name a word that has the same meaning as one you name. Then it’s your turn.

Introduce a family board game night.

January 27th is Family Literacy Day. For a listing of Family Literacy ideas and events visit:

Keep books, magazines and other reading materials in a bag so that your child can read on trips.

Look up the meaning of funny words like ‘onomatopoeia’ and ‘Chinook’.

Make a family journal, together, about special days and celebrations.

Navigate the Internet with your child to find fun and educational web sites.

Organize a children’s book club.

Pick one day or night a week to visit your local library or book store.

Quote from some of your favourite rhymes and poems.

Read stories out loud together. This helps with fluency skills.

Start reading early! Infants enjoy hearing the rhythm of language spoken by their parents.

Treat your child to a story a day.

Use your reading time to discuss the story with your child.

Volunteer in your school or tutor adults with their reading skills.

Write a letter or story with your child.

X-ercise your mind by doing cross words and playing word games.

You are the reading role model.

Zap off the television and computer so that you both can read a book.

For more tips on reading with your child, download and print the FREE booklet

“Helping Your Child Learn to Read: A Parent’s Guide” at:

15 Minutes of Fun!

In honour of Family Literacy Day’s 15th year, ABC Life Literacy Canada is encouraging Canadian families to have "15 Minutes of Fun" learning together. Learning can happen at any time. Practising literacy together for just 15 minutes a day has tremendous benefits for both children and parents. Here are some great ways to get started:

  1. Create your own comic strip about your family.
  2. Invent two new endings to your favourite book.
  3. Make up a new recipe together and post it online.
  4. Tell knock-knock jokes together while doing the dishes.
  5. Sing five songs really, really loud!
  6. Invent a new game while playing at the park.
  7. Read a story to your pet (or favourite toy).
  8. Make a paper fortune teller with eight fortunes.
  9. Write a silly poem and tell it to your family at dinner.
  10. Log on to your favourite word game - can you beat your best score?
  11. Create your family tree.
  12. Play rhyming "I Spy" - "I spy something that rhymes with..."
  13. Play a board game together.
  14. Text your friend and tell them about your holiday.
  15. Find 15 things that begin with the letter "S".

Download and print a FREE Literacy Day activity booklet for your child at