Blog

13 articles

Language Lessons from Lock-down

  • 22 June 2020
  • Jerri Pirc

Speech-language therapist shares how families can engage in meaningful play and interactions while social distancing using Zoom. Grandparents this is especially for you

Phonics is Not a Dirty Word

  • 5 February 2020
  • Jerri Pirc

Science-based reading programmes are the building block of reading success.

The Christmas Bird's Nest

  • 5 December 2019
  • Jerri Pirc

A Christmas tradition creates a new joy.

Jazz the Reading Dog

  • 31 July 2019
  • Jerri Pirc

The true story of a reading dog who accompanied a Story Gran at the local kindergarten. A brief history of how Jazz's career grew to include a school and a library. Some of the benefits of a reading dog are highlighted.

Do These 3 Things Every Day to Help Your Child grow: Talk, Read, Sing

  • 19 June 2019
  • Jerri Pirc

Am reminded of the famous "Jaws "movie quote, "You're gonna need a bigger boat ! ". When it comes to developing oral language, reading, and writing skills, you not only need a better boat, you need a bigger ocean. Read on as my guest blogger, Speech and Language Therapist, Catherine Campbell, explains what you can do to help your child learn at school.

1000 Books Before School: A New Zealand Library's Pilot Project

  • 1 April 2019
  • Jerri Pirc

Guest blogger Mary Butler explains her library's pilot project. 1000 Books Before School’s Vision is to create a “we read aloud to our children from birth” community culture in the Motueka Library District. 1000 Books Before School is the result of a simple idea: The amount of reading, talking and singing you do with your children matters.

Getting Kids reading: Keeping Kids reading

  • 8 February 2019
  • Jerri Pirc

Remember that first time you found a book that you couldn't put down? This magic in books doesn't occur naturally with many children. Read here for simple tips such as how to set up family reading traditions and encourage reluctant readers to not only participate but to discover the magic of books.

Using Props as Part of Story Time: A Christmas gift idea

  • 26 November 2018
  • Jerri Pirc

Using props, whether new, secondhand finds, or homemade is a fun and easy way to engage young readers during reading. This strategy enables the adult to engage readers with all different levels of abilities.

30 Million Words

  • 3 October 2018
  • Jerri Pirc

A brief introduction to a book that should be required reading for all parents and grandparents. Conversations we have with infants build their brains. Find out more in my blog, "Thirty Million Words: Building a Child's Brain" is an excellent book.

Question Development in Children

  • 1 September 2018
  • Jerri Pirc

There is a hierarchy of question development when we look at language milestones in children. Being aware of the order in which children understand questions and learn to ask questions of their own will help you learn how to engage your child and promote learning.

Making the Most of Book Time with a Child

  • 27 July 2018
  • Jerri Pirc

Learn about this easy strategy for building vocabulary with young children while sharing a story. Encourage more language and interactions with preschoolers and school age children as well using this simple technique.

Follow up activities for reading with young children

  • 18 April 2018
  • Jerri Pirc

This blog highlights my second book Kate and Caboodle in a Splendidly Blended Tale and another follow up activity for young children. More benefits for hands on activities are discussed in this article.

Engaging young children by using a follow-up activity when reading

  • 15 March 2018
  • Jerri Pirc

Children's book author, Jerri J. Pirc, shares a follow-up activity for young children to use with her book Kate and Caboodle. This fun and tactile follow-up activity demonstrates one way to engage young children and increase pre-literacy skills and development.