Read

It is very important to read daily to your children for 15-20 minutes. There is no age limit.  Begin as young as 3 months and continue until your child no longer lives with you. Let your child predict what will happen in the story. When they are old enough, ask them to tell you about the story. Identify the characters, setting, and plot of the story.

For younger children, talk about the illustrations, point to the words as you read, and let him/her turn the pages. Give your child a chance to "read" the story to you. Once a child is familiar with a book, he/she can retell the story to you by looking at the pages in the book.

As your children begin to read, let them also read to you daily for 10-15 minutes. Sit next to your child so that you can see what he/she is reading. Kindly correct any errors or help him/her sound out words. Help your child use context clues to help him/her understand a word or sound out a word.

Reading aloud is good way to become a better reader. Every child can learn to become a better reader. Allowing your child to read to you for 10-15 minutes and then you read to him/her for 15-20 minutes gives your child a solid 30 minutes of good reading practices.

If time doesn't permit for a 30 minute block of time, this can be spread out throughout the day.

Counting

Every chance you get, count with your children. When you are cooking and measuring 3 cups of flour, count out loud. When you are folding the laundry, count out loud how many towels there are. When reading a counting book, count out loud as you point to each object. Help your child develop that one-to-one correspondence. The more you count, the more your child will glean from you and will develop a foundation for math.