Birth to 3 years old

• Likes to suck on and hold books (very multi-sensory) - infants
• Pretends to read books
• Understands that books are handled in a specific manner
• Shows enjoyment of rhyming language and nonsense words
• Listens to stories, but doesn’t necessarily sit still to listen for a long time (has some attention span)
• Has a favourite book or video
• Uses increasingly purposeful scribbling
• Begins to show attention to specific print such as letters in own name, familiar with some environmental print
• Can sometimes recognize that numbers are different from letters
• Produces some letter-like forms

• Knows that alphabet letters are a special category that have specific names
• Recognizes more environmental print
• Recognizes repeating sounds in language e.g. Tom, Tom the Piper’s Son
• Uses new vocabulary and grammar in her/his own speech
• Understands and follows oral directions
• Shows an interest in books and reading
• Has an increasing attention span and can sit for longer books
• Starts to print letters, especially first initial of name
• Identifies alphabet letters, especially from own name, Mommy or Daddy or other familiar words
• Writes (scribbles) messages

• Knows favourite books from memory
• Begins to track print when listening to a familiar book
• Reads familiar texts
• Can print name
• Knows numbers 1through 10 and can print some of them
• Recognizes both upper and lower case letters
• Understands the sequence of numbers and letters
• Recognizes some sight words