Big words, don't skip them

Explain, don’t skip tricky words! Help your child’s language development and describe difficult words—or if you’re sharing a book, point to a picture to help with understanding.

When they come up in conversation or storytime, use it as an opportunity to stop and chat. Ask your child if they know what the word means and if you need to, explain the word using phrases and concepts they already know.

If a story passage reads "the chameleon was camouflaged in the flower bed", point to the picture and talk about how the chameleon has changed colour to match the colours of the flowers. You could say the chameleon is blending in or matching the colours in the garden; that’s called camouflaging.