Picture Walks with Babies and Toddlers

Picture walks are fun ways to use books with babies and toddlers.  A picture walk is browsing through an illustrated book to look and talk about the pictures.  This lays the foundation for children to use visualization as they later learn to read by themselves.  It’s also just fun to look at pictures and enjoy the story without the words at times.

With babies and toddlers you can extend the learning by noting the color of objects, counting items, noting the position of objects, and/or naming animals.  As children begin to retell familiar stories they can use the pictures to help guide them.  It’s also fun to use pictures and tell a different story than what the author has written.  We rename the characters with familiar family names making each story more personal.  Enjoy the pictures in your children’s books!