In the first six years of life, children are learning to listen, speak, read, write and use technology. Much of this learning occurs informally, through everyday interactions between children, and between children and adults. In fact, it is almost impossible to overstate the role of family, especially parents and grandparents, in nurturing, supporting and influencing young children’s language and literacy development.

Live, Love and Learn provides an intriguing and highly accessible guide to how young children learn and how you can support their learning. Early childhood academic, mother and grandmother, Laurie Makin, explains the principles of observation and engagement, to follow and extend children’s own interests, building their understanding, communication skills and self-confidence.

Real world scenarios, sample dialogue and practical activities all highlight the critical importance of the home environment in enhancing children’s capacity to learn. This unique family resource is designed to:

provide an overview of literacy learning in the infant and toddler years, the preschool years, and the early school years;
identify key milestones and indicators for concern at each level;
discuss the vital impact of technology on young children’s learning; and
demonstrate how you can create opportunities for language and literacy learning to be integrated into everyday life without ‘hot housing’ or pressuring children

Recognising the place of child care and early years schooling in young children’s lives, suggestions are also provided for communication between families and early childhood staff and teachers, at specific intervals throughout the book.