Wordless Books

The first selection for young children is The Lion and the Mouse by Jerry Pinkney, which is a wordless book. Although this may seem to be a strange choice, as the Cayman Reads programme is promoting the reading of books; wordless picture books can be used to develop many important literacy skills such as book handling and the use of pictures as cues to tell a story.

Instead of being pushed along from page to page by the text, wordless picture books are different as they allow the readers to meander through the pages. Parents should take time to discuss the pictures, follow up on your child's observations, build vocabulary, make connections and ask questions.
Wordless books are great ways to build vocabulary through describing what is happening in the pictures with your child. Model this for your child before you expect the child to do it. For example, when looking at the title page of The Lion and the Mouse, it might sound something like this: “Look at those large animal prints. I wonder what kind of animal made them. It must be much bigger than the mouse. The mouse is quite small.”

Wordless books are also a great way to think more deeply about the characters and their actions. “What do you think the mouse is saying to the lion? I think he is saying "Please let me go?" Or maybe he is saying, "Hi Mr. Lion."

Demonstrate for your child that there is more than one response, but also support your child in the use of the picture cues. Encourage your child to predict what will happen next, and ponder what the characters may be thinking or why the characters acted in certain ways. “Why did the mouse run in the hole?”
At the end of the book you and your child can engage in a joint retelling of the story. This is a great time to practice prediction skills and words, such as “What happened after the owl chased the mouse?”