The picture stage is an exciting one. Young children love naming the things around them. And you can teach them the names of objects at any time.

In the grocery store? "I see a yellow banana."

At the playground? "I see a red slide."

In their bedroom? "I see a big teddy bear."

Reading a book? "I see a small mouse."  You get the idea.

Naming things comes before comprehending the meaning of things. It will take time before your child understands the meaning behind the symbols and pictures around them. This stage is akin to learning how to read road signs with symbols.

Picture this. You’re driving down a country road. Suddenly, your child calls out, “Look, a deer!” You immediately pump the brakes while scanning for deer when you realize your child saw a road sign with the deer symbol on it. "Look, a deer," is a far cry from "Watch out for the deer on the side of the road."

But is it fair to compare your reading of the road sign with your child's? Your child's background knowledge is more limited than yours. After all, you know what deer are, where they live, and why they might be near the road. You know about collisions and road hazard signs. 

When your child calls out, "Look, a deer!" it's cause for celebration. They have to notice the sign, categorize the symbol as an animal, and scan their short memories for an animal that has a similar shape as the symbol. If they’re lucky, they have an image of a deer stored away. Deer aren’t as common as cats, dogs, or birds. Somehow, your child can recognize that the symbol on the sign is a deer.

As your child acquires new vocabulary, it's important to check in with them. If you know they've seen and heard the name of an  object before, point to it and ask them, "What's that?" If they can't answer, name the object, and move on.

Another important part of this stage is helping your child make happy memories that revolve around books. Reading picture books with a young child is an invaluable teaching opportunity. But more importantly, it's a bonding activity (read this post about creating a reading ritual to find out more). Not only will they learn to recognize and name the things in pictures, but they will also learn a lot about books. How books open, what page you turn to first, how to hold a book the correct way, and the relationship between pictures and words. Take the time to talk about how each book makes you feel. Find out how your child feels. Help them find the words. These back-and-forth exchanges about the stories you read are building a strong connection between you and your child that will last beyond their early literacy journey.

Everything you know about books but take for granted should be explicitly taught to your young child. No matter how simplistic it seems to you, to your child it is new information that has cumulative value. You know things they don't know. Be generous. Be patient. But remember not to share everything everywhere all at once. You are not standing in a lecture hall. At least I hope you aren't. Holding a young child's interest for more than a few minutes at a time is no easy feat. Unless you're a Sesame Street character. Then, by all means, do your thing.