Is there anyone with a baby who doesn’t have Sandra Boynton’s Moo Ba La La La in the nursery? Is there any parent who has this book that cannot recite it by memory alone? We love this book, as you may be able to tell from its totally chewed up status in the picture. It has been treasured in our house for three years now, as first Pickle and then Bo have been infatuated with its vibrant colors, infectious rhymes, and goofy illustrations.
You can use this book to enhance speech and language development in so many ways. First, animal sounds! As I said in an earlier post, getting kids to mimic animal noises is a great way to enhance language development in very young children. Animal sounds (moo, baa, neigh) simply combine one consonant with one vowel, making them easy to say and repeat. Second, predictability! Kids love when they are able to fill in words and sounds as they read. This story provides the perfect opportunity to allow kids to fill in the animal sounds after you cue them with the first few words on the page. Third- phonological awareness! This book is terrific for helping little ones understand that language is made up of various different sound units. Fourth- a parting question! I love how this ends by asking children “what do you say?” This is such a fun way to engage your tiny readers. If your child is not yet verbal, you can give him prompts- do we say moo? Do we say baa? Do we say night night? If your little one is verbal, let him answer however he sees fit- and make sure to write down his sweet responses because I can all but guarantee you will want to remember them later.
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Moo Ba La La La is downright fun, and I give it so much credit for helping my boys fall in love with reading at a young age. Any book that gets dragged across the room by a crawling baby and handed to you like a glorious gift, only to be followed up by said baby’s uncanny ability to maneuver himself into your lap while you are undoubtedly attempting to do a million things at once– well, that’s what it’s all about. That’s what I love. And that, for us, was this book for so many years. Thank you, Sandra Boynton.
Want the book? Get it here! Moo, Ba, La, La, La!, by Sandra Boynton. *This is an affiliate link.
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