Why Moo, Oink And Neigh Are Still Important

Did you know the first children’s book, Orbis Pictus, was published in 1658 by John Amos Comenius? The book included illustrations of various family animals with text that described their sounds like “the duck quaketh” and “the lamb blaiteth”. Even in the 1600’s, the importance of language development was understood. Research says when it comes to your little ones learning their farm animals, the earlier the better.

Besides being adorable, learning farm animal vocabulary by age three can prepare your child for preschool and beyond. Words like “Moo” and “Chirp” use a variety of phonemes that act as language building blocks. These language building blocks prepare your child to speak, read and write. Learning farm animal words also help toddlers begin forming simple sentences with the combination of those words.

Early understanding of farm animal sounds also help develop a language milestone – categorizing. Your child will begin to categorize objects by age three, but he or she will need to know the words that define those categories to start. Spotting animals in real life, like at the zoo, and pointing out characteristics about them (what they eat, what their coat feels like) builds your child’s vocabulary. And playing with toys like our The Very Busy Spider by Eric Carle set lets them have fun while making all those important connections.

To read the entire article, “5 Great Reasons Kids Should Know Their Farm Animals by Age 3,” click here.