I will state it simply – bombard the child with language. Please don't misinterpret that to mean to talk the kid to death, the gift of time as you will start being tuned out pretty quickly with incessant eye-rolling. (Yes, eye-rolling starts early too.)

"PLAYING DIFFERENT GAMES EMPHASIZING RHYMES ARE FUN, AND GREAT FOR PROMOTING PARENT/ CHILD BONDING, WHILE MOVING LANGUAGE ALONG AND CONTRIBUTING TO EARLY READING DEVELOPMENT."

Read bedtime stories to the toddler and preschooler. Read stories throughout the day. Playing different games emphasizing rhymes are fun, and great for promoting parent/child bonding, while moving language along and contributing to early reading development. Rhyming games can even be played in the car on the way to and from school or errands.

Back in the dark ages (the 1960s) There was a song called "The Name Game," which played with names and rhyming nonsense words (for example: "Shannon Shannon Bo Bannon, Banana Fanna Fo Fannon, Fee Fi Fo Fannon, Shannon.")

Also, from another era, a seemingly forgotten author who was brilliant with language was Dr. Seuss. Just listen to the rhymes and the rhythmic beats of The Cat in the Hat Comes Back or One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish as you read them to your child. The rhymes and rhythm will be internalized for later use when more formal reading instruction takes place.

One can do a lot worse (in fact many do, by gluing their child's attention to an iPad) than playing the "Name Game" over and over or reading The Cat in the Hat to your young toddler or preschooler.

THE GIFT OF TIME

Children who show these early “red flags” may later be diagnosed as having a learning disability or some type of attention deficit. For the preschool school, it may be wise to simply view them (at least for a certain period of time) as “immature.” This may go contrary to much current theory, but this may help parents view the child as possibly needing more time, rather than assume the child has a disorder or disability. The parents can then keep close tabs on how the child progresses, to determine whether there is, in fact, a learning disorder of some kind.

For such children delaying their entry into kindergarten or first grade, can be enormously beneficial. This delay has the effect of allowing the child to have greater time to develop and mature, while having certain skill areas targeted.

Many schools discourage giving the child such a "gift," but for the child who is showing a number of indicators, it is something that should be strongly considered.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Dr. Richard Selznick is a psychologist and the director of the Cooper Learning Center, Department of Pediatrics, Cooper University Health Care. The author of The ShutDown Learner: Helping Your Academically Discouraged Child, as well as What to Do about Dyslexia: 25 Essential Points for Parents, and three other related books, he can be contacted through email: selznickr@cooperhealth.edu. To learn more about his books, blogs and podcasts, go to shutdownlearner.com and cooperlearningcenter.org