ABSTRACT
This chapter describes the significance of picturebooks for all of the aspects of young children’s language learning – vocabulary, syntax, phonological awareness, and narrative. It shows how readers can engage children in the world of picturebooks in ways that optimize their language learning, updating a model of the factors contributing to high-quality picturebook reading. The main finding from integrated reviews was that frequency of picturebook reading contributes moderately to children’s language development. The bulk of the research on links between book-reading and children’s oral language development has addressed children’s learning of new words from picturebooks. New work with preschool teachers in Head Start settings identifies the content, form, and linguistic features of teachers’ extratextual talk during picturebook reading that supports children’s word learning. New research is emerging on the visual/aesthetic features of picturebooks, such as artistic conventions and the quality of the illustrations.
