Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Literacy is Everywhere!

Literacy development is an incredibly important part of early childhood education, and it begins long before a child enters elementary school. Children learn about literacy from their caretakers and their environments. The article "Remembering Critical Lessons in Early Literacy Research: A Transactional Perspective" (Whitmore, Martens, Goodman, & Owocki) describes literacy as "individual, social...[and] a cultural practice." Each child creates his or her own meanings throughout social interactions, and all of this is is supported by the child's cultural and family background. Children learn about literacy from birth by being read and sung to, looking at pictures, watching others read and write, making their own marks, playing, and so much more. All of these experiences lead to a child's understanding of letters and words, which eventually add up to being an independent reader and writer.

During this exciting time in a child's life, families need to be aware of the role they play in their child's literacy development. Support children by reading to them, asking them to read or retell a story to you, singing with them, and encouraging children to tell, write, and draw their own stories or thoughts. Point out letters and writing in the world around you, such as on street signs, in the grocery store, and on household items, as well as in books. Children are constantly watching their caregivers, so model your own literacy habits; let your child see you reading and writing, and talk about these things with them.

One of the most important things for families to know about literacy is that it is happening now! As stated in "Remembering Critical Literacies," "Children do not wait for formal instruction before they read and write" (
Whitmore, Martens, Goodman, & Owocki, pg. 299). Take advantage of every opportunity to talk about literacy and help your child develop an early love of reading and writing!

6 comments:

  1. I believe children are learning about literacy before most people even realize it. Children watch adults read and write, which sparks their interest in literacy. I agree that “Children learn about literacy from birth by being read and sung to, looking at pictures, watching others read and write, making their own marks, playing, and so much more” (Hillary Walsh). There are so many experiences and different items around children that are teaching them about reading and writing. Even though children learn about literacy from several different aspects of life, sitting down and reading books with children is still an important part of a child literacy development.

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  2. Absolutely, Hillary! Children soak up so much literacy by just engaging in everyday patterns of living. And as Cassy suggests, they are not only watching us but also actively working with print and images in the signs all around them.

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  3. I really agree with your last paragraph here, many people think of literacy as just what the teacher teaches in the classroom! It is overlooked because many forms of literacy are not what we think of when the typical reading books and writing letters definition of literacy comes to mind. Since children so actively take control over literacy and try their hardest to navigate it, having parents model and support their child is a wonderful way to support their development.

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  4. Yes, literacy is really important to children and the envrionment and caregivers affect to children's literacy. I really agree with that what you wrote, "One of the most important things for families to know about literacy is that it is happening now!" (Hillary) So caregivers and family should consider about their child's literacy all the time.

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  5. Hillary, I love your suggestions to caretakers and parents. Developing a child's literacy is a long process. Demonstrating by example is such a great point; we need to read, write, draw, and tell stories in a way that models how we want our children/students to understand it. Constantly understanding that we are being watched and followed, can be instrumental in showing our students how literacy "works."

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  6. I also really like your suggestions for parents. I think that it is easy for people, myself included, to take our parent's great involvement in our literacy for granted. There are definitely parents who do not value the importance of early literacy or do not know how to help their child, and I think simple, specific suggestions about how to engage your child with a book can really have a great impact.

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