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Essential Early Literacy Teaching Stategies

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Essential Early Literacy Teaching Stategies

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This resource offers a guide on what early literacy instruction children should receive. It is explained that the term 'early literacy' was adopted as "forming reading and writing concepts and skills is a dynamic process (National Research Council 1998, 2000).  In accordance to The Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF), intentional teaching should be used alongside play-based learning. There are eight teaching strategies "with strong research links to early literacy skills and, in some cases, with later elementary-grade reading achievement" that are in this resource would be very useful.

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AT1 Singapore Sling_EDF3034 Children's Literacy Development - Singapore Sling.pptx

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Careful Planning and Instructions Needed

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Careful Planning and Instructions Needed

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This resource sheds some light and provides bite-size guidance on children's literacy development continuum from beginning years to primary grades. It highlights the importance of careful planning and instructions, and regular and active interactions with print which helps develop children's ability to read and write. It is also added that good teachers bring into play a variety of teaching strategies that encompass the great diversity of children in schools since there is no one teaching method or approach that is most effective for all children (Strickland, 1994). As per Fellowes (2014, p. 274), this article also states that "the single most important activity for building skills essential for reading success is reading aloud to children" (Wells 1985; Bus, Van Ijzendoorn, & Pellegrini 1995). By demonstrating how to read to the children, reading aloud provides a high degree of support to children as they listen and are able to focus on enjoying, comprehending the story and gaining exposure to new vocabulary, concepts, sentence structures and text types (Fellowes, 2014). It is also mentioned that children need to be exposed to a wide variety of genres to enhance their vocabulary development.

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Children learn to use symbols, combining their oral language, pictures, print, and play into a coherent mixed medium and creating and communicating meanings in a variety of ways. From their initial experiences and interactions with adults, children begin to read words, processing letter-sound relations and acquiring substantial knowledge of the alphabetic system. As they continue to learn, children increasingly consolidate this information into patterns that allow for automaticity and fluency in reading and writing. Consequently reading and writing acquisition is conceptualized better as a developmental continuum than as an all-or-nothing phenomenon.

But the ability to read and write does not develop naturally, without careful planning and instruction. Children need regular and active interactions with print. Specific abilities required for reading and writing come from immediate experiences with oral and written language. Experiences in these early years begin to define the assumptions and expectations about becoming literate and give children the motivation to work toward learning to read and write. From these experiences children learn that reading and writing are valuable tools that will help them do many things in life.

The beginning years (birth through preschool)

Even in the first few months of life, children begin to experiment with language. Young babies make sounds that imitate the tones and rhythms of adult talk; they "read" gestures and facial expressions, and they begin to associate sound sequences frequently heard – words – with their referents (Berk 1996). They delight in listening to familiar jingles and rhymes, play along in games such as peek-a-boo and pat-a-cake, and manipulate objects such as board books and alphabet blocks in their play. From these remarkable beginnings children learn to use a variety of symbols.

In the midst of gaining facility with these symbol systems, children acquire through interactions with others the insight that specific kinds of marks – print – also can represent meanings. At first children will use the physical and visual cues surrounding print to determine what something says. But as they develop an understanding of the alphabetic principle, children begin to process letters, translate them into sounds, and connect this information with a known meaning. Although it may seem as though some children acquire these understandings magically or on their own, studies suggest that they are the beneficiaries of considerable, though playful and informal, adult guidance and instruction (Durkin 1966; Anbar 1986).

Considerable diversity in children's oral and written language experiences occurs in these years (Hart & Risley 1995). In home and child care situations, children encounter many different resources and types and degrees of support for early reading and writing (McGill-Franzen & Lanford 1994). Some children may have ready access to a range of writing and reading materials, while others may not; some children will observe their parents writing and reading frequently, others only occasionally; some children receive direct instruction, while others receive much more casual, informal assistance.

What this means is that no one teaching method or approach is likely to be the most effective for all children (Strickland 1994). Rather, good teachers bring into play a variety of teaching strategies that can encompass the great diversity of children in schools. Excellent instruction builds on what children already know, and can do, and provides knowledge, skills, and dispositions for lifelong learning. Children need to learn not only the technical skills of reading and writing but also how to use these tools to better their thinking and reasoning (Neuman 1998).

The single most important activity for building these understandings and skills essential for reading success appears to be reading aloud to children (Wells 1985; Bus, Van Ijzendoorn, & Pellegrini 1995). High-quality book reading occurs when children feel emotionally secure (Bus & Van Ijzendoorn 1995; Bus et al. 1997) and are active participants in reading (Whitehurst et al. 1994). Asking predictive and analytic questions in small-group settings appears to affect children's vocabulary and comprehension of stories (Karweit & Wasik 1996). Children may talk about the pictures, retell the story, discuss their favorite actions, and request multiple rereadings. It is the talk that surrounds the storybook reading that gives it power, helping children to bridge what is in the story and their own lives (Dickinson & Smith 1994; Snow et al. 1995). Snow (1991) has described these types of conversations as "decontextualized language" in which teachers may induce higher-level thinking by moving experiences in stories from what the children may see in front of them to what they can imagine.

A central goal during these preschool years is to enhance children's exposure to and concepts about print (Clay 1979, 1991; Holdaway 1979; Teale 1984; Stanovich & West 1989). Some teachers use Big Books to help children distinguish many print features, including the fact that print (rather than pictures) carries the meaning of the story, that the strings of letters between spaces are words and in print correspond to an oral version, and that reading progresses from left to right and top to bottom. In the course of reading stories, teachers may demonstrate these features by pointing to individual words, directing children's attention to where to begin reading, and helping children to recognize letter shapes and sounds. Some researchers (Adams 1990; Roberts 1998) have suggested that the key to these critical concepts, such as developing word awareness, may lie in these demonstrations of how print works.

Children also need opportunity to practice what they've learned about print with their peers and on their own. Studies suggest that the physical arrangement of the classroom can promote time with books (Morrow & Weinstein 1986; Neuman & Roskos 1997). A key area is the classroom library – a collection of attractive stories and informational books that provides children with immediate access to books. Regular visits to the school or public library and library card registration ensure that children's collections remain continually updated and may help children develop the habit of reading as lifelong learning. In comfortable library settings children often will pretend to read, using visual cues to remember the words of their favorite stories. Although studies have shown that these pretend readings are just that (Ehri & Sweet 1991), such visual readings may demonstrate substantial knowledge about the global features of reading and its purposes.

Storybooks are not the only means of providing children with exposure to written language. Children learn a lot about reading from the labels, signs, and other kinds of print they see around them (McGee, Lomax, & Head 1988; Neuman & Roskos 1993). Highly visible print labels on objects, signs, and bulletin boards in classrooms demonstrate the practical uses of written language. In environments rich with print, children incorporate literacy into their dramatic play (Morrow 1990; Vukelich 1994; Neuman & Roskos 1997), using these communication tools to enhance the drama and realism of the pretend situation. These everyday, playful experiences by themselves do not make most children readers. Rather they expose children to a variety of print experiences and the processes of reading for real purposes.

For children whose primary language is other than English, studies have shown that a strong basis in a first language promotes school achievement in a second language (Cummins 1979). Children who are learning English as a second language are more likely to become readers and writers of English when they are already familiar with the vocabulary and concepts in their primary language. In this respect, oral and written language experiences should be regarded as an additive process, ensuring that children are able to maintain their home language while also learning to speak and read English (Wong Fillmore, 1991). Including non-English materials and resources to the extent possible can help to support children's first language while children acquire oral proficiency in English.

A fundamental insight developed in children's early years through instruction is the alphabetic principle, the understanding that there is a systematic relationship between letters and sounds (Adams 1990). The research of Gibson and Levin (1975) indicates that the shapes of letters are learned by distinguishing one character from another by its type of spatial features. Teachers will often involve children in comparing letter shapes, helping them to differentiate a number of letters visually. Alphabet books and alphabet puzzles in which children can see and compare letters may be a key to efficient and easy learning.

At the same time children learn about the sounds of language through exposure to linguistic awareness games, nursery rhymes, and rhythmic activities. Some research suggests that the roots of phonemic awareness, a powerful predictor of later reading success, are found in traditional rhyming, skipping, and word games (Bryant et al. 1990). In one study, for example (Maclean, Bryant, & Bradley 1987), researchers found that three-year-old children's knowledge of nursery rhymes specifically related to their more abstract phonological knowledge later on. Engaging children in choral readings of rhymes and rhythms allows them to associate the symbols with the sounds they hear in these words.

Although children's facility in phonemic awareness has been shown to be strongly related to later reading achievement, the precise role it plays in these early years is not fully understood. Phonemic awareness refers to a child's understanding and conscious awareness that speech is composed of identifiable units, such as spoken words, syllables, and sounds. Training studies have demonstrated that phonemic awareness can be taught to children as young as age five (Bradley & Bryant 1983; Lundberg, Frost, & Petersen 1988; Cunningham 1990; Bryne & Fielding-Barnsley 1991). These studies used tiles (boxes) (Elkonin 1973) and linguistic games to engage children in explicitly manipulating speech segments at the phoneme level.

Yet, whether such training is appropriate for younger-age children is highly suspect. Other scholars find that children benefit most from such training only after they have learned some letter names, shapes, and sounds and can apply what they learn to real reading in meaningful contexts (Cunningham 1990; Foorman et al. 1991). Even at this later age, however, many children acquire phonemic awareness skills without specific training but as a consequence of learning to read (Wagner & Torgesen 1987; Ehri 1994). In the preschool years sensitizing children to sound similarities does not seem to be strongly dependent on formal training but rather from listening to patterned, predictable texts while enjoying the feel of reading and language.

Children acquire a working knowledge of the alphabetic system not only through reading but also through writing. A classic study by Read (1971) found that even without formal spelling instruction, preschoolers use their tacit knowledge of phonological relations to spell words. Invented spelling (or phonic spelling) refers to beginners' use of the symbols they associate with the sounds they hear in the words they wish to write. For example, a child may initially write b or bk for the word bike, to be followed by more conventionalized forms later on.

Some educators may wonder whether invented spelling promotes poor spelling habits. To the contrary, studies suggest that temporary invented spelling may contribute to beginning reading (Chomsky 1979; Clarke 1988). One study, for example, found that children benefited from using invented spelling compared to having the teacher provide correct spellings in writing (Clarke 1988). Although children's invented spellings did not comply with correct spellings, the process encouraged them to think actively about letter-sound relations. As children engage in writing, they are learning to segment the words they wish to spell into constituent sounds.

Classrooms that provide children with regular opportunities to express themselves on paper, without feeling too constrained for correct spelling and proper handwriting, also help children understand that writing has real purpose (Graves 1983; Sulzby 1985; Dyson 1988). Teachers can organize situations that both demonstrate the writing process and get children actively involved in it. Some teachers serve as scribes and help children write down their ideas, keeping in mind the balance between children doing it themselves and asking for help. In the beginning these products likely emphasize pictures with few attempts at writing letters or words. With encouragement, children begin to label their pictures, tell stories, and attempt to write stories about the pictures they have drawn. Such novice writing activity sends the important message that writing is not just handwriting practice – children are using their own words to compose a message to communicate with others.

Thus the picture that emerges from research in these first years of children's reading and writing is one that emphasizes wide exposure to print and to developing concepts about it and its forms and functions. Classrooms filled with print, language and literacy play, storybook reading, and writing allow children to experience the joy and power associated with reading and writing while mastering basic concepts about print that research has shown are strong predictors of achievement.

In kindergarten

Knowledge of the forms and functions of print serves as a foundation from which children become increasingly sensitive to letter shapes, names, sounds, and words. However, not all children typically come to kindergarten with similar levels of knowledge about printed language. Estimating where each child is developmentally and building on that base, a key feature of all good teaching, is particularly important for the kindergarten teacher. Instruction will need to be adapted to account for children's differences. For those children with lots of print experiences, instruction will extend their knowledge as they learn more about the formal features of letters and their sound correspondences.

For other children with fewer prior experiences, initiating them to the alphabetic principle, that a limited set of letters comprises the alphabet and that these letters stand for the sounds that make up spoken words, will require more focused and direct instruction. In all cases, however, children need to interact with a rich variety of print (Morrow, Strickland, & Woo 1998).

In this critical year kindergarten teachers need to capitalize on every opportunity for enhancing children's vocabulary development. One approach is through listening to stories (Feitelson, Kita, & Goldstein 1986; Elley 1989). Children need to be exposed to vocabulary from a wide variety of genres, including informational texts as well as narratives. The learning of vocabulary, however, is not necessarily simply a byproduct of reading stories (Leung & Pikulski 1990). Some explanation of vocabulary words prior to listening to a story is related significantly to children's learning of new words (Elley 1989). Dickinson and Smith (1994), for example, found that asking predictive and analytic questions before and after the readings produced positive effects on vocabulary and comprehension.

Repeated readings appear to further reinforce the language of the text as well as to familiarize children with the way different genres are structured (Eller, Pappas, & Brown 1988; Morrow 1988). Understanding the forms of informational and narrative texts seems to distinguish those children who have been well read to from those who have not (Pappas 1991). In one study, for example, Pappas found that with multiple exposures to a story (three readings), children's retelling became increasingly rich, integrating what they knew about the world, the language of the book, and the message of the author. Thus, considering the benefits for vocabulary development and comprehension, the case is strong for interactive storybook reading (Anderson 1995). Increasing the volume of children's playful, stimulating experiences with good books is associated with accelerated growth in reading competence.

Activities that help children clarify the concept of word are also worthy of time and attention in the kindergarten curriculum (Juel 1991). Language experience charts that let teachers demonstrate how talk can be written down provide a natural medium for children's developing word awareness in meaningful contexts. Transposing children's spoken words into written symbols through dictation provides a concrete demonstration that strings of letters between spaces are words and that not all words are the same length. Studies by Clay (1979) and Bissex (1980) confirm the value of what many teachers have known and done for years: Teacher dictations of children's stories help develop word awareness, spelling, and the conventions of written language.

Many children enter kindergarten with at least some perfunctory knowledge of the alphabet letters. An important goal for the kindergarten teacher is to reinforce this skill by ensuring that children can recognize and discriminate these letter shapes with increasing ease and fluency (Mason 1980; Snow, Burns, & Griffin 1998). Children's proficiency in letter naming is a well-established predictor of their end-of-year achievement (Bond & Dykstra 1967, Riley 1996), probably because it mediates the ability to remember sounds. Generally a good rule according to current learning theory (Adams 1990) is to start with the more easily visualized uppercase letters, to be followed by identifying lowercase letters. In each case, introducing just a few letters at a time, rather than many, enhances mastery.

At about the time children are readily able to identify letter names, they begin to connect the letters with the sounds they hear. A fundamental insight in this phase of learning is that a letter and letter sequences map onto phonological forms. Phonemic awareness, however, is not merely a solitary insight or an instant ability (Juel 1991). It takes time and practice.

Children who are phonemically aware can think about and manipulate sounds in words. They know when words rhyme or do not; they know when words begin or end with the same sound; and they know that a word like bat is composed of three sounds /b/ /a/ /t/ and that these sounds can be blended into a spoken word. Popular rhyming books, for example, may draw children's attention to rhyming patterns, serving as a basis for extending vocabulary (Ehri & Robbins 1992). Using initial letter cues, children can learn many new words through analogy, taking the familiar word bake as a strategy for figuring out a new word, lake.

Further, as teachers engage children in shared writing, they can pause before writing a word, say it slowly, and stretch out the sounds as they write it. Such activities in the context of real reading and writing help children attend to the features of print and the alphabetic nature of English.

There is accumulated evidence that instructing children in phonemic awareness activities in kindergarten (and first grade) enhances reading achievement (Stanovich 1986; Lundberg, Frost, & Petersen 1988; Bryne & Fielding-Barnsley 1991, 1993, 1995). Although a large number of children will acquire phonemic awareness skills as they learn to read, an estimated 20% will not without additional training. A statement by the IRA (1998) indicates that "the likelihood of these students becoming successful as readers is slim to none... This figure [20%], however, can be substantially reduced through more systematic attention to engagement with language early on in the child's home, preschool and kindergarten classes."

A study by Hanson and Farrell (1995), for example, examined the long-term benefits of a carefully developed kindergarten curriculum that focused on word study and decoding skills, along with sets of stories so that children would be able to practice these skills in meaningful contexts. High school seniors who early on had received this type of instruction outperformed their counterparts on reading achievement, attitude toward schooling, grades, and attendance.

In kindergarten many children will begin to read some words through recognition or by processing letter-sound relations. Studies by Domico (1993) and Richgels (1995) suggest that children's ability to read words is tied to their ability to write words in a somewhat reciprocal relationship. The more opportunities children have to write, the greater the likelihood that they will reproduce spellings of words they have seen and heard. Though not conventional, these spellings likely show greater letter-sound correspondences and partial encoding of some parts of words, like SWM for swim, than do the inventions of preschoolers (Clay 1975).

To provide more intensive and extensive practice, some teachers try to integrate writing in other areas of the curriculum, like literacy-related play (Neuman & Roskos 1992), and other project activities (Katz & Chard 1989). These types of projects engage children in using reading and writing for multiple purposes while they are learning about topics meaningful to them.

Early literacy activities teach children a great deal about writing and reading but often in ways that do not look much like traditional elementary school instruction. Capitalizing on the active and social nature of children's learning, early instruction must provide rich demonstrations, interactions, and models of literacy in the course of activities that make sense to young children. Children must also learn about the relation between oral and written language and the relation between letters, sounds, and words. In classrooms built around a wide variety of print activities, then in talking, reading, writing, playing, and listening to one another, children will want to read and write and feel capable that they can do so.

The primary grades

Instruction takes on a more formal nature as children move into the elementary grades. Here it is virtually certain that children will receive at least some instruction from a commercially published product, like a basal or literature anthology series.

Although research has clearly established that no one method is superior for all children (Bond & Dykstra 1967; Snow, Burns, & Griffin 1998), approaches that favor some type of systematic code instruction along with meaningful connected reading report children's superior progress in reading. Instruction should aim to teach the important letter-sound relationships, which once learned are practiced through having many opportunities to read. Most likely these research findings are a positive result of the Matthew Effect, the rich-get-richer effects that are embedded in such instruction; that is, children who acquire alphabetic coding skills begin to recognize many words (Stanovich 1986). As word recognition processes become more automatic, children are likely to allocate more attention to higher-level processes of comprehension. Since these reading experiences tend to be rewarding for children, they may read more often; thus reading achievement may be a by-product of reading enjoyment.

One of the hallmarks of skilled reading is fluent, accurate word identification (Juel, Griffith, & Gough 1986). Yet instruction in simply word calling with flashcards is not reading. Real reading is comprehension. Children need to read a wide variety of interesting, comprehensible materials, which they can read orally with about 90 to 95% accuracy (Durrell & Catterson 1980). In the beginning children are likely to read slowly and deliberately as they focus on exactly what's on the page. In fact they may seem "glued to print" (Chall 1983), figuring out the fine points of form at the word level. However, children's reading expression, fluency, and comprehension generally improve when they read familiar texts. Some authorities have found the practice of repeated rereadings in which children reread short selections significantly enhances their confidence, fluency, and comprehension in reading (Samuels 1979; Moyer 1982).

Children not only use their increasing knowledge of letter-sound patterns to read unfamiliar texts. They also use a variety of strategies. Studies reveal that early readers are capable of being intentional in their use of metacognitive strategies (Brown, & DeLoache 1978; Rowe 1994) Even in these early grades, children make predictions about what they are to read, self-correct, reread, and question if necessary, giving evidence that they are able to adjust their reading when understanding breaks down. Teacher practices, such as the Directed Reading-Thinking Activity (DRTA), effectively model these strategies by helping children set purposes for reading, ask questions, and summarize ideas through the text (Stauffer 1970).

But children also need time for independent practice. These activities may take on numerous forms. Some research, for example, has demonstrated the powerful effects that children's reading to their caregivers has on promoting confidence as well as reading proficiency (Hannon 1995). Visiting the library and scheduling independent reading and writing periods in literacy-rich classrooms also provide children with opportunities to select books of their own choosing. They may engage in the social activities of reading with their peers, asking questions, and writing stories (Morrow & Weinstein 1986), all of which may nurture interest and appreciation for reading and writing.

Supportive relationships between these communication processes lead many teachers to integrate reading and writing in classroom instruction (Tierney & Shanahan 1991). After all, writing challenges children to actively think about print. As young authors struggle to express themselves, they come to grips with different written forms, syntactic patterns, and themes. They use writing for multiple purposes: to write descriptions, lists, and stories to communicate with others. It is important for teachers to expose children to a range of text forms, including stories, reports, and informational texts, and to help children select vocabulary and punctuate simple sentences that meet the demands of audience and purpose. Since handwriting instruction helps children communicate effectively, it should also be part of the writing process (McGee & Richgels 1996). Short lessons demonstrating certain letter formations tied to the publication of writing provide an ideal time for instruction. Reading and writing workshops, in which teachers provide small-group and individual instruction, may help children to develop the skills they need for communicating with others.

Although children's initial writing drafts will contain invented spellings, learning about spelling will take on increasing importance in these years (Henderson & Beers 1980; Richgels 1986). Spelling instruction should be an important component of the reading and writing program since it directly affects reading ability. Some teachers create their own spelling lists, focusing on words with common patterns, high-frequency words, as well as some personally meaningful words from the children's writing. Research indicates that seeing a word in print, imagining how it is spelled, and copying new words is an effective way of acquiring spellings (Barron 1980).

Nevertheless, even though the teacher's goal is to foster more conventionalized forms, it is important to recognize that there is more to writing than just spelling and grammatically correct sentences. Rather, writing has been characterized by Applebee (1977) as "thinking with a pencil." It is true that children will need adult help to master the complexities of the writing process. But they also will need to learn that the power of writing is expressing one's own ideas in ways that can be understood by others.

As children's capabilities develop and become more fluent, instruction will turn from a central focus on helping children learn to read and write to helping them read and write to learn. Increasingly the emphasis for teachers will be on encouraging children to become independent and productive readers, helping them to extend their reasoning and comprehension abilities in learning about their world. Teachers will need to provide challenging materials that require children to analyze and think creatively and from different points of view. They also will need to ensure that children have practice in reading and writing (both in and out of school) and many opportunities to analyze topics, generate questions, and organize written responses for different purposes in meaningful activities.

Throughout these critical years accurate assessment of children's knowledge, skills, and dispositions in reading and writing will help teachers better match instruction with how and what children are learning. However, early reading and writing cannot simply be measured as a set of narrowly-defined skills on standardized tests. These measures often are not reliable or valid indicators of what children can do in typical practice, nor are they sensitive to language variation, culture, or the experiences of young children (Shepard & Smith 1988; Shepard 1994; Johnston 1997).

Rather, a sound assessment should be anchored in real-life writing and reading tasks and continuously chronicle a wide range of children's literacy activities in different situations. Good assessment is essential to help teachers tailor appropriate instruction to young children and to know when and how much intensive instruction on any particular skill or strategy might be needed.

By the end of third grade, children will still have much to learn about literacy. Clearly some will be further along the path to independent reading and writing than others. Yet with high-quality instruction, the majority of children will be able to decode words with a fair degree of facility, use a variety of strategies to adapt to different types of text, and be able to communicate effectively for multiple purposes using conventionalized spelling and punctuation. Most of all they will have come to see themselves as capable readers and writers, having mastered the complex set of attitudes, expectations, behaviors, and skills related to written language.

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Learning to Read and Write: What Research Reveals

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Children take their first critical steps toward learning to read and write very early in life. Long before they can exhibit reading and writing production skills, they begin to acquire some basic understandings of the concepts about literacy and its functions.

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Enhancing the Early Reading Experience: Books, Strategies, and Concepts

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Enhancing the Early Reading Experience: Books, Strategies, and Concepts

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This resource offers a guideline for choosing children's books. According to the Association for Library Service to Children & Public Library Association, there are six research-based layers of which parents and educators could use to help choose books that will encourage and motivate lifelong readers.

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This resource serves as a brief guide to assess the children's reading level. As students enter the class with diverse background and skills in literacy, it is important for teachers to know how to assess these students so as to prepare appropriate lessons and design literacy instruction to meet the individual needs of each student, including those with disabilities (Rhodes & Shanklin, 1993). This site provides four simple steps to find books at the right level for the child. Additional resources such as the San Diego Quick Assessment of Reading Ability and the 'five-finger rule' are also included in this site. I personally thought that the five finger rule was brilliant and it should be taught to kindergartners so that they could also use it to select books independently. As shared by Kim, J.'s research on how to make summer reading effective, he shared that when children get help choosing skill-appropriate books and read (those books over the summer break), both independently and with guidance from family members, reading achievement scores can improve significantly.

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Choosing books at the right reading level can help your child get better at reading-and learn to enjoy reading. Books that are too challenging can discourage kids. Books that are too easy don't give enough opportunity for practice and growth.

Follow these steps to find books at the right level for your child.

1. Find out your child's measured reading level.

Avoid COVID Slide with tips and tools designed to help your child return to the classroom.

Ask the school for your child's reading level. If that information isn't available, you can get a rough idea at home by using the San Diego Quick Assessment of Reading Ability. ( Download a PDF of the assessment.)

2. Look for books that match that level.

Many kids' books list their reading level on the back or spine. Programs like Scholastic's Book Wizard can help you search for books at your child's reading level.

3. Do a five-fingers vocabulary check.

Ask your child to hold up five fingers and read one page of a book. Each time your child doesn't know a word, put one finger down. If all five fingers end up down, the book is too hard.

4. Do a quick comprehension check.

Ask your child to pause after reading a few pages and tell you about what was just read. Make sure your child really understands the book.

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4 Steps to Choosing Books at Your Child's Reading Level

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Choosing books at the right reading level can help your child get better at reading-and learn to enjoy reading. Books that are too challenging can discourage kids. Books that are too easy don't give enough opportunity for practice and growth. Follow these steps to find books at the right level for your child.

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This resource offers an instructional guide for teachers to use to develop phonological awareness skills in the kindergarten classroom. As The Australian National Inquiry into the Teaching of Literacy (Rowe, 2005, p.36) pointed out that there are certain foundational skills, namely phonological awareness and knowledge of graphophonic relationships that should be taught 'explicitly, systematically, early and well'. This resource includes information on areas from phonological processing, phonemic awareness to phonological awareness instructions and ideas for phonological awareness activities.

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This resource offers nine simple games for preschoolers. Because  "vocabulary is the bedrock of language and early literacy, and its size and quality have consequences for school readiness an early literacy development" (National Early Literacy Panel, 2008, as cited in Roskos & Burstein, 2010), it is critical that teachers (or caregivers) continuously create meaningful opportunities to embed vocabulary into children's daily lives. In an article by Hassinger-das, B., et al. (May 2017), it is revealed that children defined the set of target words through guided play more readily than another set of words through a picture card-based word learning. Therefore, this resource is great for it provides ideas on quick and fun games that aim to teach children to learn vocabulary.

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Building vocabulary in early childhood is all about exposing children to language - by talking to them, reading to them and generally exposing them to a language-rich environment.

You can also find fun ways to teach vocabulary by planning specific activities, such as playing games or engaging in interactive language activities.

Here are some awesome vocabulary games for kids that are simple and require no prep.

I've put together a list of easy games I used to play in my classroom that the kids loved. Play them in class, at home, on the way to school or while doing chores like making dinner together!

My personal favourite is the last game as it is a real challenge.

1. Categories

The Categories Game teaches children new words as well as their meaning, context and the relationship between words.

Choose a category - fruit, kitchen, the zoo, music, clothes, etc.

Make a long string of words that belong in the category by taking turns adding words.

Each word may only be said once.

If you repeat a word, choose a word that doesn't belong or simply run out of ideas, choose a new category and start again.

Stay motivated by writing down the record of how many words are in a category and attempt to beat it.

This game is great for teaching children to understand the context of words and how they relate to each other. Words do not live in isolation but work together.

Children may have a good vocabulary of general words but are also able to start developing some theme-specific words that are more unusual in everyday language.

As they grow up and develop more interests they also learn the jargon related to their interests.

While playing this game, try to throw in some interesting, less common words now and again when it is your turn, explaining any words that your children aren't familiar with.

2. What Am I?

This game is about finding the words to explain something. It will expand your children's vocabulary of adjectives and verbs.

The children close their eyes and you find any object in the room and hide it behind your back.

You must describe the object while your children guess what it is.

Use riddle phrases such as I am long, I am shiny, I am used to eat with, I hold liquids, What am I? (a spoon) .

Give as many clues as you need to until the object is guessed.

Once a child guesses correctly, it is their turn to hide an object and describe it.

The reason you should go first is to model how to use descriptive phrases without giving away what the object is.

The younger your children, the simpler and more obvious the clues will be that they use but as they get older they will learn how to be more cryptic.

It's often difficult to see progress in a child while you are teaching them something through play - the progress is noticed with time.

However, this is a game where you will see how quickly your children go from giving very short, obvious clues to using language to describe the texture, colour, size, function, etc.

3. I Spy

The game I spy with my little eye is an old favourite that children love playing. It is a variation of the game above and also teaches children to use language descriptively.

How to play I Spy:

Begin the game by spotting something in the same room you are playing in.

Describe the object briefly and let your children guess what it is.

For example: I spy something that is very small, blue and makes a noise if you shake it .

Whoever guesses correctly, has a turn to spy on something and let you guess.

To vary this game, only give one set of descriptions and then let your children have as many guesses as necessary.

In the previous game, the object was hidden, whereas in this one the object is in the room and therefore should eventually be spotted. You may want to add one or two last clues if they need some assistance.

The process of guessing and listing the many potential items in the room is also good for building vocabulary.

4. Odd One Out

In a previous game, children made a long list of words in a particular category. Try this game where you now present a list of words and your children have to think of the context of the words and pick out the word that doesn't fit.

How to play Odd One Out

Choose a category (without saying it out loud).

Say a list of 4 or 5 words, all belonging to the category, except one word which should not belong to that category.

Your children must spot the word that doesn't belong.

This is not as easy as the previous games because it requires another level of thought.

Because you are not telling your kids what the category is, they have to first listen to all the words and find a common relationship between all but one of them.

You can make this as easy or as difficult as you want, depending on your children's age and how much they are ready to be challenged.

Here is the difference between an easy round and an advanced round:

Here are more Odd One Out game examples.

5. A Bird Flies

Teach your children to use action words (verbs) with this simple vocabulary activity.

Choose an animal, person or object (e.g. a bird).

Ask your kids to think of something a bird does (e.g. a bird flies, a bird chirps, a bird sings, a bird hops).

Take turns choosing words.

6. What Is It?

This game is a variation of It teaches children comprehension skills by making them use the information they have to solve the riddle.

Choose an animal.

Describe it in a riddle: I'm thinking of something that lives in the sea, has sharp teeth and swims very fast. What is it?

Whoever guesses the animal, has a turn to choose an animal and make up a riddle.

This game also encourages creative thought as your children have to make up riddles and find interesting ways to explain their animal.

It is best to play this game using the same theme, such as animals, for a few rounds until your kids have learned how to make up a riddle.

Later on, try a different theme such as people at work (e.g. I wear a long coat, I work in a hospital, I sometimes do operations. Who am I? )

7. Once Upon a Time

Making up stories is a great way to develop vocabulary as well as creativity and imagination.

There are 3 ways to make up a story:
1. Using a familiar story
For younger children, use a storybook that they have heard before. Page through the story and take turns to "tell" the story on each page.

Your children will remember some of the story from hearing it before and will use the pictures on the page as clues.

2. Using an unfamiliar story

Use a story with pictures that your children haven't heard before and page through, taking turns to make up the story by interpreting the pictures.

Follow your kids' lead and continue the story from their interpretation, while bringing in new ideas and events based on the pictures.
3. Making up a story
Make up a story without a book. This is a great game for the car or for bedtime.

Make up a beginning, such as "Once upon a time there was a little bear in the jungle." Take turns, adding one line to the story at a time.

I used to play this game often in my classroom and it always got the kids in stitches!

8. Keep It Going

You can play this game anywhere, but the best place is while driving. It's a great game for learning nouns and thinking fast.

As you pass things while driving, take turns naming as many things as you can.

For example, say "tree, building, sign, traffic light, shop, chair, grass, clouds", etc.

Try to keep an unbroken chain of words throughout the trip.

This game is really fun and also requires a lot of thinking. Your children have to really concentrate and think on their toes to not break the continuous stream of words.

I hope you've enjoyed these games and activities for developing vocabulary.

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9 Simple Vocabulary Games for Kids in Preschool

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These vocabulary games for kids are great for playing at school, home or in the car and will build language skills while having fun.

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For most students, whole body listening is significant to building literacy because it tells them exactly what listening looks like and sounds like. It is important for teachers to explicitly teach and model how to use multiple parts of their body to and process information, follow directions and instructions. Bandura, A. (1977) The social learning theory demonstrates that children learn and imitate behaviors they observe in others. More specifically through a verbal instructional model, which involves descriptions and explanations of a behavior in this case, how to listen holistically with our bodies. It should be noted, however, that listeners often use additional information to help them make meaning. They use visual information such as the speaker’s body language and they also use the knowledge they have about the context, the topic and the speaker. For the communication to be effective, the meaning intended by the speaker and that derived by the listener must be in close harmony. There needs to be a shared understanding of what is being said. (Fellowes and Oakley 2014, p. 18).

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Social Thinking at School and Dealing with Blurting

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Reading Rockets - Rhyming games (Phonological Knowledge)

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Reading Rockets - Rhyming games (Phonological Knowledge)

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This resource offers several classroom strategies, articles, assessment tools along with rhyming activities, specifically elkonin box templates, onset/ rime and syllable games which help students develop phonemic awareness. (MOE, 2013, p. 9) states that phonological awareness is about understanding the sound structure of spoken language. Generally, children begin with an awareness of large units of sound (i.e. words, syllables, onsets and rimes) and progress to smaller units of sound. (Fellowes and Oakley, 2014, p. 226) further supports that a strong knowledge of the system of graphophonic or letter–sound relationships in  english language helps children decode words which are new to them and is crucial for reading and writing development, thus emphasising listening skills and sounds are building blocks for reading.

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Rhyming Games | Classroom Strategy | Reading Rockets

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Rhyme is found in poetry, songs, and many children’s books and games. Most children also love to sing and recite nursery rhymes. Words that can be grouped together by a common sound, for example the ”-at” family — cat, hat, and sat — can be used to teach children about similar spellings. Children ca…

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This resource clearly defines the differences between phonological awareness, phonics and phonemic awareness. Introductory phonics pattern (graphemes) several activities are suggested to create unlimited words using short vowel sounds. According to (State Government of Victoria, 2019), phonics is explained as a mapping of speech sounds (phonemes) to letter patterns (graphemes). This is further supported by (Fellowes and Oakley, 2014, p. 35) which states that the ability to discriminate between speech sounds, such as phonemes, is a skill that can also be developed through discriminative listening experiences. Sound discrimination involves awareness of environmental sounds, changes in intonation, rate, pitch, intensity and stress patterns in spoken language. Teachers may revisit their knowledge about sound discrimination and phonics to better facilitate children's learning, through this resource.

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Literacy teaching toolkit for early childhood | Victorian Government

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Practical advice for educators on learning and teaching language and literacy skills from birth to five years.

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StoryTime at Awnie's House is a youtube channel offering countless number of read alouds for preschool children. (Fellowes and Oakley 2014, p. 239) suggests educators and parents uncover decoding strategies by modelling reading alouds, allowing children  to familiarize with sounds and absorb language patterns. Using think-alouds to explain daily routines help children build knowledge of letters and sounds. Taylor, D. (1983) highlights the role of the family and how parents' involvement can support early literacy development of children. Parents may be invited to the classroom to model fluent reading. The underlying principle is that both parents and educators have a role to perform in children’s development and learning parent–educator partnerships educators and parents working together to provide the best opportunity for children to achieve optimal development and learning (Fellowes and Oakley 2014, p. 590)

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"kids books read aloud" "read aloud channel" "funny voices" fun voices literacy "learn english" books esl audiobook learn ebook stories "bedtime story" "kids...

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Hello there, I'm Awnie! I'm passionate about children's literature and love reading books to kids. I want to make stories come alive for your young ones! You can use my videos as a supplement to your family reading time. Together we can instill a love of learning and teach the joy that books can bring!

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This online resource promotes letter sound learning through exciting hands-on games. A variety of materials are used as part of the learning experiences, such as mystery bags, sound cups and letter tile mats. Play offers a natural way for children to express ideas. Children learn by watching and imitating situations around them. Piaget believed learning through trial and error enhances a child’s cognitive abilities (Mooney, 2000, p.63).  Thus, teachers may facilitate this self exploration process by including a variety of materials appealing to the senses, to encourage children’s exploration and independent learning. This is supported by (Fellowes and Oakley 2014, p. 608) which states that a literacy-enriched environment should be filled with various types of literacy materials which are accessible to children throughout the classroom and encourage children to engage in literacy behaviours.

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These games help pre-K children practice Letter Sound learning in a fun, hands-on way.

Sound Cups

Use 26 disposable clear punch cups and label each cup with a letter. Letter cup labels can be downloaded below. Collect a set of small trinket objects (you can ask parents and friends to send things in), such as plastic lizard, small block, watch, plastic frog, bandaid, necklace, button, dice. Place the trinkets in a basket. Children sort each trinket into a letter cup by its beginning sound.

You can use all 26 cups at one time, or select 3-4 letter cups at a time for children to focus on. When searching for items to go in the cups, look for dollar store mini toys (especially packs of animals and bugs), look at doll house miniatures, browse craft stores for mini items.
Download: Letter Cup Labels

Erase the Sound

Draw a picture on a dry erase lap board. In the example below, I drew a snowman. Call children up one at the time to erase something that begins with something in the picture. In this picture, children can erase something that begins with H (hat), something that begins with B (buttons), something that begins with N (nose). Continue until everything is erased.

Mystery Bag

Place three objects beginning with the same letter in a bag (such as ball, bug, and button for B). Have a child pulls each item out of the bag and name each item. Have the class guess the "mystery letter".

Guess Who?

Say three words and have the kids guess whose name begins with the same sound as those three words. For example, call out:

The class would guess Levi. If you have more than one child in your class (maybe Levi, Lucy, and Layton) who start with that letter sound, the class can name all of them.

I have prepared a list of words for each letter that you can use for your students. Download the list below.
Download: Beginning Letter Sounds List

Monster Names

Have kids stand, stomp, and growl when you say their "Monster Name". Replace the first letter of each child's name with the letter M. For example, Braden's name would become "Mad Monster Maden" and Ashlyn's name would become "Mad Monster Mashlyn".

Say Two Words

Say two words, and have kids stand up if the words begin with the same sound. Have them sit down if they do not. For example,
cat - cow (stand up)
hat - goat (sit down)

Letter Sounds Listening Games

Children listen for beginning sounds in words and use bingo markers to stamp a letter each time they hear the letter sound. Get the printable game here: Letter Sounds Listening Games.

Letter Sounds Activity Cards

Children look at the picture, say the word, and find the letter that matches the beginning sound. They mark the cards by clipping it or marking it with a chip. Get the printable game here: Letter Sounds Activity Cards.

Letter Tile Mats

Children match letter tiles to the pictures on the mats by identifying the beginning sound of the words. Get the printable game here: Letter Tile Mats.

More Resources

These are available in my shop.

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These games help pre-K children practice Letter Sound learning in a fun, hands-on way. Use 26 disposable clear punch cups and label each cup with a letter. Letter cup labels can be downloaded below. Collect a set of small trinket objects (you can ask parents and friends to send things in), such as plastic lizard, small block, watch, plastic frog, bandaid, necklace, button, dice.

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To help with reading, children need to firstly understand that spoken language consists of sounds that can be broken down into smaller parts – into words, into the syllables within words and finally into the individual sounds in words. (MOE, 2013, p.8). To facilitate this, teachers may start with words that interest children, such as their names and family and friends. Teaching strategies such as using clapping, stomping, tapping out sounds to build on syllable knowledge are included in this resource. As children work on listening skills to learn about syllables, they take on the role of code breakers as they begin to crack the codes of sound-letter relationships which prepares them to decode print. This is according to the four resources model, socio-cultural theory of reading by (Luke & Freebody, 1999).

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Award winning educational materials like worksheets, games, lesson plans and activities designed to help kids succeed. Start for free now!

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This resource guides teachers to create interactive listening comprehension quizzes, called ‘TubeQuizard’ based on subtitled Youtube videos. It provides countless opportunities for children to engage in live listening and can be accustomed  according to children's level of competencies. Nursery rhymes and story books of children's choices may be explored together according to their interests. This resource helps children listen and understand pronunciation of high frequency language. Roskos, Tabors, and Lenhart (2009) points out that oral language is the foundation of learning to read and write. Children need to hear language spoken around them, in order to become literate. According to Vandergrift, Therefore, listeners may rely more on top-down processing, in which prior knowledge and higher-level skills are used to build a framework for comprehension, because listeners recall more main ideas as the listening material disappears quickly (Vandergrift, 2004). This helps children better grasp ideas mentally in comparison to seeing letters while reading.

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Creating listening decoding quizzes using TubeQuizard

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This resource tests listening skills using mindfulness as a tool. It is of vital importance that students should be taught to listen effectively and critically. According to Flavell, metacognitive knowledge plays an important role in many cognitive activities related to language use, e.g. oral comprehension or communication of information, reading comprehension, and writing, to language acquisition, and to various types of self-instruction (Flavell, 1979, pp. 906). It is important to get children to tune in and listen to their inner voices, this resource helps teachers facilitate children to calm down and focus on their inner voices. This is in accordance with  (Schmidt, 1993, p 206-226) which highlights that students can be made metacognitively aware of their own priorities in language learning, and their own potentials and weaknesses as language learners, language learning and teaching will be more successful.

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The Listening Game  | Cosmic Kids Zen Den - Mindfulness for kids

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The printable resources include barrier, auditory and memory games for teachers to help strengthen childrens’ cognitive abilities. Working memory refers to the memory needed to hear information, remember it, and then use it to complete a task. Our brain decodes sounds and uses it to decode messages. (Fellowes and Oakley 2014, p. 36) highlights that adequate working memory is a necessary attribute for good listening; that is, the retention of information for a short time so that it can be put to use. These resources may be shared with parents to encourage families involvement in children's learning. According to Bronfenbrenner, U. (1979) ecological theory, parents, teachers and caregivers are all a part of the “microsystem” and positive communication helps build a strong macro system that supports the childs' holistic learning and development.

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Listen and Repeat Auditory Memory Cards - Set One

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We love memory cards! Have your students listen to the words and repeat them. These cards are intended to support auditory memory skills and can be used in a variety of ways. Great resource for your class!

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KindergartenKiosk - Language, Reading and Writing Activities

This resource offers guidance and a range of strategies specifically for kindergarten educators teaching English language. Educators can find various activities and exemplary lesson plans in this resource to help children attain a better grasp of phonics and phonological awareness. The stages of reading or writing development are necessary to guide teaching (Chall, 1983). Hence, in this resource, educators can refer for tips on how to improve text experience for the children in terms of reading and writing, such as learning to use interactive and structured writing to respond to text as well as through shared writing. Nurturing the intrinsic motivation (Fellowes & Oakley, Affective Factors and Young Children's Literacy Learning, 2014)in children as they progress through the ‘preoperational stage’ (Levine & Munsch, 2018) of Piaget's theory of cognitive development. More learning opportunities will be open to the children as they enhance their oral development skills, progressing their abilities to gradually recognise the concept of English language through reading, speech and writing.

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developmentally appropriate and engaging kindergarten and preschool lesson plans and ideas

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List-Group-Label - A Vocabulary and Comprehension Strategy

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List-Group-Label - A Vocabulary and Comprehension Strategy

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This resource demonstrates a vocabulary and comprehension strategy that helps develop categorisation skills, build background knowledge, activate critical thinking, and grow vocabulary. The video offers a clear demonstration of the three steps of this strategy and how it is done in the classroom. As per in Oakley & Fellowes (2014, p. 249)., this strategy clearly demonstrates that "vocabulary is learnt (incidentally) through interacting with others, participating in activities with others, (playing and role-play,) reading and listening, and also through direct modes of instruction such as word study and explicit vocabulary lessons". The teacher first models the strategy and then got the children get to work in their groups independently while providing guidance when necessary. The children are also encouraged to work together, discuss their answers and come to an agreement before they put it on paper.

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Pinterest – Class Books for The Classroom
"The speed and accuracy of a child in recognizing individual letters critically determines their reading proficiency and future growth" (Adams, 1994). This resource brings along a fun way for educators to guide children as they develop awareness for literacy print in their environment. Using this activity, educators can present lessons as platforms for children to develop their creativity whilst they create stories out of short sentences on their own. With the creation of the class books through their own efforts, children will anticipate the enjoyment of a literacy content made from their own efforts. Children will also gradually etch abilities with their book handling skills along with literacy reading as they read with understanding and for enjoyment (Ministry of Education, 2013). As part of the children’s learning experience, educators can integrate such activities to various language lessons it to reinforce communicative writing, motivating the children to produce their best writing (Fellowes & Oakley, Publishing and Sharing with An Audience, 2014).

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Class Books for the Year | Class book, Class books kindergarten, Kindergarten books

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Nov 3, 2016 - One thing I really love doing in my class is writing Class Books. I try to write one a week, to go with our theme, but it doesn't always get done. But I definitely do at least one a month. It's usually a quick little write that can be done as a time filler, morning work, etc... We start from Day 1 in our class. And thi…

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Writing - Sentence Formation and Structuring

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Writing - Sentence Formation and Structuring

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Lakeshore Learning – Writing Activities

This resource offers a range of writing activities such as – descriptive writing, expressive writing and chronological writing to guide children in writing. “Before writing conventionally, children scribble to convey meaning through print”. (Ferreiro & Teberosky, 1982) As children at the ages between 4-5 years old transition to Kindergarten level, they “need to develop a capacity to write words and sentences and to construct suitably sequenced and comprehensible texts. “ (Fellowes & Oakley, 2014). For educators, Lakeshore learning also serves as a guiding platform for them to base their writing lessons with the given structures of each activity found in the resource. With these writing experiences taken into practice, Children gain comprehensive development (Fellowes & Oakley, Preparing to write, 2014) of their own writings as well as contexts of sentences and words which they read in their daily experiences. At the same time, children will also apply their skill of phonological awareness as they form their learnt words through inventive spelling (Ministry of Education, 2013).

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Printable Worksheets | Lakeshore® Learning Materials

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Printable Worksheets | Lakeshore® Learning Materials

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Teaching Comprehension via Cognitive Strategy - Anticipation Guide

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Teaching Comprehension via Cognitive Strategy - Anticipation Guide

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This resource demonstrates the use of the anticipation guide which is one of the cognitive strategies for teaching comprehension as described in Oakley & Fellowes (2014). This strategy is used before reading to activate students' prior knowledge and build curiosity about a new topic. In the video, the teacher starts by introducing the strategy, the purpose of it and then models it, and explains her thinking process. She continues by emphasizing on predictions instead of right versus wrong answers. The video also shows the children discussing with a peer on how the story may unfold. They also demonstrate how they make connections to the text or picture cues and to the world - which is an important aspect of comprehension (Oakley & Fellowes, 2014).

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YouTube - Learning Through Play: Reading Comprehension Games

This resource offers various activities to colourize children’s learning experiences with literacy comprehension. According to Jeanne M. Machado in Early Childhood Experiences in Language Arts, a child’s vocabulary is strongly related to his comprehension and ease of learning to read (Machado, 2016). As children progress in their years and learn with increasing integration, the complexity of literacy comprehension advances as well. With reference to the activities in this resource, educators can look to plan such or more activities which involves the integration of children’s skills as they continue to hone their skills in translating ‘receptive vocabulary’ into ‘expressive vocabulary’ (Fellowes & Oakley, Vocabulary for Reading and Writing, 2014).

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Learning Through Play: Reading Comprehension Games

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YouTube : The Punctuation People Series

Through an upbeat animation and catchy rhythm, this resource brings about ways different kinds of punctuation are

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The Punctuation People: Question Markowitz

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The Inspired Treehouse – Developmental Skills

Aside from linguistics and intellectual skills, writing largely involves fine motor skills as well. With the coordination and control of the wrists, fingers and hands (Ministry of Education, 2013), children develop the skill of their pencil grip and accuracy in the formation of their written letters and numbers. This resource provides age-appropriate activities for children to progress towards the goal of ‘developing fluent and legible handwriting’ (Fellowes & Oakley, Handwriting, 2014). “Writing is a foundational skill that requires a combination of motor and cognitive-linguistic skills” (ASHA, 2001). Besides developing dexterity in the tripod grip (Fellowes & Oakley, Assessment of Handwriting, 2014) for handwriting, educators may possibly integrate these activities for the children’s learning experiences as well, in the various domains of learning, as they progressively sharpen their abilities in fine and gross motor skills, hand-eye coordination and concentration skills.

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Dexterity is the ability to use your hands skillfully, fluently, quickly, and easily. Why does your child need to master a skill that seems so complicated?

This fine motor skill helps kids hold a pencil correctly and, perhaps even more importantly, helps them control that pencil to produce legible writing on a piece of paper!
*This post contains affiliate links. Read more.
Babies are working on dexterity right from the very beginning as their primitive Darwinian Reflex has them grasping your finger when you place it in their palm. Eventually, that tiny baby begins to grasp other objects too. Her grip strength improves, her ability to pick up small objects (think Cheerios!) improves, her ability to move objects within her hand improves, and she can even begin to transfer objects from one hand to the other.

As your baby enters toddlerhood, she gains even more experience with toys and begins to manipulate objects with different size, weight and shapes. She learns to manipulate these objects without dropping them and can purposefully put them into their place (such as in a shape sorter or puzzle). She can isolate one finger to point and to push buttons on toys - or the remote control!

Preschoolers begin to show the power of those Super Fingers as they develop a tripod grasp. For this age, dexterity comes into play as children learn to cut with scissors, become more independent with clothing fasteners, and learn to trace and copy lines and shapes. You will begin to notice that children this age show less movement in their arms, wrists, and hands during fine motor activities and smaller, more fine tuned movements within the hand.

There are so many complex elements of dexterity, but the good news is that there lots of creative and playful ways to work on these skills. If you notice that your child fatigues quickly during fine motor activities or writing or if your child struggles with fine motor skills like cutting with scissors or manipulating small objects, check out some of these great activities for improving dexterity!
Hand Strength: 35 Fun Activities for Kids Super Easy Fine Motor Skills Activity Fine Motor Skills: 20 Creative Activities for Kids Fine Motor Skills: Activities for Preschoolers Fine Motor Skills: Activities for 2 and 3-Year-Olds Fine Motor Skills: 10 Activities for Toddlers
At The Inspired Treehouse, we believe that information about developmental skills and child development should be accessible to everyone, not just medical professionals. You won't find a lot of complicated lingo here - we prefer breaking things down into terms that are a little less intimidating. That's why we're bringing you this awesome series: The ABCs of Child Development!

Over the next few months, we'll be making our way through the alphabet, assigning the letters to different developmental skills. From gross motor to fine motor to sensory and more...when it comes to developmental terminology (and easy-to-understand definitions), you'll find everything you're looking for all in one place!

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DEVELOPMENTAL SKILLS: D IS FOR DEXTERITY - The Inspired Treehouse

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Dexterity is the ability to use your hands skillfully, fluently, quickly, and easily. Why does your child need to master a skill that seems so complicated? This fine motor skill helps kids hold a pencil correctly and, perhaps even more importantly, helps them control that pencil to produce legible writing on a piece of paper!

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NAEYC – Promoting Pre-schooler’s Emergent Writing

As children progress to the stage of emergent writing, it is essential to ensure that children’s writing meet the certain goals and requirements. Assessment for writing should also take place

with reference to program goals (Fellowes & Oakley, Assessing and Evaluating Writing, 2014) to ensure activities and themes of each school’s curriculum are met as well. This resource serves as a reference for educators to assess the writing skills of the children. With reference to NAEYC (National Association for the Education of Young Children), educators evaluate the abilities of the children in displaying their understanding the use of punctuations, texts for writing different contents as well as sentence structures.

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Emergent writing is young children's first attempts at the writing process. Children as young as 2 years old begin to imitate the act of writing by creating drawings and symbolic markings that represent their thoughts and ideas (Rowe & Neitzel 2010; Dennis & Votteler 2013). This is the beginning of a series of stages that children progress through as they learn to write (see "Stages of Emergent Writing"). Emergent writing skills, such as the development of namewriting proficiency, are important predictors of children's future reading and writing skills (National Center for Family & Literacy 2008; Puranik & Lonigan 2012).

Teachers play an important role in the development of 3- to 5-year-olds' emergent writing by encouraging children to communicate their thoughts and record their ideas (Hall et al. 2015). In some early childhood classrooms, however, emergent writing experiences are almost nonexistent. One recent study, which is in accord with earlier research, found that 4- and 5-year-olds (spread across 81 classrooms) averaged just two minutes a day either writing or being taught writing (Pelatti et al. 2014). This article shares a framework for understanding emergent writing and ties the framework to differentiating young children's emergent writing experiences.

Understanding emergent writing

Researchers and educators often use the term emergent literacy to define a broad set of language and literacy skills focused primarily on the development and significance of emergent reading skills. To better understand writing development-and to support teachers' work with young children-researchers have proposed a framework to explain emergent writing practices (Puranik & Lonigan 2014). The framework is composed of three domains: conceptual knowledge, procedural knowledge, and generative knowledge.

Conceptual knowledge includes learning the function of writing. In this domain, young children learn that writing has a purpose and that print is meaningful (i.e., it communicates ideas, stories, and facts). For example, young children become aware that the red street sign says Stop and the letters under the yellow arch spell McDonald's. They recognize that certain symbols, logos, and markings have specific meanings (Wu 2009).

Procedural knowledge is the mechanics of letter and word writing (e.g., name writing) and includes spelling and gaining alphabet knowledge. Learning the alphabetic code (including how to form letters and the sounds associated with each letter) is an essential component of gaining procedural knowledge. Children benefit from having multiple opportunities throughout the day to develop fine motor skills and finger dexterity using a variety of manipulatives (e.g., magnetic letters, pegboards) and writing implements.

Generative knowledge describes children's abilities to write phrases and sentences that convey meaning. It is the ability to translate thoughts into writing that goes beyond the word level (Puranik & Lonigan 2014). During early childhood, teachers are laying the foundation for generative knowledge as children learn to express themselves orally and experiment with different forms of written communication, such as composing a story, writing notes, creating lists, and taking messages. Children can dictate words, phrases, or sentences that an adult can record on paper, or they can share ideas for group writing.

Developing conceptual, procedural, and generative knowledge of writing

Children gain knowledge of and interest in writing as they are continually exposed to print and writing in their environment. There are multiple strategies teachers can use to scaffold children's writing, such as verbally reminding children to use writing in their classroom activities and providing appropriate writing instructions (Gerde, Bingham, & Wasik 2012). By being aware of children's current fine motor abilities and their progress in emergent writing, teachers can use a mix of strategies to foster growth in each child's zone of proximal development (Vygotsky 1978).

Practicing name writing

One of the first words children usually learn to write is their first name (Both-de Vries & Bus 2008). Name writing increases children's conceptual and procedural knowledge. Names are meaningful to children, and preschoolers typically are interested in learning to write the letters in their name, especially the first letter (Both-de Vries & Bus 2008). Namewriting proficiency provides a foundation for other literacy knowledge and skills; it is associated with alphabet knowledge, letter writing, print concepts, and spelling (Cabell et al. 2009; Drouin & Harmon 2009; Puranik & Lonigan 2012).

Preschoolers benefit from daily writing experiences, so it is helpful to embed writing in the daily routine, such as having children write (or attempt to write) their names at sign-in and during choice times. Be sensitive to preschoolers' varying levels of fine motor skills and promote the joy of experimenting with the art of writing, regardless of a child's current skill level. Encourage invented spelling (Ouellette & Sénéchal 2017) and attempts at writing letters or letter-like symbols.

As Ms. Han's preschoolers enter the classroom, they sign in, with parental support, by writing their names on a whiteboard at the classroom entrance. Children in Ms. Noel's classroom go to a special table and sign in as they enter the room. Ms. Patel instructs her preschoolers to answer the question of the day by writing their names under their chosen answers. Today, the children write their names to answer the question "What are your favorite small animals-piglets, ducklings, or kittens?" Juan and Maria help their friends read the question and write their names under the appropriate headings. Pedro writes Pdr under the piglets heading, Anthony writes his complete name under ducklings, and Tess writes the letter T under kittens. In Mr. Ryan's class, children write their names during different activities. Today, children sign in as they pretend to visit the doctor in one learning center and sign for a package delivery in another. Meanwhile, Tommy walks around the room asking other preschoolers to sign their names in the autograph book he created in the writing center.

Tips for teachers

Develop a sign-in or sign-out routine that allows children to write, or attempt to write, their names each day. In some classrooms, or for some children, the routine may begin with writing the first letter instead of the whole name or with scribbling letterlike symbols.

Use peer helpers to aid children with the name-writing process.

Model writing your name and promote name-writing activities in several centers through the day, such as having children sign their name as they write a prescription or when they complete a painting.

Learning from teacher modeling

Children benefit from teachers modeling writing and from opportunities to interact with others on writing projects. Teachers can connect writing to topics of interest, think aloud about the process of composing a message (Dennis & Votteler 2013), and explain how to plan what to write (e.g., choosing words and topics, along with the mechanics of writing, such as punctuation). Children struggling to attain early writing skills benefit from explicit teaching (Hall et al. 2015). Teach children that letters create words and words create sentences. Use environmental print (e.g., labels, charts, signs, toy packaging, clothing, and billboards) to help children realize that print is meaningful and functional (Neumann, Hood, & Ford 2013). These types of activities build both conceptual and procedural knowledge.

When Ms. Noel sits with the children during snack, she talks with them about the different foods they like to eat. Ben tells her he likes chicken. She writes on a small whiteboard, "Ben likes chicken." She asks Ben to read the phrase to a friend. Later, Ben writes the phrase himself.

Mr. Ryan conducts a sticky note poll. He creates a giant spiderweb and writes the question, "Are you afraid of spiders? Yes or no." He gives the children sticky notes so each can write either yes or no and then place it on the giant web. This activity is followed by a discussion of spiders.

Tips for teachers

Explicitly model writing by showing the writing process to children and thinking aloud while writing. Instead of writing the question of the day or the morning message before the children arrive, write it in front of them.

​Label specific items in the room, and draw children's attention to the written words. Write out functional phrases on signs related to routines, such as "Take three crackers" or "Wash hands before eating," then read and display the signs.

​Have the children paint large classroom signs related to themes being explored, such as the National Weather Station, Snack Bar, Public Library, or Entomology Center.

Writing throughout the day

Preschoolers enjoy experimenting with the writing process. Emergent writing experiences can include spontaneous writing during center time and teacherguided writing activities. Writing can become an important component of every learning center in the preschool classroom (Pool & Carter 2011), especially if teachers strategically place a variety of writing materials throughout the classroom and offer specific guidance on using the materials (Mayer 2007). (See "Learning Centers: Adding Meaningful Writing Materials and Literacy Props.")

Teachers can intentionally promote peer-to-peer scaffolding by having children participate in collaborative writing experiences. Read-alouds are also a wonderful means of promoting writing; there are a number of stories that feature characters in books writing letters, stories, messages, and lists (see "Books That Promote Writing"). Model writing stories, making lists, or labeling objects, and then encourage your preschoolers to write a response letter to a character in a story, create their own storybook, or write a wish list or a shopping list. Such a variety of writing experiences will also build their generative knowledge of writing.

Ms. Han has strategically placed a variety of writing materials throughout the classroom-a scientific journal in the discovery area so children can record their observations and ideas; a graph paper notebook in the block area for drafting blueprints with designs and words; and a receipt book, paper, and markers in the dramatic play area. Savannah sits at the discovery center looking at a classroom experiment. Ms. Han asks, "Savannah, could you write about your observations in our science journal?" Savannah begins writing in the journal.

Three boys are playing in the block area. Ms. Han asks, "What are you building?" Marcus replies, "We are going to build a rocket ship." Ms. Han says, "Could you create a blueprint of your rocket and then build it?" The boys eagerly begin drawing a plan. Several children in the dramatic play center are drawing different types of flowers for a flower market. Ms. Han says, "In a flower market, signs tell customers what is for sale and how much it costs. Would you like to create some signs?" The children readily agree and start to create signs.

Tips for teachers

Strategically place writing materials, such as sticky notes, small chalkboards, whiteboards, envelopes, clipboards, journals, stencils, golf pencils, markers, and various types, sizes, and colors of paper throughout the classroom.

Provide specific teacher guidance to scaffold children's writing. While some children may be off and running with an open-ended question, others might be better supported if the teacher helps write their ideas-at least to get them started.

Create writing opportunities connected to your current classroom themes or topics of interest. Involve the children in collaborative writing projects, such as creating a diorama after a farm visit and making labels for the different animals and the barn. With teacher support, the class could also develop a narrative to describe their farm visit.

Home-school connection

Both preschool writing instruction and home writing experiences are essential components of helping children develop writing skills. A major advantage of the home- school connection is that children see the value of what they learn in school when parents actively participate in the same type of activities at home. Teachers can encourage parents to display photos of their child engaged in writing activities at home and to share samples of their child's writing or drawings from home to inform instruction (Schickedanz & Casbergue 2009). To maximize parental involvement and support, teachers should be sensitive to the diversity of the families in their programs and be inclusive by promoting writing in children's home languages. These experiences can help promote children's conceptual, procedural, and generative knowledge.

Ms. Noel wants to strengthen home-school connections with the families in her program. She decides to introduce the children to Chester (a stuffed teddy bear). She tells the children that Chester wants to learn more about what the children do at home and to go on some weekend adventures. She says, "Each weekend, Chester will travel home with a child in our class. During the time Chester stays at your house, take pictures of the activities you do with Chester and write about them in the Chester Weekend Adventures journal. At the beginning of the week, bring Chester and the journal back to school to share what you did. We will put Chester and the journal in the classroom library when he is not on a visit, so everyone can see where he has been." The children are excited about taking Chester home and writing about their adventures.

Tips for teachers

Find writing opportunities that strengthen home-school connections. For example, encourage families to create books at home related to a particular theme or a specific topic. Invite children to share their books with the class and then add them to the library.

Invite families to share the types of writing activities their children engage in at home. Encourage parents to establish routines that include writing lists, messages, stories, and letters.

Give families postcards to mail to friends in other states and countries. Have them ask their friends to mail a reply to the preschool class. Create a display of the return messages and postcards.

Teachers play an important role in promoting emergent writing development by scaffolding writing activities that engage young children in building their conceptual, procedural, and generative knowledge. Writing can easily be embedded in daily routines as children write their names, engage in learning centers, practice writing for a purpose based on teacher and peer models, and contribute to group writing activities. Be intentional during interactions with children and incorporate best practices. Promote the development of emergent writing-and emergent literacy-by implementing purposeful strategies that encourage writing in the classroom and at home. Teachers who provide young children with a diverse array of early writing experiences lay the foundation for kindergarten readiness.

Authors' note: A special thanks to all of the teachers who participated in the Striving Readers Literacy Program and shared their literacy ideas. Thanks to Barbara Berrios for sharing the Chester Bear idea.

References

Both-de Vries, A.C., & A.G. Bus. 2008. "Name Writing: A First Step to Phonetic Writing? Does the Name Have a Special Role in Understanding the Symbolic Function of Writing?" Literacy Teaching and Learning 12 (2): 37-55.

Cabell, S.Q., L.M. Justice, T.A. Zucker, & A.S. McGinty. 2009. "Emergent Name-Writing Abilities of Preschool-Age Children with Language Impairment." Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools 40 (1): 53-66.

Dennis, L.R., & N.K. Votteler. 2013. "Preschool Teachers and Children's Emergent Writing: Supporting Diverse Learners." Early Childhood Education Journal 41 (6): 439-46.

Drouin, M., & J. Harmon. 2009. "Name Writing and Letter Knowledge in Preschoolers: Incongruities in Skills and the Usefulness of Name Writing as a Developmental Indicator." Early Childhood Research Quarterly 24 (3): 263-70.

Gerde, H.K., G.E. Bingham, & B.A. Wasik. 2012. "Writing in Early Childhood Classrooms: Guidance for Best Practices." Early Childhood Education Journal 40 (6): 351-59.

Hall, A.H., A. Simpson, Y. Guo, & S. Wang. 2015. "Examining the Effects of Preschool Writing Instruction on Emergent Literacy Skills: A Systematic Review of the Literature." Literacy Research and Instruction 54 (2): 115-34.

Mayer, K. 2007. "Emerging Knowledge about Emergent Writing." Young Children 62 (1): 34-41.

National Center for Family Literacy. 2008. Developing Early Literacy: A Scientific Synthesis of Early Literacy Development and Implications for Intervention. Report of the National Early Literacy Panel. Washington, DC: National Institute for Literacy.

Neumann, M.M., M. Hood, & R.M. Ford. 2013. "Using Environmental Print to Enhance Emergent Literacy and Print Motivation." Reading and Writing 26 (5): 771-93.

Ouellette, G., & M. Sénéchal. 2017. "Invented Spelling in Kindergarten as a Predictor of Reading and Spelling in Grade 1: A New Pathway to Literacy, or Just the Same Road, Less Known?" Developmental Psychology 53 (1): 77-88.

Pelatti, C.Y., S.B. Piasta, L.M. Justice, & A. O'Connell. 2014. "Language- and Literacy-Learning Opportunities in Early Childhood Classrooms: Children's Typical Experiences and Within-Classroom Variability." Early Childhood Research Quarterly 29 (4): 445-56.

Pool, J.L., & D.R. Carter. 2011. "Creating Print-Rich Learning Centers." Teaching Young Children 4 (4): 18-20.

Puranik, C.S., & C.J. Lonigan. 2012. "Name-Writing Proficiency, Not Length of Name, Is Associated with Preschool Children's Emergent Literacy Skills." Early Childhood Research Quarterly 27 (2): 284-94.

Puranik, C.S., & C.J. Lonigan. 2014. "Emergent Writing in Preschoolers: Preliminary Evidence for a Theoretical Framework." Reading Research Quarterly 49 (4): 453-67.

Rowe, D.W., & C. Neitzel. 2010. "Interest and Agency in 2- and 3-Year-Olds' Participation in Emergent Writing." Reading Research Quarterly 45 (2): 169-95.

Schickedanz, J.A., & R.M. Casbergue. 2009. Writing in Preschool: Learning to Orchestrate Meaning and Marks. 2nd ed. Preschool Literacy Collection. Newark, DE: International Reading Association.

Vygotsky, L.S. 1978. Mind in Society: The Development of Higher Psychological Processes. Ed. & trans. M. Cole, V. John-Steiner, S. Scribner, & E. Souberman. Rev. ed. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

Wu, L.Y. 2009. "Children's Graphical Representations and Emergent Writing: Evidence from Children's Drawings." Early Child Development and Care 179 (1): 69-79.

Photographs: pp. 75, 76, 77, 78, 79, 80, courtesy of the authors; p. 74, © iStock

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Emergent writing skills, such as the development of namewriting proficiency, are important predictors of children's future reading and writing skills.

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Choral Reading to Foster Reading Fluency

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Choral Reading to Foster Reading Fluency

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This resource provides a demonstration on how choral reading can be done with small groups. As suggested in Oakley & Fellowes (2014), choral reading is one of the key practices for fostering reading fluency. Research suggests that choral reading improves reading fluency, expands vocabulary, and increases students' confidence (Minero, E., 11 September 2019).

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Language Arts

This planning checklist for a choral reading lesson uses the poem "One Sister for Sale" by Shel Silverstein. See example ›

This PDF includes dozens of poems for shared, choral, paired, and echo reading. See example ›

The website below offers teachers several poetry options conducive to the Choral Reading strategy along with some interesting tips on reading and language development. See example ›

The example of choral reading found on this site uses the children's book James and the Giant Peach. See example ›

Science

This lesson plan includes examples of choral reading activities that correspond to introductory science concepts. See example ›

Social Studies

This website includes a script for the choral reading of the children's book Bringing the Rain to Kapiti Plain. See example ›

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Choral reading is reading aloud in unison with a whole class or group of students. Choral reading helps build students' fluency, self-confidence, and motivation. Because students are reading aloud together, students who may ordinarily feel self-conscious or nervous about reading aloud have built-in support.

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Audio-assisted Reading to build Fluency Skills

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Audio-assisted Reading to build Fluency Skills

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This resource offers guidance as to how to set up audio-assisted reading, links to sources to where the audio books, songs, poems and other stories to listen to online or to download, and even suggested books to use with this strategy. Researchers compiled evidence, suggested implications for classroom instruction, and proven strategies for teaching reading skills which included "oral reading practice is increased through the use of audiotapes (tutors, peer guidance or other means) (Armbruster, et al, 2001).

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Audio-Assisted Reading | Classroom Strategy | Reading Rockets

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Audio-assisted reading is an individual or group reading activity where students read along in their books as they hear a fluent reader read the book on an audio recording (audiotape, audio book, or iPod). As confidence and reading skills develop, students read the same passage or text without the assistance of the audio recording.

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Acting spontaneous free-flow play (Bruce & Spratt, 2008) and dramatic play should also be encouraged, especially in preschool settings, since this allows and encourages children to try language out, to find their own props and re-enact stories and life experiences, and to act out possible scenarios and experiment with different roles and projected situation.

Prosody is concerned with the study of rhythm and sound effects as they occur in songs, poems and skits. and with the various theoretical approaches to the study of these structures. Teachers may tap on resource to introduce dramatic play in class. This enhances opportunities to test children’s listening skills and ability to follow instructions.

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The Witches, Catherine, Marilyn, and Evelyn, will take you through a journey of Magic, Spells, and Fantasy. You will meet a Beautiful Princess and a Handsome Prince, and will run away from the Evil Witch and the Wicked Stepmother. The Forest will be filled with Beautiful Flowers, Talking Trees, and Funny Animals who will take you to gates of the Enchanted Palace
Click Here to Read Playscripts in Spanish
We have more than 600 scripts. Please take a look at Page 2 andPage 3
Kidsinco playscripts are not for sale, and they may not be republished totally or partially in any other website, blog, or forum. If you want to share our scripts, please place a link to our site: Kidsinco.com
The narrator is not included in the number of characters in each playscript. 2. The Spirit Inside The Bottle. 3 characters. Author: Brothers Grimm. 4. The Chair . 3 characters. Author: Unknown. Moral Value: Faith in God.
Moral: We can not always do what people want us to do. We can´t please everybody because there will always be someone who will not agree with us. Don´t listen to other people's gossip.
2 characters 10 . The Wolf and the Little Goats. 3 characters. . 9 characters, 6 characters
23. The Fox and the Stork. 2 characters. Author: Aesop Fable. Moral: One bad turn deserves another.
4 characters 39. The Nightingale. 5 characters. Author: Hans Christian Andersen 4 characters. Author: Popular Folktale. Moral Value: Integrity 4 characters. Author: Budhist Legend. Moral Value: Honesty 5 characters. Moral Value: Humility . 7 characters. Author: Jataka Tale. Moral: Check a rumour before acting on it. . 12 characters. Author: Brothers Grimm .2 characters. Author: Mayan Folktale . 3 or more characters. . 4 characters. Author: Native American Indian Legend . 6 characters. Author: Joseph Jacobs . 9 or more characters. Author: Estonian fairy tale. 82. Un Nuevo Mundo es Descubierto - 12 de Octubre de 1492. Mas de 10 personajes. Autor: Marco Antonio Fernández Díaz . 4 characters. Author: Unknown
. 15 characters. Autor: Miss Xochitl . 2 characters. Author: Aesop Fable
. 12 characters. Author: L. Frank Baum. . Mas de 5 personajes. Autor: Marco Antonio Fernandez Diaz. . 3 characters. Moral Value: Respect. A Folkktale from Bhutan. . 7 or more characters. Author: Albanian Folktale. Moral Value: Gratitude. Characters 17 or more. Author: Russian Folktale. A Christmas script with the Three Wise Man.
. 9 characters. Author: Hans Christian Andersen. A Christmas or New Year Playscript.
. 3 characters. Author: Emilie Poulsso. 6 characters. Author: European Folktale 103. Pandora´s Box. 11 characters. Author:Greek Myth 106. The Drying Tree . . 5 characters . Author: K I D S I N C O . Moral Value: Respect for others and nature, Gratitude 108. Pinocchio. 109. The Little Red Hen. 3 characters. Author: Turkish Folktale. Moral Value: Respect, Tolerance. . 4 characters. Author: Spain Folktale . Moral Value: Love, Generosity. 10 characters. Author: French Short Story. Moral Value: Loyalty 10 and more characters. Author: K I D S I N C O. Moral Value: Humility. An Easter playscript.
120. El Hombrecito de Pan de Jengibre. 8 personajes. Autor: Cuento Popular. 125. God´s Cell Phone. 3 characters. Author: K I D S I N C O. Moral Value: Love
131. The Pied Piper of Hamelin. 24 and more characters. Author: Brothers Grimm Moral Value: Keep a Promise. Anti-Values: Betrayal and Greedy.

133. Fortune and the Greedy Man . 2 characters. Author: Popular Folktale. Moral: If you are too greedy you end up with nothing.

135. Rabotity. 14 characters. Folktale from Madagascar. Moral: We are all strong. But there is always someone stronger than us. It is better to respect everybody.

137. The Highest Price. 3 characters. Author: Popular Folktale. Moral Value: Gratitude
142. The Little Bunnies Go Shopping. 4 characters. Author: K I D S I N C O. An Easter Playscript.
148. Peter and The Wolf . The Boy Who Cried Wolf. 7 characters. Author: Aesop Fable. Moral: People will not trust liers, even if they say the truth. Script about lying.
Joseph Jacobs. Moral: When you do a job, do it good. Moral Value: Patience, Hard Work, Perseverance. 152. Half Blanket. 3 characters. Author: Irish Folktale. Moral: Treat Others as you Would Like to be Treated. Respect Others. A playscript for Father´s Day. 153. It Can Be Too Late. 6 or more characters. A playscript for Father´s Day. 154. Peter Pan. 9 or more characters. Author: J.M Barrie. 161. Frau Trude. 4 characters. Author: Brothers Grimm. Moral Values: Obedience, Respect. 162. The Three Stones. 2 characters. Author: An Arabian Folktale. Moral Values: Faith, Hope, Charity. 164. The Enchanted Palace 3 characters + crowd. Author: A Folktale from India. . 165. The Empty Box . 7 characters. Author: Unknown. Moral Value: Generosity 166. The Ant and The Grasshopper. 2 characters. Author: Aesop Fable
Esmeralda Coronado Juarez y Jorge Valente Zacarias Soto. Obra sobre la Revolucion Mexicana 168. The Donkey and The Wolf. 2 characters. Author: Aesop Fable . Moral: Stick to what you know, and be true to yourself.
169. The Rats and The Gold. 2 characters. Author: Unknown. Moral: Treat others as you would like to be treated. One bad turns deserves another one.

170 1 character. Author: Aesop Fable. Moral: Some people disdain and underestimate what they cannot have.
171. Melanie, The Ugly Doll. 7 characters. Author: K I D S I N C O
172.Little Half Chicken. 16 characters. Author: Spanish Folktale
173. The Wise Man. 2 characters. Author: Unknown
174. The Two Hungry Dogs. 2 characters. Author: Aesop Fable
175. The Fox and The Horse. 4 characters . Author: Brothers Grimm
176. The Canterville Ghost. 8 characters. Author: Oscar Wilde
178. The Woodcutters. 5 characters. Author: Unknown. Moral: Invest time in improving your own abilities. 179. The King and The Shirt .6 characters. Author: Leon Tolstoy. 182. El Telefono Celular de Dios . 3 personajes. Autor: K I D S I N C O.
Moral: Don't count your chickens before they are hatched.
185. Baba-Yaga. 8 characters. Author: Russian Folktale. 187. The Rose and The Chamaleon. 2 characters. Author: Unknown. 188. My First Hundredth Halloween . 3 characters + crowd. Author: K I D S I N C O 191. Cristobal Colon y el Huevo. 7 personajes. Autor: K I D S I N C O 194.The Turtle and The Eagle. 4 characters. Author: Aesop Fable. 197. La Hormiga y el Saltamontes. 4 personajes. Autor: Fabula de Esopo. Moraleja: Los problemas prueban la sinceridad de los amigos. Valor Moral: Amistad, Sinceridad. Go to Complete List of Playscripts - Page 2 Go to Complete List of Playscripts - Page 3 Thanks for visiting Kidsinco Free Playscripts for Kids! 2 personajes. Autor: Fabula de Esopo. Moraleja: Es mejor prepararse para los dias de necesidad.

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K I D S I N CO.com - Free Playscripts for Kids!

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The Witches, Catherine, Marilyn, and Evelyn, will take you through a journey of Magic, Spells, and Fantasy. You will meet a Beautiful Princess and a Handsome Prince, and will run away from the Evil Witch and the Wicked Stepmother.

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An Overview of our Resources - Stop Motion Video 

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An Overview of our Resources - Stop Motion Video 

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Stop-motion animation can be used as a learning tool to teach a variety of literacy concepts.