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Emerging Literacy by Paul Donald (DLITE PGDE - Aberdeen City: Group 1)

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Emerging Literacy by Paul Donald (DLITE PGDE - Aberdeen City: Group 1)

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It is important to remember that Teachers of Primary are Facilitators of language and not just English.

Literacy itself refers to more than being able to read and write in English.  Behavioural directions, pictorial diagrams and symbolic meaning all contribute to literacy development.

Tools such as this can help children to provide a form of KWL  when planning for the learning of children (Rights Respecting: Article 12 and links to Social Justice and Inclusion).

An effective literacy environment:

- Would encourage talking and listening though a listening station, such as by allowing audio books or the use of the Read and Write Text Help software.

- Book Corner: This must have books which stimulate and challenge the children - for example it may be topic related.

- In the early years, the development of ontological awareness is achieved through song, rhyme and repetition.  Three distinct but key characteristics for developing children's language development.

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Creating A Rich Literacy Environment by Donna Forrest ( DLITE PGDE- Aberdeen City)

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Creating A Rich Literacy Environment by Donna Forrest ( DLITE PGDE- Aberdeen City)

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In order to create a rich learning environment, teachers need to provide learning opportunities that build on the child's lived life experiences. Having a wide variety of materials that children can identify with can develop literacy skills. For example, telephones, invitations, newspapers can all help to link to context that children are familiar with to develop literacy. Teachers are great models of literacy. We should use correct grammar in both speech and writing. We can give children a positive speech model.
However, Literacy extends beyond speech. Symbols, pictures,drawing, writing, displays and baking/cooking, songs, and rhymes  can all enable a rich literacy environment.
As educators it is important to value diversity and recognise family literacy. We should provide a considerable myriad of opportunity for children to experience a rich literacy environment. Having book corners, baking, contexts for talking, role play, outdoor areas and a stimulating print environment can all contribute to ensuring this

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Rich Literacy Environment by Liana Badan (DLITE PGDE - Aberdeenshire)

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Rich Literacy Environment by Liana Badan (DLITE PGDE - Aberdeenshire)

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I strongly believe that for early ages, learning by playing is a key factor for developing literacy skills.
After reading Sara Wildford's article I realized that is so important to give children the initiative and allow them to investigate the environment or the classroom setting.
Teachers should facilitate the experiences characterized by playfulness.
By playing with letters, children will understand how words are created and later on they will discover that a written word stands for a spoken word.
I also believe that a label sticked on an different objects (using colours, paint, crayons), can help children in early stages to understand what a written word is and what its symbol is. At this stage they should be encouraged to 'copy' letters in sand, shave foam, mud, painting letters by using their fingers and much more).
Further on children can experience reading by accessing familiar texts using graphic texts, digital texts and any kind of written material that can draw their attention.
As a teacher is very important to find different strategies in different settings that could help children in early stages to develop literacy skills.

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Creating a Rich Literacy Learning Environment.  

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Creating a Rich Literacy Learning Environment.  

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What really struck me was how critical it is to engage, inspire and motivate children through providing learning opportunities to children as early in their life as possible.  The importance of using a child’s lived life as the centre for literacy development.

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Really excited about the opportunity to use outdoor play and exploration to develop literacy – I love the idea of using book bags for outdoor activities.  Also David Sobel, 2008 wrote Childhood and Nature: Design Principles for Education – in which he proposes seven play themes (adventure, fantasy and imagination, animal allies, maps and paths, special places, small worlds and hunting and gathering) which emerge when children have the opportunity to engage in free time in nature,  use these to plan child-led learning experiences.  Juliet Robertson describes in Dirty Teaching how she has found this idea invaluable for approaching literacy

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A climate that promotes feeling good about yourself, being recognised for who you are and what you can do has powerful effects on a child’s persistence and motivation to learn, this is so crucial to achievement (From Play to Literacy – Implications for the classroom by Sarah Wilford).  This really resonates with me as a student teacher.

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I really like the Highland Literacy website  - Promoting the development of Literacy through Active Learning and Play.  Lots of useful ideas and set out nicely to help create a literacy rich learning environment for our pupils.

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The importance of creating a print rich learning environment  - colourful, can include images, placed at eye level to make it interactive and inclusive, using labelling, using captions and children’s names whenever possible – not just sticking labels on the wall but showing the children them first and seeing if they can predict where they might go.

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The value of dialogue in developing literacy, particularly using real life settings which allows the learning to be child centred, have relevance to a child and lends itself to creating a motivation and persistence to learn.

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I found the lecture and reading really engaging.  I agree with what others have posted in that real life experiences seem to help to enrich literacy learning the most.  If the child understands the context their skills of language will develop much more quickly.  By using imaginative play and toys and games relating to books and literacy work then children will be able to explore and engage at a better level.  I have a toddler myself and her speech development really comes on when we discuss real life and what she has done that day or what she has played with or seen in stories or on tv.  Familiar characters also seem to help to be able to explain situation and can be a prompt for further questioning and activities.

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It is so important for us to be positive speech models. The use of open questioning to promote a child's thinking skills is essential - we focus on developing and learning mental skills for maths, why not for literacy, particularly in the form of games/challlenges? The Highland literacy website has some great ideas here.

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I really enjoyed this week’s reading on creating a literacy rich environment. I strongly agree that the opportunity to experience structured and unstructured play can promote a child’s literacy development. Many children use role-playing to re-enact a situation they are anxious about for example, visiting the dentist. By re-enacting this situation with their peers they have the opportunity to observe and listen to how their peers react and engage with their peers which can enable them to understand the role of a dentist and de-escalate their anxieties. I particularly liked the idea about creating an area within the classroom that may serve as a library or a shop and ensuring that the children have access to a variety of relevant materials and props to enhance their learning. Nigel Hall’s chapter on the realistic uses of literacy was really interesting and detailed how teachers can take the children’s learning to the next level by the teacher displaying a sign on the outside of the shop stating that the shop is ‘closed due to vandalism’; a great way to promote discussion between the teacher and children. What has happened to the shop? Why? What could they do to save their shop and how could they do it?

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I think a rich literacy environment is one in which children are given opportunities to construct their own experiences. Both the lecture and the reading gave examples of how this could be done, with both emphasising the importance of play.
Many opportunities for this can be created in the classroom environment and I found the lecture very useful in giving examples of this. I could also relate the lecture content to my own experience from my days in a nursery as part of orientation for SE1A. There was an 'office table' complete with phones and note pads (alongside many of the other examples from the lecture). I observed two children have a conversation over these 'phones' and it was extremely interesting to see what they talked about and the language used. One can see how this opportunity to use their imagine and create dialogue directly links to what may be expected as part of literacy at later stages.
I also think that linking activities to children's real life experiences engages them greatly. I can remember from my own primary experience that we had a project on cafes and I loved having a notepad to write orders in as this is something I had seen people do in real life. Such real life examples also emphasise to children the importance of literacy and how literacy plays such a central role in all of our lives.

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I found this week's materials very engaging and will definitely go back to them when on SE2. I have seen many of the good practices in early years classrooms I've worked in. A good literate early years' classroom should be well organised, colouful, clearly labelled, texts at children's eye level with full and open access to a wide range of books.
It is important to make the children familiar with different forms of literature - writing, labels, instructions, lists - and to link these where possible to their life experiences. By doing this, you can bring real meaning to their learning; if they are engaged, they will learn.
Adults in the early years' classroom must model positive speech and literacy by using correct grammar, speaking clearly and showing interest in what the children are saying. All opportunities to extend the children's emerging vocabulary should be embraced.
Taking the learning outdoors can add another perspective to the literate environment. Tell stories, encourage children to make up their own stories about their surroundings, make the alphabet with sticks. There are so many opportunities to give children positive literary experiences.

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I have really enjoyed engaging with this weeks materials on early years literacy environments and reading everyones posts on here - thank you for some great ideas.
I agree that children learn through play at this level and it is up to us to create these play based opportunities.
Right now, we are transforming our home corner into a farm shop and to do this this we have sat down with the children and drawn a mind map of everything they think we will need, we add to this as they play and discover that things are 'missing' - no one has mentioned money yet! Again - all this comes from what they already know about the world from their lived lives.
Labelling resonated with me too as everything in the nursery is labelled, usually with a picture and the children lobe to have a go at writing out their own labels by copying.
Environmental print is not something I have thought about before but I am now really looking forward to taking the children out to look for signs, posters, and print in the local area.

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Give children tools and materials for their imagination and to encourage problem solving - boxes, sheets, catalogues, magazines, hole punches, menus, sellotape, shopping lists, headphones, scissors, etc. This will stimulate them as well as identify with home life.
Keep an open mind as a teacher - you need to be an enthusiastic model of literacy by increasing your knowledge and responding to them. Model literacy by writing clearly - not just printed labels.
Allow for different zones in the classroom - book corner, arts and crafts, office, role play, music corner. However watch for over cluttering and link them to their learning so they are meaningful curricular experiences. Relevant books that are loved and cared for - delve in!
Label things so children get used to seeing printed words. This is good for the class a whole and the teacher to be organised. Use pictures as well e.g. expected position when listening on the carpet.
Use outdoor learning - inclusive to all and great stimulation. Investigate!
Be pupil orientated with displays - their work displayed so can be seen easily. Its their classroom and they take pride in seeing it displayed.

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As Paul has said above, teachers are facilitators of all language and literacy, and not just "English". It is very important to provide children within the early years as much exposure to literacy, writing and reading as much as possible.

We, as teachers, should be providing children all the opportunities to engage in reading, writing, listening and speaking to ensure that from an early age they have maximum exposure that they can receive. It is also important to stretch children beyond they're zone of proximal development even at an early age; particularly when children are from an area of deprivation or an unsettled background where the may not receive the same literacy exposure (through reading at bedtime, documentaries, provision of reading material etc) that some other children from other areas receive. Therefore it is our responsibility to identify and plan for these, be it through collective reading time, social-dramatic play (as described within the lecture) or alternative means.

I think it is also important to expose children in two different ways - utilising their imagination to increase their literacy exposure, and using every day situations what they can recognise them - supermarkets, living rooms, playgrounds etc.

I think as a final note, it is important to note that there are many different aspects of literacy - mathematical literacy, musical literacy, body language, facial expressions. They all convey thoughts, feelings, ideas and difficulties, and writing / reading / speaking / listening is only one aspect of literacy. It should also be identified that BSL (British Sign Language) requires once again a completely different aspect of literacy, and thus as a teacher this should be fully inclusive within their education.

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I have enjoyed engaging with this weeks input. There are some excellent resources out there and the Highland literacy site is one of my favourites. I love reading and sharing stories with children and I really love the idea of making up a class book of photos and information about what they have been learning. During the lecture I found the point raised about making sure games and books are well placed and accessible very important. Too much books or games to choose between for wee ones (and older ones too!) can be overwhelming.

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To support children's Literacy and English development in Highland, the Highland Next Generation Literacy resources have been developed to support learning and teaching across three progressive stages as part of a learner's broad general education. There are nine interlinked parts of the literacy, language and communication jigsaw that practitioners and schools should consider when planning...

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A rich literacy environment is one which is developed through the use of play. Literacy experiences can be set up in this context and provide learning opportunities for children, for example the teacher setting up a post office where they can send and read letters.

Different spaces should be utilised around the classroom to enhance learning.

A home corner can be used and filled with newspapers, magazines, shopping catalogues and so on. This can be used to create a link between home and the classroom.

A drawing/writing table can be used to practice writing with a range of pens, pencils, paper and whiteboards.

A book corner should be a bright and colourful and comfortable space which offers a range of genres of books.

Teachers will model literacy through their writing; signs should be clearly labelled with an easy to read font, which is at eye level and pupils work should be displayed around the classroom clearly. Speech should be modelled by the teacher so that children can develop their vocabulary. These last two points are incredibly important because what we do as teachers will help to build a rich literacy environment as opposed to one which provides limited learning opportunities.

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I feel it is so important to provide children with a classroom and indeed a school setting which promotes and engages children with literacy.  Literacy learning encompasses a magnitude of elements such as speaking, listening, reading and writing through both print and digital media.

Within my experience in the Early Years literacy can be promoted in numerous ways with in the setting and through play.  Before children can even talk they can engage in literacy learning through reading and looking at books with their carer’s, this allows children to begin to understand that the written text and symbols on a page actually means something, paving the way for later learning.

Within my setting we have found that the children particularly love learning to write their own names and we have made up books at the drawing/writing table with each child’s name and their photo, allowing children to find and copy out their own name (many have even moved on to learning their friends names!)

Rich literacy environments should provide literacy materials and opportunities throughout the setting.  Children should have opportunities to take part in discussions, share opinions, listen, write and draw.  Through reading experiences children should have opportunities to read for pleasure and also read for knowledge.   In today’s technological world there has never been a time more opportunistic then today to promote literacy in vast exciting ways.  Through the internet, social media and digital novels children have vast and exciting mediums to take part in engaging literacy learning opportunities that will hopefully engage and promote students love of literacy for a life time.

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Creating a rich literacy environment in the Early Years. 

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Creating a rich literacy environment in the Early Years. 

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After watching the camtasia and reading the materials associated with the lecture I have been able to build on my previous knowledge and experience.I can see the great importance of creating classrooms in the early years that are rich literacy environments.
I am an EYP in a school nursery and when I think about the classroom I work in it reflects what I saw and heard in the lecture and how the experiences and resources we are providing the children are allowing them to develop literacy skills in reading, talking, listening and writing early on.
In the nursery and I also saw in the primary one class in my school the classroom is divided into the areas with many engaging literacy opportunities for the pupils that are meaningful and reflect real life opportunities. They can begin to see the function of print and what it is used for.
At the moment I have responsibility for developing the writing area for the children and have stocked it with postcards, catalogues, cards, envelopes, stickynotes, notebooks, calander, highlighters, chalk, crayons, pens, pencils, variety of paper etc. Have used this area to observe childrens interests and develop next steps for the children based on their learning in the area. The children are encouraged to develop their early markmaking skills and talk about their creations and what they have drawn. I often scribe on a piece of card next to their picture what the child has told me their picture is about.
Print is everywhere in both classrooms children can see how the classroom is organised, where resources are meant to go, instructions for the child for example in the toilets wash their hands, where work goes when finished.
Talk is encouraged everywhere in the nursery through circle time activities and through playbased imaginative activities for example in the role play whether it be a hairdresser or a house corner for example. When reading a story to a child I will ask what their favourite part was, what they predict will happen next before I turn page, talk about use of words for example rhyming and ask about the characters. To get them to develop their higher thinking skills about what is being read to them.
Children are required to have the same access to these experiences from an early age in nursery despite not maybe having it at home as it has a significant impact on their literacy development in the coming years.

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This lecture took me back to my pre-school manager days. We had pens and paper in the home corner setting, menus in the cafe, and empty food boxes in the shop - with matching shopping lists. There were sticky labels with the child's name printed on then they could label their own work in the craft and drawing area, and name cards for self registration including some blank cards for those who like to write their own name. We would go on environmental print walks looking for our letter of the week and there we might have letters in the sand, water tray, play dough and stuck onto Duplo bricks in the construction area.  It was also nice to see the children reading to  friends or their "babies".

I always used to have story books with me and would volunteer to read at story time - something I rarely get the chance to do in my current role although I always carry a book or two with me "just in case!"

I read a couple of stories in my last placement and I am looking forward to being in a lower stages class where I can help nurture a lifelong joy of reading as well as developing a functional life skill.

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I found this weeks lecture quite an eye opener. I had not really considered not given much thought to the impact that nursery has on the development of literacy in children. Learning how much of an impact all the role play has on children's learning has definitely made me think more about why this form of engagement is developed in nursery. The impact of the home corner in developing children's skills is huge. i enjoyed reading the article which spoke about the 5 literacy goals and how they all support each stage and in children development of literacy and also the aspects of the classroom which play a huge role.

A rich literacy environment is one that has lots of different resources and materials that children can use to explore and express themselves and in turn build on their existing literacy skills.

As a teacher the way you construct your classroom and the resources you have available are vital in contributing to this process.

I can see the importance of books in literacy from nursery up and how even making sure you have a class novel which all the children are part of can enhance their literacy skills.

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As a learning teacher I feel it is important to recognise that we are surrounded by literacy learning opportunities. It is our responsibility to ensure these opportunities are accessible, engaging, relevant and meaningful to each individual child. Literacy opportunities are only limited by the imagination of the teacher.

It is important to link literacy to play, to make learning link to real life, fostering intrinsic motivation and encouraging children's natural curiosity and sense of inquiry.

Life experiences so far have shaped the child's view of literacy, we need to acknowledge this start point and build on it.

As teachers we need to provide a literacy rich environment,provide inviting materials, invite and value play and provide problem solving opportunities.

The way you develop and present your classroom can help promote a literacy rich environment. It should be well organised, inviting, engaging, colourful, not overwhelming, with displays well presented at children's eye level. Make use of many different areas such as home corner, story corner, sensory play, role play, art area, writing table, outdoor learning, all these provide endless opportunities for literacy rich experiences.

The teacher needs to model good levels and positive attitudes to literacy.

Real life links give meaning to learning.

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While engaging with the lecture and reading I was thinking back to my own children's development of literacy (the youngest is going through this just now as he's 22 months) and my work in nurseries.

I agree that relating literacy to real life contexts is a great way to engage children and to make them more aware of the world around them.  My eldest son (now 9) used to get really excited when he recognised his initial (Z) in any print.  He used to like playing cafes, he'd make menus, go around and ask guests what they wanted & scrawl down order!  In fact he still does this!  He likes to read for pleasure, & reads every night before going to sleep.

My youngest likes to have stories read to him.  He likes the usborne "that's not my..." series for the touchy feely parts.  He also likes longer books such as Julia Donaldson's "Monkey Puzzle", he reads along to the "no no no!" parts.  I will catch him sometimes looking intently at books & following the text with his finger.

I do hope my boys love of books continues!

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While it's great that my children appear to have a real interest in literacy, some children who attend may not have the same opportunities at home so it's important to provide children with the opportunities to explore literacy in the nursery/school environment.

The lecture gave good examples of how to promote literacy and it's important, for us as teachers, to ensure that we provide these within our setting.  Not just having them there but getting the children to interact with them.

During SE2A the children were encouraged to bring in anything that they had at home that was related to their topic, polar explorers. Many children brought in different books & soft animals that they put in their display. One child wrote a story about a lost polar cub, that they wanted to add to the display. For the next few days many more children brought in stories that they wrote for the display! It was lovely to see so many children inspired to write their own story