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This article by PCoE Regional Coordinator Jeffrey Wood looks at the connection between play and literacies. It suggests ways educators can support literacies through play.

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The National Reading Campaign publishes children's book reviews every Tuesday. In this example, librarian Linda Ludke, reviews "This is NOT a Valentine" by Carter Higgins. Reviews are for educators, families and children with the goal to inspire joy in reading. To find more reviews like this one, click the "Children's Book Reviews" tab across the top of the page and select "reviews".

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Publish January 31, 2018

Readers will be smitten by This is NOT a Valentine by Carter Higgins. After receiving a heart-sealed card from a friend, a little boy affectionately reciprocates, but without superfluous frills. Instead of proffering a bunch of roses "that smell like grannies fresh out of the garden," he gives his pal a handful of dandelions with some of the wishes blown off. Eschewing mass-produced, generic gifts, he thoughtfully selects unique treasures just for her, like a bubble-gum machine ring that matches her best shoelaces, a lucky rock, and a whispered secret about where the second best hiding spot is located on the playground. The quirky presents are accompanied by honest, unsentimental banter: "I found this at the bottom of my lunchbox. You can have the jelly side, cause I like peanut butter best."

Lucy Ruth Cummins' exuberantly unaffected cartoon illustrations capture a diverse classroom of kids going about their daily routine, from hanging coats in cubbies, to lining up at the water fountain. In art class, the little boy celebrates his friend in a portrait created out of construction paper, foil star stickers and green marker. The blush on the little girl's cheeks shows she is tickled pink by the meaningful, attentive gestures. This is NOT a Valentine is full of sweetness, but not the cavity-inducing kind. Spread the love and share this endearing picture book all throughout the year.

This is NOT a Valentine

Carter Higgins
Illustration EN: Lucy Ruth Cummins
Chronicle books
ISBN 13: 978-1-4521-5374-2

Linda Ludke

Linda Ludke is a librarian at London Public Library. Her reviews have appeared in Quill and Quire, School Library Journal and CM: Canadian Review of Materials. When she's not reading and writing she also loves searching for vintage treasures.

The National Reading Campaign publishes children's book reviews under a Creative Commons License. This review is entirely free to reproduce and republish online and in print. Credit must be given to the reviewer and the National Reading Campaign. Reviews can be edited for brevity only. Contact Us for more information.

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Children's Book Reviews: This is NOT a Valentine - Campagne pour la lecture

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Readers will be smitten by This is NOT a Valentine by Carter Higgins. After receiving a heart-sealed card from a friend, a little boy affectionately reciprocates, but without superfluous frills. Instead of proffering a bunch of roses "that smell like grannies fresh out of the garden," he gives his pal a handful of dandelions with [...]Read More...

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A pedagogical and curricular resource developed for educators and families in conjunction with the Exploring Literacies Initiative led by the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development (New Brunswick). This link will take you to the handbook Exploring Literacies: Talk, Read, Sing, Create Through Play Every Day.

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Perspectives and Provocations in Early Childhood Education, is a journal of the Early Childhood Education Assembly of the National Council of Teachers of English. The journal focuses on early literacies pedagogies within a variety of communities.

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"I feel terrible...": Storying Power Differentials Across Relationships in the Elementary English Language Arts Classroom (Cassie J. Brownell) Nos Pertenecíamos: Finding Community in a Summer...

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This research article by PCoE Regional Coordinator, Luigi Iannacci, raises questions about literacies pedagogies that value cultural and linguistic diversity in early years spaces.

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Curriculum, Diversity, Promising Practices, PERSPECTIVES Teaching PRACTICES THAT FOSTER MULTILINGUAL LITERACY Intake
Responding to Culturally and Linguistically Diverse students' literacy and identity
A multilingual environment
Understanding cultural and Linguistic Diversity (CLD) as an asset has discursively been present within Canadian society, and by extension Canadian schools, for many years. Although generally accepted as one of the grand narratives that Canadians take pleasure in celebrating, what has not been well established is how Canadian society and schools are responding to this increased diversity. Our collective response to diversity within our schools is, however, inarguably vital given the assimilative orientation Canadian schools have historically taken. The need for effective responses to CLD is further demonstrated when we consider our current socioeconomic context. North American educational settings are more culturally and linguistically diverse than they have ever been as a result of international restructuring and a subsequent increase in labour market mobility.[1] A significant number of children in Canadian classrooms located in urban centers now speak a first language (L1) other than English or French. Ontario alone has experienced a 29 percent increase of ESL students within elementary schools since 2000.[2] Several researchers have noted that despite these changing demographics, there is a dearth of research about culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) children in educational contexts and disparity in providing for them.[3]

This article contributes to the more recent and growing body of research that addresses gaps in the provision of responsive education for CLD children in Canadian elementary schools. Drawing on research that explored CLD children's literacy and identity in two Grade 1 and two Kindergarten classrooms over the course of a school year, it identifies, describes and explores culturally responsive multilingual and multicultural pedagogies, and articulates various ways of approaching linguistic and cultural incorporation within diverse classrooms.
Multilingual texts
My research was informed by multiliteracies and critical perspectives. Multiliteracies theory conceptualizes literacy as a social practice and socially mediated. Meaning making is understood as varied and dependent upon different cultural, social or professional contexts. Meaning is also made in increasingly multimodal ways, and as such involves interactions with written, visual, verbal and non-verbal communication and objects.[4]Within this dynamic and generous conceptualization, literacy is understood and positioned as multiple, expansive and contextually specific. A critical perspective as it relates to fostering multilingual literacy, therefore, not only values and develops proficiency in speaking, writing or reading in two or more languages but also fosters the ability to control and choose discourses in various contexts and understands the connections between power and language. During the year-long ethnography I conducted within two Kindergarten and two Grade 1 classrooms, I drew on these perspectives to analyze the literacy practices and events that I observed.

First, it is essential to accurately identify languages spoken by students. Based on my research, official student record information must be understood as fallible. The processes by which schools gather data and the conditions parents encounter during the initial information-gathering meeting with the school secretary can create inaccuracies. It is therefore essential for schools to review the initial intake process and form they currently use with and for CLD students. These preliminary meetings communicate a great deal about what is valued in schools and how languages and cultures are positioned within a school's culture. Whenever possible, a translator who speaks the same language as the parent(s) should be present to assist with the information gathering and aid with the welcoming and transition of the parent(s) and their child to the school community. Further, despite whatever mechanisms are put in place to collect initial information about citizenship and language(s) spoken at home, it would benefit a teacher to ask students, older sisters and brothers (if any) and parents about first languages spoken at home for any CLD child in their classroom.

Once students' first languages have been identified, teachers can create multilingual environmental print consisting of common items (e.g. blackboard, window, shelf) and concepts (e.g. colours, numbers) found in the classroom. Online sources can be used to translate English words into different languages. Whenever possible, involve students in writing and placing multilingual environmental print in the classroom and provide opportunities for them to verbalize the words in their first languages. During this process it is also valuable to make cognates explicit and ask students to do the same. (Cognates are words that are similar in terms of the CLD student's first language and English - e.g. fruit/fruta is an English/Spanish cognate). Multilingual posters, alphabets of the languages spoken by class members, the names of children in their own languages and in English, product packaging in various languages, common phrases in various languages, and work done by students in their first language can also be displayed in the classroom to create a multilingual print environment.

What is key is to immerse students in an environment where various languages are used purposefully and are part of the instructional space. However, multilingual or multicultural window dressing should be avoided. In various schools I have visited, I have noticed posters with the word "Welcome" written in large letters in the middle of the poster, surrounded by the word for "welcome" written in smaller font in various other languages. These posters are almost never at a height where children can read them, but rather placed at adult eye level. Further, their effectiveness in communicating that languages other than English are valued is highly questionable.
Codeswitching
Bilingual books written in both English and first languages are purposeful and effective multilingual texts for use in read-aloud, independent and home reading programs. Bilingual books can be versions of titles that are commonly found in elementary classrooms as well as speciality titles that deal with culturally specific content and/or situations that may be relevant to a variety of cultures and available in a variety of languages (e.g. English with Albanian, English with Arabic etc.). Another Story is a Canadian bookstore that carries a variety of bilingual book titles.

Teachers can purposefully draw on their students' first languages and thus reposition CLD students as knowledgeable communicators.
More strategies
When using bilingual books during read-aloud or shared reading sessions, students who speak the language the book is written in can sit beside the teacher and either read what is written in their first language or translate what the teacher has read in English. If they translate, the teacher can follow the text written in their first language and look for words that resemble what they have said while pointing these words out to the student and the rest of the class. Most of the CLD students in my study were eager to participate in this shared read aloud. In fact, this practice arose as a result of one student's desire to demonstrate her knowledge of Spanish to her classmates. She asked to sit next to me and showed me how to incorporate her into the shared reading I was conducting with a Spanish/English bilingual book. I replicated the practice with other students, who also became my co-teachers. This practice repositioned them within their classrooms from "quiet," "shy" children who "didn't speak English" to classmates who possessed assets that became explicit and instructionally relevant. They were no longer solely reduced to what they were learning (i.e. "ESL") but rather seen as capable communicators who knew another language that other students both valued and were interested in learning. CLD children began to be understood as having something they could share and teach.
CONCLUSION
In making linguistic assets further explicit within a classroom, literacy instruction can be organized in ways that enable students to create their own bilingual books or texts. Although none of my participants had an opportunity to create a complete bilingual narrative, some of them wrote and drew various "identity texts" (texts in which CLD students have invested their identities and reflect who they are).[5] These texts mirrored the structure of the bilingual books they were being exposed to and could have been extended into a complete book. One student, for example, valued the bilingual books I read so much that she asked for her own copy of several titles. She relayed to me that she was reading them to her mom at home and therefore teaching her mom English as well as continuing to develop her ability to read Spanish. Her immersion and interest in bilingual books developed to the point where she created a text that followed the structure of these books. In the identity text she created, she drew a picture of me and underneath wrote "Man" and then her phonetic hypothesis of the word "Hombre." Another student in the study wrote her name in a proud and pronounced way across the page and then made declarative statement about who she was: "I am an artist." On top of the powerful sentence was a self-portrait of her at work at her art.

In order to further develop classrooms spaces that are responsive to and respectful of the multilingual and multicultural assets students bring with them into the classroom, acceptance of codeswitching (CS) must be made explicit and recognized as a viable pedagogic resource. Classrooms that allow for CS (switching between two languages) set conditions that allow students learning English to renegotiate their "less than" and deficient school identities by showcasing and instructionally drawing on the linguistic resources they possess. When this occurred within the classrooms I observed, children whose first language was English began to understand that their often quiet "ESL" classmates had fully developed thoughts they could express in their first language, but were simply not as proficient in the privileged code. Incidents that required them to use their classmate's first language further reinforced this understanding.
Photo: Christopher Futcher (iStock)First published in Education Canada, January 2014 EN BREF - Cet article faisant référence à une étude ethnographique d'un an réalisée par le chercheur, examine la littératie et l'identité d'enfants d'origines culturelles et linguistiques diverses dans deux classes de maternelle et deux classes de première année. Les constatations sont issues de la pédagogie plurilinguistique et des perspectives critiques. L'article identifie, décrit et explore des littératies et des pédagogies multilingues et multiculturelles démontrant l'enseignement adapté à la culture. Différentes façons d'aborder l'intégration linguistique et culturelle dans des classes diversifiées sont examinées. Les pratiques de littératie favorisant cette adaptation sont ciblées afin de proposer aux éducateurs un répertoire d'approches susceptibles de les aider à tenir compte efficacement d'une diversité culturelle et linguistique croissante dans les milieux scolaires canadiens.
Teachers frequently question their ability to allow for and foster CS when they don't speak the language their students speak. Many of the events I observed during my research confirmed that it is not necessary for the teacher to know the languages of their students (an impossibility) but rather to be open to negotiating what their interactions and literacy curriculum in general looks and sounds like. This meant, for example, that some teachers asked CLD students to use and/or teach specific words and phrases to them that were relevant to the classroom. One teacher asked a student who spoke Albanian to do a head count of students in her first language out loud to verify if everyone was present. During a lesson on the letter "e," the same teacher elicited responses from students in their first language about various illustrations of things featured in a picture dictionary that all began with "e." Teachers can purposefully come in and out of English during their interactions and lessons in order to draw on their students' first languages and thus reposition CLD students as knowledgeable communicators. Improvisation and situated decision-making is key to instructionally engaging and including CLD students while validating and occasionally using their first language to support their English language learning. More importantly, students' identities can become valued and pronounced within the classroom as opposed to being hidden and silenced. Encouraging codeswitching can therefore perhaps improve learning conditions for CLD learners while creating classroom spaces that allow them to be and become who they are.

There are many other practices teachers can develop that access and instructionally draw on CLD students' first languages. One example is inviting students to bring in a word of the day that is meaningful to them, and then having the rest of the class learn the word and talk about its meaning and cultural connotations.[6] One of the mothers I interviewed during my study mentioned similar practices when discussing what might have helped her daughter feel welcomed and accepted in school. Teachers can also generate a list of words that are commonly used and important to classroom life (e.g. bathroom, coats, lunch) and keep the list in an accessible place. One of the Kindergarten teachers in my study had this list of words laminated and at hand in several key places around the classroom so that she could understand and communicate essential words and phrases. Again, the Internet can serve as a translation resource. When CLD parents volunteer to work in classrooms, teachers can make explicit how accepted codeswitching is and encourage them to CS or converse with students who share their first language. Parent volunteers can also be encouraged to share their language and culture with the class, and to help students who share their first language and culture create bilingual books and other identity texts that can also be shared with the class and celebrated.

The approaches and practices offered throughout this article are by no means all-encompassing, definitive, prescriptive or examples of "best practices" (a problematic and dangerous concept). What is offered is meant to provide educators with ideas that can assist them in responding to the increasing cultural and linguistic diversity they are experiencing within their schools and classrooms. How these practices are integrated and used should remain flexible, malleable and ultimately responsive to and respectful of the CLD students we have the good fortune of teaching. Multilingual, multicultural literacy practices should continue to evolve and be recognized as sound pedagogy that extends classroom language barriers, increases the status of students' first languages and ultimately, opens up identity options available to CLD students within schools.

If we are genuinely interested in being able to respond to the rich cultural and linguistic diversity of our ever-changing classrooms, then we need to consider and experiment with a variety of practices that value and cultivate who these students are and what they bring to our schools and classrooms.

[1] Nicholas C. Burbules and Carlos Alberto Torres, Introduction to Globalization and Education: Critical perspectives (New York: Routledge, 2000); Jim Cummins, "Diverse Futures: Rethinking the image of the child in Canadian schools," presented at the Joan Pederson Distinguished Lecture Series, University of Western Ontario (April 2005); Festus E. Obiakor, "Research on Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Populations," Multicultural Perspectives 3, no. 4 (2001): 5-10.

[2] People for Education, The Annual Report on Ontario's Public Schools, (2007). www.peopleforeducation.com/adx/aspx/adxGetMedia.aspx?DocID=634

[3] R. Falconer and D. A. Byrnes, "When Good Intentions Are not Enough: A response to increasing diversity in an early childhood setting," Journal of Research in Childhood Education 17, no. 2 (2003): 188-200; Carola Suárez-Orozco, "Afterword: Understanding and serving the children of immigrants," Harvard Educational Review 71, no. 3 (2001): 579-589; Kelleen Toohey, Learning English at School: Identity, social relations and classroom practice (Great Britain: Multilingual Matters Ltd., 2000).

[4] Nancy Hornberger, "Multilingual Literacies, Literacy Practices, and the Continuation of Biliteracy," In M. Martin-Jones and K. Jones (Eds.), Multilingual Literacies (Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins Pub. Co., 2000), 353-369; James Paul Gee, "The New Literacy Studies: From 'socially situated' to the work of the social," in D. Barton, M. Hamilton and R. Ivanič (Eds.), Situated Literacies: Reading and writing in context (London: Routledge, 2000), 180-196.

[5] Jim Cummins, "Diverse Futures."

[6] Jim Cummins, Negotiating Identities: Education for empowerment in a diverse society (CA: California Association for Bilingual Education, 2001).

Meet the Expert(s)

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This article draws on a year-long ethnography conducted by the researcher that explored Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CLD) children's literacy and identity in two Kindergarten and two Grade 1 classrooms. Insights are informed by multiliteracies pedagogy and critical perspectives. The article identifies, describes and explores multilingual and multicultural literacies and pedagogies which demonstrate culturally responsive instruction.

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PCoE Network Coordinator, Tara-Lynn Scheffel with colleague Lori McKee offer universal and intergenerational-themed picturebook recommendations for early childhood educators to use across contexts.

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Keywords: intergenerational; early childhood classrooms; literacy; children's picturebooks; literacy practices

Abstract

This article offers picturebook recommendations for early childhood educators to use with young children across contexts (e.g., early childhood
classrooms, intergenerational settings) as a starting point to support intergenerational programming.

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Keywords: intergenerational; early childhood classrooms; literacy; children's picturebooks; literacy practices This article offers picturebook recommendations for early childhood educators to use with young children across contexts (e.g., early childhoodclassrooms, intergenerational settings) as a starting point to support intergenerational programming.

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Related to the above handbook, this pamphlet for families contains ideas for promoting literacy in every day.

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This website comes from a group of Canadian language and literacy researchers and students. LLRC's website contains information for educators interested in Canadian scholarship in language and literacy. Provocative is LLRC's position statement on literacy assessment, both because it has much to say about assessment as well as the nature of the literacies being assessed.

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Language and Literacy Researchers of Canada (LLRC) is a special interest group (SIG) within the Canadian Association for Curriculum Studies (CACS), which is in turn a constituent association of the Canadian Society for the Study of Education (CSSE). LLRC is comprised of individuals who are interested in language and literacy education and research, particularly, but not exclusively, within the Canadian context.

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This literature review addresses the question, what is literacy in the early the years? Educator and librarian, Rosamund Stooke was commissioned by the Child and Youth Network in 2010 to conduct a review of literacy in family and community settings. Now, over a decade later, this review is still used to help educators and others make sense of the various ways that literacy is defined and supported.

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Lotje Hives with PCoE Network Coordinator Tara-Lynn Scheffel, offer recommendations for picturebooks to connect with young children and foster literacy enjoyment.

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A preschooler's day is a world of adventure fuelled by an unbridled imagination. Sparked by curiosity, they set out to discover anything and everything new while sharing about their discoveries. Young children's learning develops through making and testing theories continually. It's exhilarating work!

When adults notice children's ideas and theories as well as name and build children's vocabulary through talk, or when they encourage children to make connections to previous experiences as they read together, they help nourish positive attitudes about literacy.

For those slow-down moments when you as a child's caregiver are looking for ways to model and enjoy literacy together, one cost-friendly idea is to create a nook or nest (indoors or out) for reading. Your book nest can be as uncomplicated as gathering a sheet, some clothespins, the couch cushions and a couple of chairs.

Loose parts play

What is the source of all the excitement? When the child, with you alongside, can use these items to design a little tent or cushion nest, they are engineering spaces of their very own. The child is experiencing what early childhood development experts call loose parts play: through manipulating free and loose parts, children delight in becoming architects of spaces they share.

With loose parts play, items can be used in multiple ways for designing, creating and testing prototypes. Every peg point and toppled pillow will offer problem-solving scenarios that call for solutions. And let's not forget that with some pillows and soft blankets inside, the opportunity arises for the caregiver to lay back and relax!

Next, consider having your child fill an old cereal box, basket or cloth tote full of their favourite books to explore in their newly designed space.

Books for your cozy space

These seven titles are packed full of adventure and are worth a look at your local library. You may find your child asks to read favourite books over and over, celebrating the joy of reading!

1. Knuffle Bunny

By Mo Willems (2005, Walker Books Ltd.)

Picture books with human characters offer opportunities to explore pro-social behaviour. In Knuffle Bunny, a family's trip to the laundromat leads to mapping their way through the neighbourhood and exploring how faces and body language express how people feel. In the streetscape depicted, your child may recognize what early childhood educators talk about as environmental print - signs, labels and logos visible in our everyday world. Children's early curiosity about text and signs all around them is part of a first stage of reading awareness. They will begin to read the environmental print as they recognize shapes, colours, numbers and letters.

By Antoinette Portis (2006, HarperCollins)

Children see beauty in the items that adults might otherwise discard. In a time when it is necessary to encourage environmental sustainability and ecological understandings, what's stopping us from slowing down and offering some otherwise recyclable materials like boxes and other found materials to become robots, wands, puppets, tents and playhouses? invites predicting what's next and chiming in with each page as your child imagines "It's not a box, it's a ..."

3. Lost in the Woods

By Carl R. Sams II and Jean Stoick (2005, Carl R. Sams II Photography)

Children can imagine themselves in other places and spaces sparked by rich illustrations in picture books. Lost in the Woods takes you on an imaginary journey into the outdoors and is a perfect story to spark connections and questions about the natural world. You might even imagine you are camping in your reading tent!

4. My Heart Fills With Happiness

By Monique Gray Smith (2018, Orca Book Publishers)

This book, by an author of Cree, Lakota and Scottish ancestry, is also available in a bilingual Plains Cree edition, Ni Sâkaskineh Mîyawâten Niteh Ohcih translated by Mary Cardinal Collins. It offers a wonderful opportunity to talk about emotions as it explores the concept of what makes people happy and how people express joy in different ways. The author narrates moments such as the smell of warm bannock, providing opportunities to discuss distinct aspects of Indigenous cultures or histories, as well as the similarities children and families share.

5. Changes, Changes

By Pat Hutchins (1971, Aladdin)

A timeless, wordless book, Changes, Changes invites children to explore how building blocks and little figures can be used to tell endless stories. Each page invites discussion and creates opportunities for problem solving, language development, creativity, mathematics and more. Add some blocks to your reading nook to retell a story, recreate the illustrations or build new designs!

6. Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed

By Eileen Christelow (1989, Clarion Books)

Books that invite children to sing, dance and do actions with favourite childhood songs or chants are always popular. With Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed, perhaps the reading tent sets the stage for an impromptu performance entertaining a friendly, appreciative audience.

7. If You Hold a Seed

By Elly MacKay (2013, Running Press Kids)

The journey of a seed through the seasons comes to life in this cyclical story that begins with a young child wishing upon a seed. The text and illustrations in If You Hold a Seed will spark thoughtful discussions about hopes, dreams, wonders and wishes.

A reading nest, some favourite books and a sprinkle of giggles: a recipe sure to cook up a healthy love of reading, with moments of pure joy on the side.

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7 favourite books for connecting with your preschooler

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A preschooler's day is a world of adventure fuelled by an unbridled imagination. Sparked by curiosity, they set out to discover anything and everything new while sharing about their discoveries. Young children's learning develops through making and testing theories continually. It's exhilarating work!

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This webpage from New Zealand researcher Jayne White focuses on dialogic pedagogies with two-year olds. Be sure to scroll to the bottom of the page to view a video of Jayne providing an overview of the work.

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Lead researcher Jayne White introduces the study, its origins and insights.

Press the blue button to meet the Avenues Kindergarten teaching team:

Key Features

Number of Children: 7 x 2 year-olds; 11 x 3 year-olds; 17 x 4 year-olds; 1 x 5 year-old

Teacher Qualifications: 100% Qualified

Access to Avenues Kindergarten here

Click the following button to meet the Gate Pa teaching team:

Age composition of children: 1 x 1 year-old, 7 x 2 year-olds, 6 x 3 year-olds, 9 x 4 year-olds

Ratios: 1:1 for infant, 5:5 for other age groups

Group size: 23 children in total on the day of recording

Teacher Qualifications: 85% Qualified

Key Features:

Teachers used to see two year-olds as a problem. Now they see their presence and participation as an invitation to learning dialogues

Annette Rogers

Meet Annette Rogers:

Combined with a strong push to gain status within the wider educational sector, narrow interpretations of pedagogy perpetuated a discourse that positioned the 'preschool' as a learning environment that was not suitable for two year-olds. As there can now be no denying the marked increase of numbers of two year-olds in 'preschools' ( White, Peter & Ranger, 2016; White, Peter, Rockel, Sims & Kumeroa, 2017), this discourse illuminates the impact of extant policy and attitudes on teachers in their pedagogical practice and poses a challenge to the education of those two year-olds now located within settings traditionally oriented to older children.

Two year-olds have been overlooked in policy

Annette Rogers

Dialogic methodology underpinned our research. This approach emphasises all forms of communication as potential dialogues of meaning-making.

Click the Methodology button to listen to Jayne explain our approach:

Methodology

We used a combination of different cameras to capture our dialogues with two year-olds, their peers, and their teachers.

Video handheld/Swivl tracking camera (following a two year-old)

Video glasses (worn by a teacher)

360 degree camera (filming the wider 'preschool' environment)

We videoed three different ways:

At every phase of the research we engaged in critical reflective dialogues as we began to see more and more.

We entered our video footage into V-note and coded the different types of language used as well as our understandings of their significance for learning.

As we have watched the coding we have had many, many conversations about our different interpretations. Every time we sat down we ended up having a professional conversation about something we had seen on the video and how we came to a shared understanding of meaning out of this. It has greatly increased our relationships as a team, and now with children as we work together to understand and engage effectively with children
Participating teacher

Sometimes in this resource you will see more than one visual image used at a time. The purpose of this polyphonic approach is to broaden the visual field so you, like the teachers in this study, can 'see' more.

Click to enlarge a summary of our research design below:

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Lead researcher Jayne White introduces the study, its origins and insights.

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This link takes you to the website of the journal, Language & Literacy is the official journal of the Language and Literacy Researchers of Canada. Visitors can see at a glance the range of literacies-related scholarship in the country.

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research and conceptual discussions in literacy and language learning

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This research article by PCoE Network Coordinator, Tara-Lynn Scheffel with colleague Lotje Hives, highlights a Kindergarten case study in Northern Ontario with a focus on nurturing curiosity in the outdoors. Literacy invitations support the learning shared.

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Oh, to be a child again! To find joy in the newness of each day and be in awe of what lies waiting to be discovered.

As researchers, through a case study, we wanted to learn more about the ways one kindergarten class in northern Ontario nurtured curiosity in the outdoors. We invited the kindergarten community including educators, families and teacher candidates to share their experiences with us.

The kindergarten team moved alongside the children to look for evidence or traces of their curiosity and to document this with photos, quotes and video.

The power of documentation is that it invites reflection on moments of learning, and on the theories that children are developing about the world they live in.

It is tremendously validating for children to feel "heard," to know that what they are curious about is interesting and important.

A snow and water investigation

Through investigating water and snow, this kindergarten community experienced the benefits of learning in the outdoors.

For this group of kindergarten learners, the transformation from winter to spring sparked a noticeable curiosity about water and the children expressed this in different ways.

The children were invigorated by the ever-changing conditions of the outdoors. With all of their senses awakened, they marvelled and made connections to understand themselves in their world.

Tools and loose parts invited the children to explore, problem solve and innovate in social ways.

The children demonstrated a desire to move snow with reused containers, spoons, shovels and donated toboggans. The kindergarten team invited families to contribute to the collection of items.

One child took the lead to shovel the doorways of the school in winter, and to co-ordinate the piling and moving of snow and ice on toboggans to transform their schoolyard playscape.

Over the days and weeks that followed, sparked by making pathways for water outside, groups of children experimented with tubes and marbles, designing like architects and engineers.

Throughout the water investigation, the kindergarten team heard children wonder, question and share their working theories:

"Where is the water coming from?"

"Look how it's following the pathways! It's getting stuck over here."

"Come follow my tracks!"

"I'm using the shovel to make a path in the mud."

"I can see through the ice...It's like a window!"

The children expressed curiosity in multiple ways. Some chose to study the water closely with puzzled expressions, some shared a flurry of questions about water while others stomped and splashed with wild abandon.

One child with rubber boots, teetering on the edge of fascination, dipped a toe at the edge of a puddle, crunching the frozen edge delightedly.

The kindergarten team observed the children investigating with persistent fascination about how they live and interact with water, how it changes state and how it flows.

Educators help children make connections

Energized by their pervasive curiosity with melting snow, water, pipes and flooding (indoors and out!), the children were guided by their interests, and the educators named the learning that revealed itself through this journey.

"I noticed that the students were more engaged because the learning was connected to something in the real world." (teacher candidate)

The kindergarten team selected books that honoured the children's interests and challenged their thinking. One example, Water's Children, invited them to think about themselves in relationship with water and the world.

The learners' experiences within the outdoor environment also provided opportunity to explore global understandings such as how water moves, and how our lives are connected by water.

Such learning develops empathy and understanding towards each other and the natural world.

The kindergarten children paired up with older learners to design posters with powerful messages about caring for and protecting water. These were then posted throughout the school in an effort to impact the thinking and actions of others in the school community.

While investigating outdoors, children demonstrated reasoning and proving, reflecting, selecting tools and strategies, connecting, representing and communicating.

The kindergarten educator team valued how the natural environment offers something unique, something different and something challenging every day.

What did our families and educators notice?

In speaking to how children benefit from learning actively in the outdoors, families, in surveys, said:

"They run, jump, hop, skip, dodge all on their own. They look at their learning area differently and appreciate the freedom and take in all this learning with wide open eyes."

"We love experiencing the world through nature. We all share the planet and have a special role to play."

"They benefit from fresh air as well as a change of scenery..."

"We love sunshine and vitamin D!"

"...children who play outdoors are healthier, happier, less stressed and more creative."

Together, educators and families noted many benefits including how the children were filled with wonderings and curiosity and became scientists, explorers, mathematicians, artists and storytellers of their world.

Educators noticed that in the outdoor setting, the integration of curriculum areas and teamwork emerged:

"How amazing it was to connect math, geography, and science to one experience...outside." (Anne, teacher candidate)

"...it opened up so many possibilities for learning... the awareness of conservation of water, the teamwork that had to go into achieving the goal." (Laura, teacher)

"Each interaction between child and nature is unique and offers a fresh, new perspective." (Lotje, kindergarten teacher)

Learning through inquiry was central to these experiences.

Noticing, naming and nudging at barriers

When we asked parents if they perceived any barriers to outdoor play, parents identified concerns such as "sun exposure without protection" and "bug bites that are potentially dangerous."

Educators identified barriers related to weather preparedness, safety and risks as well as the unpredictability of inquiry-based learning.

Of particular note, our case study revealed the many ways participants nudged at these potential barriers in support of the above benefits, with safety at the forefront.

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Learning in the snow: How children develop through all-weather outdoor play

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Oh, to be a child again! To find joy in the newness of each day and be in awe of what lies waiting to be discovered. As researchers, through a case study, we wanted to learn more about the ways one kindergarten class in northern Ontario nurtured curiosity in the outdoors.

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The Canadian Children's Book Centre offers suggested book lists, book news and tips for book selection all with a focus on Canadian authors and illustrators. The site further contains a section on books with social justice and diversity themes.

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The Canadian Children's Book Centre (CCBC) is a national, not-for-profit organization dedicated to encouraging, promoting and supporting the reading, writing, illustrating and publishing of Canadian books for young readers.

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Supporting New Zealand's early childhood curriculum the "useful resources" tab at the bottom of this webpage contains tools for thinking with language and literacies in ways that are multilingual, multimodal, and apt for Ontario educators.

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Dialogues about two year-old dialogues in 'Preschool'
This website, which includes a number of videos, represents a study that looked at how 2-year-olds operate in early childhood spaces and how kaiako might alter their practices to support learning for this age group. This research was led by Professor Jayne White, Waikato University.
Building oral language through storytelling
Christine Alford is an ECE teacher and 2016 CORE Education Efellow. Christine's research looked at ways in which materials and the arts can be used to promote storytelling for young children.
COMET - Talking Matters
Talking Matters is a community-wide initiative, run by the Auckland City Council , bringing together education, health, and social services with whānau to promote the importance of talking more and talking differently with children to maximise their potential.
Extending their language - expanding their world: Children's oral language (birth - 8 years)
Extending their language - expanding their world is a resource developed by the Education Review Office that explores effective pedagogical and leadership practices that promote children's oral language development. Leaders and kaiako need to know how children's oral language develops and recognise the ways both the curriculum design, and kaiako practice, can promote rich oral language learning. Examples of effective practice are provided to provoke early learning services to reflect on, and strengthen oral language practices in their setting.
Literacy practices - Education Review Office
These two literacy reports developed by ERO "highlight the variety of factors, activities and experiences that go into the development of children's early literacy skills". The two reports outline strategies for teaching, as well as examples of what literacy learning can look like across a range of early childhood services.
Much More than Words
Much More than Words is a resource developed by the Ministry of Education that provides information and ideas to support kaiako and parents to facilitate children's oral literacy development through the child's skills and interests.

"Children need the adults around them to actively support and encourage their communication development. The more we know about how to support and encourage, the more we can help children develop their communication skills through play and social conversations in real-life situations" (p. 4).
New Zealand Sign Language
Learn NZSL is a free learning portal on New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL). Download the NZSL dictionary onto your mobile device and get a word of the day in NZSL and te reo Māori.
On the path to literacy through a pair of shoes and smelly socks
An account of a teacher very effectively using a every day event - putting on socks and shoes - to have a playful conversation with a 2-year-old.
Oral language awareness
The Ministry has developed resources to support Oral Language Awareness and learning for parents, schools, and Early Childhood Centres. The resources include posters for schools and Early Childhood Centres and a pamphlet for parents. These resources form part of the Ministry's response to the recent ERO report titled Extending their language - Expanding their world: Children's oral language (birth - 8 years).

Hard copies can be ordered from the Ministry of Education warehouse at http://www.thechair.co.nz/.
Oral, visual, and written literacy - Kei Tua o Te Pae
Kei Tua o Te Pae provides excellent resources to support literacy teaching and learning.

"Children who have enjoyed the opportunity to talk, describe, argue, reason, justify, question, and explain will have developed language skills that predispose them to literacy with purpose, understanding and pleasure" (Book 17, Oral, visual, and written literacy). Two particular resources are:
Picking up the Pace
This research project delivered concentrated professional development in literacy instruction to groups of early childhood and new entrant teachers in decile one schools in Mangere and Otara. The outcome was a substantial lift in the reading and writing achievement of new entrants. Picking up the Pace was a component of the Early Childhood Primary Links via Literacy (ECPL) Project, which was part of a much broader project, Strengthening Education in Mangere and Otara (SEMO). This project aimed to raise achievement significantly among students in these two communities.

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Dialogues about two year-old dialogues in 'Preschool' This website, which includes a number of videos, represents a study that looked at how 2-year-olds operate in early childhood spaces and how kaiako might alter their practices to support learning for this age group. This research was led by Professor Jayne White, Waikato University.

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This website of the United Kingdom Literacy Association provides information on the group's literacy education activities, including a resources page. Be sure to check out UKLA's journal, Literacy.

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UKLA is a registered charity, which has as its sole object the advancement of education in literacy.

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This research brief identifies ways to think about literacies pedagogies with FNMI children and communities.

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The International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY Canada) has created a resource of 100 picture books by FNMI authors and illustrators. The recommendations range from board books to picture books and texts for older readers.

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IBBY Canada is pleased to present From Sea to Sea to Sea: Celebrating Indigenous Picture Books, a digital catalogue of 100 picture books by First Nations, Métis and Inuit authors and illustrators. The catalogue is available for download here.

Includes 100 recommended picture books by Indigenous authors, many illustrated by Indigenous artists, published in Canada over the last 25 years and currently in print.

Reflects the diverse cultures, perspectives, and experiences of Inuit, Métis and 29 First Nations.

Gives attention to picture books that promote Indigenous languages, with 15 different languages/dialects represented.

Features books for children of every age, ranging from board books to picture books for older readers.

It is our hope that teachers, librarians, readers and booksellers will use and share this list widely - across Canada and around the world - while continuing to read and update their collections of Indigenous picture books. Please join us in celebrating Indigenous picture books as widely as possible, using the hashtags #ReadIndigenous and #IndigiPictureBooks, and tagging @IBBYCanada!

Booksellers, for a list of the books in the catalogue, including ISBNs and prices, click here.

Read the IBBY Canada special edition newsletter all about the Indigenous Picture Books Collection here.

And please read about two friends of the Indigenous Picture Book Collection: Colette Poitras, Manager of Indigenous Public Library Outreach, Municipal Affairs, Government of Alberta - and the Edmonton Public Library.

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IBBY Canada is pleased to present From Sea to Sea to Sea: Celebrating Indigenous Picture Books, a digital catalogue of 100 picture books by First Nations, Métis and Inuit authors and illustrators. The catalogue is available for download here.

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Ideas for inspiring children with Steve Light's picturebooks are highlighted here in the Teaching Young Children magazine from the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC). The magazine requires a subscription but some ideas are shared on the NAEYC website.

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Steve Light's books are inspired by the interests and questions of the children in his preschool class. Read on for some more great ideas from Steve's books that will inspire the children in your classroom.

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With a focus on fantasy play, this commentary from Vivian Paley discusses the 3 F's (friendship, fantasy, and fairness) as constituents of early literacy.

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View of Commentary: On the Road to Literacy: Before the Three R's Come the Three F's

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Return to Article Details Commentary: On the Road to Literacy: Before the Three R's Come the Three F's

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Visit this site to stream videos of actors from the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) reading children's picture books. No fee or membership needed. You can choose to view the videos on SchoolTube, YouTube or Vimeo.

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A video discussing ways to support oral storytelling with young children. One strategy called "Doing Stories" involves listening for stories during play. Interviews with Judith Schickedanz, Vivian Paley and Theresa Bouley are included.

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CECE Early Childhood Videos at Eastern CT State U.

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Engaging Children in Oral Storytelling to Support Oral Language Development

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This article by Stacey Crooks, a settler observing a Traditional Aboriginal Parenting Program on Treaty 4 land in Canada, considers what an ethic of “robust respect” offers in countering dominant deficit thinking in family literacy programs.

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research and conceptual discussions in literacy and language learning

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VOOKS is a digital streaming service for children's storybooks. They currently offer a free 1-year subscription for teachers. Click below for the teacher appreciation link. Vimeo is the streaming provider used for this site.

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Oops!
You are lost, as lost as the little i who lost his dot.

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This webpage from NAEYC  includes strategies for engaging children's early writing experiences.

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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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This special issue takes as its starting point a six-year action research project (headed by Shelley Stagg Peterson of OISE) involving literacies, pedagogies, and children living in rural and Indigenous communities.

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Vol. 19 No. 2 (2017): Exploring Language, Literacy, and Identity Connections through Play-Based Education in Rural, Remote, and Indigenous Communities

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research and conceptual discussions in literacy and language learning

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Epic! is a digital library of e-books for children up to 12 years old. Visitors can search for books for specific age ranges, such as 5 & under, and there are both fiction and nonfiction texts available. Sign-up is required but use of Epic! is free for educators and librarians.

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Free for educators! Give students unlimited in-class access to the best books & videos on Epic

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A resource from Oxfordshire County Council's Early Years Advisory Team in the UK that includes resources for engaging children's writing in the early years.

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This article is based in observations from an intergenerational program to explore some of what can happen when children and elders come together to sing and make/view art together. The article provides a glimpse at thinking with multimodality and beyond monogenerational curriculum and pedagogies.

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The 49th Shelf is a Canadian Literature database that allows its users to find fiction and nonfiction titles and book lists based on genre, themes and more. It is a useful platform to learn about the Canadian literature available based on your and your children’s interests.

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Book Picks and News
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Book Picks and News Most Anticipated: Our Fall 2020 Books for Young Readers Preview Kid Sterling: Books on Jazz and Justice Ann Eriksson Launches BIRD'S EYE VIEW Notes from a Children's Librarian: Bird Books Launchpad: Grandmother School, by Rina Singh and Ellen Rooney Notes from a Children's Librarian: What I

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Written for families, this two page early writing resource by Penny Tassoni provides ideas for engaging children's mark-making at home.

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Outdoor Family Literacy experiences developed to support early years organizations in celebrating literacy in the NWT.

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The children’s book author, Mo Willems, is on Youtube. In his 30 minutes videos, Willems shares his creative drawing and writing process with children and invites everyone to join him in doodling together.

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Share your videos with friends, family, and the world

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Scholastic is temporarily sharing some of its online literacy resources for free.  The website offers virtual information and picture books, along with activities to extend children’s learning. These materials will be available for undetermined time, and a total of 20 daily lessons will be shared.

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