Emergent Literacy

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Emergent Literacy

• Session 5
• M. Parr and T. Campbell
• EDUC 4114

2
Our Day at a Glance

• Energizer
• Emergent Literacy
• Read Alouds
• Video Shared Reading
• Adventure Animals
• For next class
• Bring a book that is either appropriate for
  reading aloud or shared reading use criteria
  presented/discussed in class

3
Energizer Twenty Questions

• 20 questions a great way to model, encourage
  and reinforce proper questioning techniques
• Students must guess the surprise that has been
  brought to school
• The student with the highest number of questions
  wins a prize at the end of the month - of
  questions is graphed on a daily basis (math
  integration) therefore the more obscure the
  surprise the better! Parents love it too! Always
  a challenge!

4
Emergent Literacy Perspective

• Children acquire written language with the same
  social constructivist process as oral language
• Literacy development is dependent on early
  literacy experiences (at home, childcare,
  pre-school, etc.)

5
Literacy Research

• Early Readers
• Purpose and Functions of Print
• Environmental Print
• Concepts About Print
• Early Forms of Reading and Writing
• Home Literacy Experiences

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Early Readers

• Children who read prior to school without formal
  instruction
• Curious, average intelligence, lots of questions
  about print, letters, words, early
  scribblers/name writers, loved stories
• Read to, over and over, questions were answered

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Purpose and Functions of Print

• Purpose and Functions of Print What does that
  say?
• Print differs from pictures
• Print has meaning
• Literacy has practical uses
• Graphic Awareness (environmental print
  logographic reading alphabet)

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Environmental Print
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Concepts about Print

• Brainstorm
• What concepts and skills do young children need
  to be familiar with in order to experience
  success in the early stages of learning how to
  read and write?
• How are these learned?

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Concepts about Print

• How to handle a book where the front (cover) of
  a book is, how to hold it, how to turn the pages.
• The print carries the message to be read, not the
  picture (although print and pictures are related
  in meaning-making).
• Directionality print is read (and written) in
  English from left to right beginning in the top
  right corner, then back to the left from the end
  of each line (the return sweep).
• One-to-one or word-by-word matching the ability
  to point to each word in such a way that it
  matches the words being uttered.
• The concepts of first and last where a word,
  line, sentence or entire text begins, and where
  it ends. Knowing about the spaces between words,
  in reading and writing, sometimes called word
  boundaries is normally established in grade one.

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Concepts about Print contd

• The orientation of print concept that upside
  down, or reversed, for example, is not
  conventional.
• The left page precedes the right when reading.
• Some familiarity with the basic uses of
  punctuation the period to stop, the question
  mark to ask, etc.
• The concepts of, and the relation between,
  capital letters (upper case) and small (lower
  case) letters.
• The concept of a letter.
• The concept of a word.
• The concept of a sentence.

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Concepts about Print

• These are all observable behaviours
• They are learned through demonstration, or
  modelling by an expert reader
• Some children require explicit, direct teaching
  of these concepts

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Early Forms of Reading and Writing

• Purposeful and rule-governed
• Children construct, test and perfect hypotheses
  about written language

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Early Forms of Reading

• Attending to pictures, not forming stories
• Attending to pictures, forming oral stories
• Attending to pictures, forming written stories
• Attending to print

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Early Forms of Writing

• Drawing as writing
• Scribble writing
• Letter-like units
• Non-phonetic letter strings
• Copying from environmental print
• Invented spelling
• Conventional spelling

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Ideal Home Literacy Experiences

• Access to Print and Books
• Adult Demonstration of Literacy Behavior
• Storybook Reading
• Active Engagement
• Independent Engagement
• Relationship to personal experience

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Ideal Home Literacy Experiences

• Language-rich world
• Dialogue with children
• Engagement in language play
• Attention drawn to print (signs) all around
• Childrens scribbles (writing) accepted as
  attempts to make meaning and communicate
• A love of reading nurtured

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Theory into Practice

• Print-rich classrooms
• Frequent and repeated readings
• Opportunities for independent reading
• Opportunities to use writing in play and
  functional situations
• Environmental print in the classroom
• Functional print connected to classroom
  activities
• Word building exercises
• Home-School Partnerships

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Environmental Print in the Classroom

• Environmental Print Alphabet Chart
• Environmental Print Folders
• Environmental Print Walks
• Individual Environmental Print Books
• Environmental Print Props for Dramatic Play

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Functional Print Connected to Classroom Activities

• Labels
• Lists (Inventory, Names)
• Directions
• Schedules
• Calendars
• Messages
• Sign-In and Sign-Up Lists
• Work Boards
• Brainstorms (Thematic, Sounds, etc.)

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Word Building Exercises

• Key Words (Musical Words, Claiming Words,
  Classifying Words, Making Alphabet Books,
  Illustrating, Finding Words Everywhere)
• Word Walls
• Word Books

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Fostering the Home-School Connection

• Parent volunteers
• Parents as partners active engagement
• Meaningful homework assignments
• Adventure Animals
• Curriculum nights
• Weekly newsletters
• School newsletters

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Five Levels of Support

• modeled
• ?
• shared
• ?
• interactive
• ?
• guided
• ?
• independent

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Read Aloud

• Teachers
• plan read aloud activities, using the six strands
  of language, that extend student comprehension
• example on following page
• read aloud books at students difficulty level
• model good strategies, fluent reading with
  expression, develop story comprehension, enrich
  concept and vocabulary development, encourage
  prediction, foster enthusiasm for reading

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How to Choose a Book for Read Aloud

• rhythmic language and refrains
• rhymes that propel the reader through the text
• predictable plots and strong characters
• memorable language the evokes mental images
• engaging illustrations including novelties, such
  as pop-ups, shape books, microchips, text hidden
  under flaps
• ordinary experiences that have an imaginative
  element
• appropriate to learners listening comprehension,
  but more complex than text designed for
  independent and shared reading

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Preparation for the Read Aloud

• Does the material provide adequate background
  information to enable students to understand the
  concepts that are explored?
• What tone of voice and manner should be used to
  provide a meaningful interpretation of the story?
• What are the points in the story where it would
  be appropriate to stop and have students predict
  what comes next?
• How should the reading be paced to ensure that
  students can process information and understand
  content? Students must have time to examine
  illustrations because of their contribution to,
  and extension of, the meaning.

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Before the Read Aloud

• Prompt to discuss the title, and examine the
  cover illustrations for clues about the story.
• Encourage students to draw on personal knowledge
  and experiences as they make predictions.

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During the Read Aloud

• Teachers assemble students close to facilitate
  viewing of the illustrations.
• Establish expectations for appropriate listening
  behaviours (should not be a problem if text was
  well chosen and engages the interest of the
  students).

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After the Read Aloud

• Discuss story elements, characterization, story
  patterns, aspects of particular interest.
• Provide opportunities to respond to the text
  through retelling, dramatization, etc.
• Review interesting words, repetitive sound
  patterns.

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The Jolly Pocket Postmanby Janet Allan Ahlberg
Grade 2/3
A
Listening Speaking
B
Reading Writing

• First reading
• predict story content, subsequent review of
  predictions to establish accuracy
• visualize characters during reading
• choose a favourite passage from the story
• discuss fantasy vs. reality in literature
• Second reading
• identify words that were unfamiliar either in
  context or spelling (i.e. tyre)
• categorize story events into main concepts
• discuss rhyming scheme as a tool for reading
  fluency and enhancing imagery

C
Viewing Visual Represent.

• complete an author study and read The Jolly
  Postman and The Jolly Christmas Postman
• read the other classic stories mentioned in the
  book (i.e. Wizard of Oz, Alice in Wonderland)
• read other rhyming texts or poetry
• explore and compare childrens literature from
  other international authors

• critique the concept of book pockets as a visual
  catalyst for the storys plot
• describe how the images used by the illustrator
  are similar or different from images that you
  would use?

• complete a response journal to document initial
  predictions and personal reactions to text
• write a letter to the author with any questions
  about the story
• add another segment to the book using a
  favourite character from another classic story
• write your own rhyming day in the life of..
  story

• prepare a dramatic performance of the book
• design puppets and/or masks that represent the
  main characters
• create a poster for the book
• construct a class web page for favourite stories
  and incorporate scanned images from the text

• retell story sequence
• discuss physical layout of book in terms of ease
  of reading and interest
• compare characters behaviours and personalities
  to those in their book of origin
• describe how another classic tale might be
  incorporated into this story
• ask Would you like to read another book by
  this author? Explain why or why not.

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Shared Reading

• teachers and students read books together
  (sometimes enlarged) teacher reads, students
  follow joining in repetitive patterns, promotes
  reading strategies, increases awareness of print,
  builds sight word vocabulary, develops fluency,
  increases comprehension
• consider what happens before, during, and after
  reading
• Video

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Emergent and Shared Reading

• In emergent and early shared reading, the teacher
  introduces and reads an enlarged book or a text
  of which each child has a copy. During the
  reading, the teacher guides students by pointing
  to each word as it is read this encourages them
  to attend to the print as the carrier of the
  storys message and re-enforces concepts about
  print. Upon re-reading of the text, students may
  participate in choral reading for all or part of
  the book. This strategy encourages emergent
  readers to model the behaviour of real readers,
  provides the social safety support of a group
  and creates a body of known books that children
  can use for independent reading and resources for
  writing and word study. (Toronto District School
  Board, 2000)

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Developing Junior Stage

• In the developing junior stage, shared reading
  allows for the modelling of fluent oral reading
  and appropriate problem solving strategies to
  construct meaning for an expanded repertoire of
  text including poetry, music, anthology, and
  expository.

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Before Shared Reading Preparing

• Choose an appropriate book or passage, using
  large print or overhead projector, for small
  group or whole class, with specific reading
  strategies/skills in mind.

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How to Choose a Book for Shared Reading

• immediate interest for students
• strong story line with accessible structure
• predictable language
• rhythm, rhyme, and repetition
• large, clear print
• one or two lines of print per page
• conventional placement of print
• complete sentences/ideas per page
• strong, supportive illustrations
• surprise ending
• appropriate vocabulary

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During Shared Reading Reading

• Teacher introduces book and leads
  discussion/predictions based on the cover and
  title and author.
• Teacher discusses the skill/strategy he/she
  wishes to model or focus on during this session.
  Any special features of the text (e.g., genre,
  use of illustrations or graphics, unfamiliar
  language or vocabulary) are reviewed at this
  time.
• Teacher reads the book with enthusiasm in its
  entirety while modelling expression and enjoyment
  throughout the reading.
• Teacher models the focus strategy (e.g.,
  maintaining fluency while paying attention to
  punctuation.)

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After Shared Reading Responding

• Class discusses the content of the story and
  revisits initial predictions.
• Personal responses to the text are encouraged and
  may take the form of oral conversations, writing
  or visual representations through drawing or
  symbols.
• Dramatization of story may be appropriate.

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After Shared Reading Re-Reading

• Teacher re-reads the book and students join in
  reading.
• Teacher re-reads the book and students
  participate in choral reading while focusing on
  specific strategy/skill (e.g., punctuation
  (question marks, exclamation marks, quotation
  marks) and text features (italics, enlarged font,
  arrangement of words, speech balloons).

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After Shared Reading Exploring

• Teacher/students add new words to the word wall
  and personal reading logs
• Students sequence the events of the story
  (Retell).
• Teacher prepares mini-books of the story and
  students re-read with partners.
• Students listen to a taped reading of the story
  as they follow along in their individual book.
• Students respond in written, dramatic, or visual
  form.

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After Shared Reading Assessment

• Conference with students, individually or in
  small groups, listening to them retell the story.
• Listen to each child read a portion of the text.
• Evaluate the understanding of story sight words,
  letter-sound relationships and sentence structure
  by dictating the story while making deliberate
  errors.
• Keep a teacher journal to record activities,
  strategies and observations that were most useful
  for individual students.

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Resources

• Toronto District School Board, A Literacy Guide
  for Teachers Teaching Children to Read and Write