Transcript Fostering Young Children`s

Fostering Young Children’s
Interest in Literacy
By, Jennifer Brand
Concepts about the written
No I won’t
Language
• Through experiences in homes and
communities, children learn that with the
written word, comes meaning, and reading
and writing are used for a variety of
purposes important in everyday life.
• Children’s understanding of the importance
and use of reading and writing reflects how
written language is used in their own
community.
• Children have a wide range of literary
experiences and these experiences vary
from community to community
• The main purpose for written language
varies between communities. Some
purposes are:
– Practical tool - to pay bills
– Leisure-time activities
– debating social and political issues
• Important for primarygrade teachers to
demonstrate the
purposes of written
language and provide
opportunities for the
students to experiment
with reading and
writing in many areas
such as:
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Posting signs in the classroom
Making a list of classroom rules
Writing notes to students in the class
Exchanging messages with classmates
Reading and writing stories
Making posters about favorite books
Labeling classroom items
Drawing and writing journals
Reading and writing charts and maps
Reading and writing letters to pen pals
Writing notes to parents
Writing morning messages
Three types of concepts that young children acquire
from their experiences with varied materials are:
• Book - Orientation concepts
• Directional concepts
• Letter and Word concepts
• Concepts are acquired as children are read
to, read books themselves, through
demonstrations of writing, and through
writing activities.
Levels of the concept word
• Young children do not differentiate between words
and things.
• Children describe words as labels for things.
• Children understand that words carry meaning and
that stories are built from words
• More fluent readers and writers describe words as
autonomous elements having meaning of their
own and definite semantic and syntactic
relationships.
Environmental print
• When children begin word recognition, it
usually starts with symbols
(i.e. McDonalds).
Ways to increase the literacy
experiences of the children.
• The morning message - Demonstrates purpose and
correct writing patterns
• Literacy play centers - Demonstrates practical
purpose
• Sign in sheets - Practice writing names for genuine
purpose
• Mail Boxes: Exchanging messages with
classmates - Gives reading and writing social purpose
Bibliography
• Reading of the 21st, by Tompkins
• Microsoft Power Point Presentations
• Dr. Mi