Early Literacy in Infants and Toddlers

1. Early Literacy in Infants and Toddlers Idaho Association for the Education of Young Children Regional Conference Coeur d’Alene, Idaho October 19, 2013

2. Your Presenter Staci Shaw Other Read to Me Coordinators: Stephanie Bailey-White Erica Compton VISTA: Julie Armstrong

3. Who we are… The Idaho Commission for Libraries assists libraries to build the capacity to better serve their clientele. Our vision is for all parents and caregivers to nurture their children’s early literacy skills, and for all children to develop as independent readers and become lifelong learners. Libraries.idaho.gov/read-to-me-resources

4. Be aware of current research relating to early literacy, vocabulary development, and access to print materials Be able to incorporate six early literacy skills children must develop in order to become successful readers into curriculum Be able to share talking points with parents about the importance of early literacy Learn about free resources available from ICfL and local libraries to help support development of early literacy skills Outcomes As a result of the presentation today, I hope you will:

5. Agenda • What is early literacy? • Development of Six Early Literacy Skills in Infants and Toddlers • Resources • @ your library • Q and A

6. “Early Literacy” What children know about reading and writingbeforethey learn to read and write.

7. IRI scores in 2012 show that approximately 19% of children entering Kindergarten did not recognize three or more letters of the alphabet. Another 25% recognized fewer than 11 letters. IRI scores in 2012 show that 27% of low-income children entering kindergarten (those receiving free or reduced lunch rates) did not recognize three or more letters. Another 27% recognized fewer than 11 letters. In Idaho “Proficient” on the kindergarten Idaho Reading Indicator (IRI) is knowing 11 or more letters.

8. Family poverty is significantly associated with lower reading achievement scores for children, and Idaho has a high percentage of families living in poverty. In Idaho In 2011, over 55% of infants born in Idaho received Women Infant Children (WIC) services. (Idaho Division of Public Health, Bureau of Vital Records and Health Statistics)

9. The development of early literacy skills in a child’s life can better prepare that child for success in reading when he or she enters school. Children who do not have early literacy experiences before they begin school start behind and tend to stay behind (the Matthew Effect). Children who are not reading on grade level by the end of first grade have a 1 in 8chance of catching up without costly direct intervention. Some key findings…

10. Reading scores have important implications for later achievement. Basic readers are more than twice as likely as proficient readers to fail to graduate from high school. Below basic readers are almost six times as likely to fail to graduate. Implications Only 33% of Idaho’s fourth graders scored proficient or higher on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP); 36% scored at the basic level and 31% below basic.

11. Why is it important for children to get ready to read beforethey start school? Children who start kindergarten with good pre-reading skills have an advantage. They are ready to learn to read.

12. What do children need to learn to become good readers? To become successful readers, children need to: • Learn a code • Understand its meaning

13. Aa Bb Cc DdEe Ff GgHh Ii JjKkLl Mm < / * # > + \ ** [ = ) ] ~ NnOo Pp QqRr Ss TtUu Vv Ww Xx YyZz : ]] { ++ } // ^ ! [[ (( >> \\ | [ *<: }><#. Reading is learning the code.

14. What do children need to know before they can learn to read? What is decoding? • Noticing print • Knowing letter names and sounds • Hearing the sounds that make up words

15. Reading is more than decoding words. Good readers understand the meaning of what they read. Meg is hipple when she roffs with her mom. Reading is understanding the meaning.

16. What do children need to know before they can learn to read? What is comprehension? • Knowing what words mean (vocabulary) • Understanding the meaning of printed language

17. Help children be ready to read with simpleactivities every day. Five simple practices help children get ready to read:

18. Early Learning eGuidelines • Provides detailed guidelines and strategies for early childhood development • Is for parents, child caregivers, child care educators, etc. • Is an electronic resource, allowing for individualized searches • http://healthandwelfare.idaho.gov/Portals/0/Children/IELeGuidelines/Idaho_Early_Learning_eGuidelines.htm • Domain 5: Communication, Language, and Literacy

19. A foundation for reading… The Six Early Literacy Skills

20. The Six Early Literacy Skills

22. Print Motivation Keeping reading FUN and sharing books is important. If the experience is not a positive one, children will relate reading to something negative, which will make them less likely to choose to read. The joy of, and interest in, reading books

23. Model fun of reading and of playing with language-- enjoy book and interaction yourself Begin reading books early—even when baby is a newborn. Make sure you and child are in a good mood. Have a comfortable area to share reading time. Stop reading when child becomes tired or loses interest. Read aloud every day Print Motivation

24. Cloth or “indestructible” books Board books with bright, simple illustrations Board books with photographs of other babies Books with contrast Let child choose books for you to share Note: Not all “board books” are for babies/toddlers Suggested books

26. Goal 59: Understand information from oral stories, reading books, and pictures. Early Learning Guideline

27. Print Awareness Knowing that print has meaning, knowing how to handle a book, and recognizing print in the environment Being familiar with printed language helps children feel comfortable with books and understand that print is useful.

28. Use board books or cloth books and let child hold book and turn pages If there are only a few words on the page, point to each word as you say it Run finger under title and/or repeated phrases Talk about environmental print (road signs, menus, food labels) Point out different kinds of print within books Video Print Awareness

29. Any book! If there are only a few words on each page, point to each as you read it. Books with repetitive text Books with writing as part of the pictures Books with different kinds of typeface Suggested books

30. Goal 58: Know that languages and words can be in written form. Early Learning Guideline

31. Print Motivation and Print Awareness in my child care setting:

32. Narrative Skills Retelling stories, retelling events, and adding descriptions The ability to describe things and events, and the ability to tell stories, helps children better understand what they read.

33. As you talk with your children, give them time to “talk” back to you Have props available so your children can retell stories with puppets, a flannel board, props, or creative dramatics. Encourage your children to talk and expand their descriptions of things. When baby coos or babbles, talk back to them. Video Narrative Skills

34. Board books with photos or illustrations of everyday things Board books with animals Books with a repeated phrase or repetition in the plot Books that tell a cumulative tale Suggested books

35. Goal 54: Comprehension in Language Early Learning Guideline

36. Vocabulary The more words young children know before they enter school, the better. Children who have never encountered a word will have a hard time reading it in a book later on. Knowing the names of things, understanding the meaning of words

37. Children should learn about 3,000 or more new words a year, according to Honig Vocabulary is richer and broader in picture books vs. watching TV Children need to be exposed to a word at least 12 times before they can start to use it in their vocabulary Vocabulary development

38. Take time before or during the reading of a book to explain an unfamiliar word (don’t replace the word) Talk about feelings Add descriptive words Speak “parentese,” as in a slightly higher pitch, speaking more slowly and in short sentences After reading a book, go back to an interesting picture and talk about it, adding less familiar words Show real items when possible; for babies and toddlers, point to and name objects Vocabulary

39. Any book! Just read, talk about, and name objects in the book. Non-fiction books Picture books that illustrate concepts- big/little, up/down, etc. Suggested books

40. Goal 51: Use responses that demonstrate an increased knowledge of specific concepts and to use phrases and sentences with functional and descriptive vocabulary. Early Learning Guideline

41. Narrative Skills and Vocabulary in my child care setting:

42. Letter Knowledge Knowing letters are different from each other, that the same letter can look different, and that each letter has a name and relates to specific sounds.

43. Help babies/toddlers see and feel different shapes Point out letters on toys, food boxes and other objects Play matching games (alike and different) Encourage scribbling Have letters available to “play” with: magnetic, foam, flannel Sing the alphabet song, including different versions Letter Knowledge

44. Board books with shapes, colors Shapes/colors books Alike and different books Alphabet/number books Suggested books

45. Goal 57: Recognize letters as special symbols to represent spoken language. Early Learning Guideline

46. Letter Knowledge in my child care setting:

47. Phonological Awareness Ability to hear and play with the smaller sounds in words Includes rhyming, breaking words apart and putting word chunks together, and hearing beginning sounds.

48. Sing songs and repeat them Say nursery rhymes so that child hears words that rhyme-- emphasize rhyming words Add actions as you sing a song or recite a poem--This helps child break down language into separate words Change initial sound in familiar songs, or a repeated phrase in a story Make up your own silly, nonsense rhymes Say rhymes and sing songs in language most comfortable for you Video: Songs & Language.wmv Sing throughout the day Phonological Awareness

49. Books with rhyme Books with alliteration Books with sounds of animals and other things Songs in book format Books of Mother Goose rhymes Poetry books Any book! Suggested books

50. Goal 56: Purposefully engage in activities that promote phonological awareness and to manipulate phonemes to make new words and to rhyme. Early Learning Guideline