Research has long supported the idea that young learners are most receptive to developing key literacy skills during their formative years. In fact, 80% of an individual’s brain development occurs during their first three years, and the brain is 90% developed by age five. Early literacy efforts are therefore critical to ensure children are positioned to benefit from the literacy instruction they will receive through their educational careers. The following three suggestions are proven ways that school leaders can champion early literacy in their communities.
1. Focus on Essential Learning Standards
Early learning standards provide teachers with a framework for setting developmental goals for young learners. While these standards vary from state to state, most states have a robust educational blueprint for teachers to follow. For states that do not identify which standards are deemed essential, teachers sometimes feel overwhelmed by the volume of material they are expected to cover over the course of a school year. The following questions can help to pinpoint the essential standards:
- Is the standard enduring and valuable for lifelong learning?
- Does the standard provide important preparation for the next learning stage?
- Does the standard have cross-curricular value?
If the answer to these questions is yes, the standard can be considered essential. Most early literacy standards would fit these criteria and should be prioritized by school leaders.
2. Protect Literacy Time
Literacy time encompasses structured opportunities for developing literacy plans, including professional development and focused planning time. School leaders must protect time for teachers to create meaningful lesson plans that devote time for young student literacy. The following suggestions can help teachers to create a literacy foundation for their students.
Create a Consistent Schedule
A reliable routine is beneficial to help students develop literacy habits and to allow teachers to identify areas of struggle in order to address student needs. These routines should include the following:
- Read-alouds in a variety of subjects
- Modeled, interactive, or shared writing activities
- Independent writing time
Create Literacy Centers
Centers are commonly used in early education to keep students active and engaged. A literacy center can encourage literacy by providing access to books, comfortable reading furniture, writing tools, and manipulatives that enable children to form letters, arrange letters into words, or place words in sentences.
Use Labels
Making words and letters visible in the classroom is an important step towards literacy. Labeling common classroom objects and encouraging students to label items are great ways for students to form literacy connections.
3 Read Aloud With Purpose
Reading aloud is one of the best ways to build early literacy skills in children. There are numerous educational benefits associated with oral reading:
- Build vocabulary
- Expand oral language
- Develop letter/sound association
- Improve comprehension
- Cultivate active listening skills
- Strengthen fluency
- Stimulate working memory
- Encourage questioning
- Expand the ability to make connections
School leaders should prioritize read-aloud opportunities and help teachers to maximize these educational moments with coaching, mentoring, and professional development.
Learn More
For more information about ways to help kids in school using specific assessment tools, check out the resources at WPS, including the (PPA Scale) Phonological and Print Awareness Scale and (ECAD) Woodcock-Johnson IV Tests of Early Cognitive and Academic Development.
