Language and Literacy: From Birth For Life
From From Birth For Life
Until recently, experts believed that children begin to develop language and literacy skills in the first years of school, and that teachers play the primary role in fostering these skills. However, current research has revealed that a great deal of language and literacy learning takes place before children enter school. This has highlighted the importance of parents and other caregivers in planting the seeds for language and literacy development. In Canada, where over half of all children ages 6 months to 5 years receive some form of non-parental child care (Bushnik, 2006), early learning and child care (ELCC) practitioners play a key role in promoting children’s language and literacy development.
Most of the current research on language and literacy development is guided by a theory called emergent literacy, which refers to the attitudes, knowledge and skills about reading, writing, listening and speaking that children gain as they develop (as cited in Whitehurst & Lonigan, 1998). According to this theory, oral language, reading and writing develop simultaneously from early infancy and continue to develop throughout the lifespan (Morrow, 2001). This development is greatly influenced by social interactions, because children learn about literacy from everyday experiences with more literate peers and adults (Morrow, 2001; Snow, Burns, Griffin, 1998; Whitehurst & Lonigan, 1998). For example, toddlers may learn about writing by playing school with an older sibling. Or, they may learn that English books are read from left to right through shared reading with a caregiver. These day-to-day learning experiences can be supplemented with support for skills that require more active assistance. For example, children learning letter and letter sounds – critical skills for early literacy – can benefit significantly from active involvement with supportive adults (Adams, 1990; Aram & Biron, 2004; Brodeur, et al., 2006).
Emergent literacy acknowledges that language and literacy learning involves a number of cognitive, linguistic and social skills that interact and fit together in a complex way (Ollila & Mayfield, 1992). Moreover, each child’s development varies based on previous experiences (Ollila & Mayfield, 1992) and each child brings a unique set of skills and experiences to the early learning and child care programme that contributes to how the child understands language and literacy. According to emergent literacy, it is important to be aware of children’s strengths, challenges and interests and to gear practice to the individual child. (Ollila & Mayfield, 1992).
Many of the daily activities of ELCC practitioners – reading stories, making and using labels, having meaningful conversations with children – help to foster language and literacy growth (Ollila & Mayfield, 1992). Practitioners who support emerging literacy encourage children to explore and become active participants in their learning. They provide children with early and abundant exposure to literacy materials and enhance these experiences in developmentally appropriate ways.
The first section of this research summary outlines typical language and literacy milestones from birth to age six and discusses the skills that contribute to children’s reading, writing, listening and speaking ability. The second section highlights evidence-based methods for fostering those skills, while the third outlines the importance of daily monitoring for supporting personal growth and child development, and the benefits and drawbacks of observation and recording techniques. Finally, there is a discussion of family and community factors that influence the language and literacy development and ways in which ELCC practitioners can partner with families to support learning. ELCC practitioners are invited to use this paper to support the effective practices they are already doing on a daily basis, and to help them in their ongoing improvement of their practice.
NOTE: A glossary has been provided to explain terms that may be unfamiliar to some readers.
