NLC Literacy Base Early Literacy

Context  Through an interactive reading approach, we want to: Achieve high quality interactions between adults and children Build conversations – Strive for Five Develop children’s thinking skills Develop children’s listening and talking skills Increase children’s vocabulary Widen children’s experiences with books Explore the structure and the element of a story (Beginning, middle, end, characters, setting, action, problem, resolution) Increase children’s knowledge of the features of a book Encourage play through the context of story creating Explore emotions and empathy and encourage children to make connections to their own experiences

Changes/Improvements The interventions we are using which have made an impact are:  Strive for Five turns in a conversation  Modelling thinking skills by using “Think Alouds”  Effective use of a variety of question styles  Reading “with” not to the children  Revisiting the same book multiple times  Developing the story elements of setting, character, action, problem and resolution and the structure of beginning, middle, end  Consolidating book handling skills and concepts of print  Introducing and exploring the meaning of new vocabulary

Changes/Improvements We are testing a few different factors.  Staff interactions with children in line with the principles of attuned interaction in VERP  Staff knowledge and skill base (to provide focused literacy activities), as well as staff confidence level before and after training and support  Children’s motivation and engagement with books  Children’s listening and talking skills  Children’s knowledge of book handling and concepts of print  Children’s thinking and prediction skills  Children’s knowledge of story structure and elements

Changes/Improvements Staff using this approach have commented on the impact on children as being:  Increased motivation and enthusiasm for books  Increased confidence in speaking in their groups  Improved use of vocabulary  Demonstrating a deeper understanding of stories  More engaged in deeper thinking  A wider knowledge of book features and structure  Improvement in listening and talking skills  More skilled at oral storytelling  Demonstrating more empathy to others and making comparisons to their own lives  Wanting to share their experiences with others and recreate experiences through play

Who is involved?  The Literacy Base – 1 QIO, 1 Development Officer, 3 Early Literacy Tutors, Psychological Services  Establishments – The approach is currently being used in 31 Nursery Classes and 8 Family Learning Centres. A further 10 establishments are in the process of training.

Data! Data! Data! Pre TrainingPost Training and Support

Data! Data! Data! Pre TrainingPost Training and Support

Data! Data! Data! Pre TrainingPost Training and Support

Data! Data! Data! Pre TrainingPost Training and Support

Data! Data! Data! Pre TrainingPost Training and Support

Next Steps  Continue to roll out the Interactive Reading Approach across establishments in North Lanarkshire  Continue to research and develop advice and best practice across other literacy aspects. Aspects which will be developed in the future include: Phonological Awareness Language Development Parental Involvement Early Writing and Mark Making A Literacy Rich Environment

“So What?” From the testing carried out so far we can see that this approach to using books with young children is:  Effective in increasing child engagement with, and motivation for stories  Effective in promoting quality interactions between adults and children  A valuable way to develop a wide range of literacy, social, and cognitive skills  A useful context to stimulate learning through play

“So What?”

Investment of Resources As well as staff time, training and support we have supplied each establishment with:  10 books across a variety of themes and topics  Plans and resources to support each of the books  Story bags with props to support storytelling and play  An area on First Class to share resources and experiences  Once staff have received training and a block of tutor support, they are able to continue the approach effectively within their own establishment.

For More Information  Contact Details: Jackie Cahill – QIO Fiona Kirk - Dev. Officer NLC Literacy Base