Every Child Ready to Your Library ® Early Literacy Workshop For Newborn to Two-Year-Olds

For the Presenter This powerpoint presentation has been developed to serve two purposes: –To help you, the presenter in developing your presentation, to see how it flows –To use with participants in your workshop if you feel it is appropriate. In some settings a powerpoint presentation can be overwhelming or off-putting. Know your group; use your judgment. You are encouraged to change examples of books and rhymes to ones that illustrate the point and are comfortable to you. [ ] = note to presenter “Supplemental Information” noted in the Notes Area of the presentation. You’ll find additional ideas and information which you may include if you have time, or if the participants show particular interest in that area. Supplemental slides can be hidden. Then they will not be seen during the presentation, but remain in the file.

Equipment VCR Computer and Projector (optional) Overhead (optional) Flipchart or something to record responses Video: Born to Succeed (12 minutes) La llave del éxito (10 minutes) Order from: Early Childhood Resources Multnomah County Public Library 205 NE Russell Street Portland, OR Phone: Fax: OR Ready to Learn (available English and Spanish) Order from: I AM YOUR CHILD P. O. BOX Los Angeles, CA Phone: FAX: Handouts: Every Child Ready to Read: Parent Guide to Early Literacy—Newborn to Two Years Five Easy Steps for Sharing Books with Your Baby Right From Birth Rethinking the Brain (S) Bibliography on Early Literacy (optional) Handouts on your library services/programs Posters/Powerpoint (optional) Definition of Early Literacy Definition of each skill poster Materials Opening rhyme Eensy Weensy Spider and Little Flea (Wee Sing for Babies) or other rhymes for Phonological Awareness Black on White or White on Black by Tana Hoban (S) Baby Duck board book or other for example Alphabet books for young children Materials Needed

Peek a Boo Song (tune of Frere Jaques) Peekaboo! Peekaboo (Cover your face with hands) I see you! I see you! (Open hands to uncover face) I see your button nose. ( Point to your nose or child’s nose) I see your tiny toes. (Point to child’s feet) I see you! Peekaboo! ( Cover and uncover face with hands)

YOU are your child’s first teacher Children begin to get ready to read long before they start school. You know your children best. Children learn best by doing things, and love to do things with YOU. Young children often have short attention spans and enjoy repeating favorite activities. YOU know your children well and can take advantage of times when the child is “in the mood,” ready to learn. When children see their parents reading they are more likely to become readers themselves. Seeing you reading is very powerful!

What Do Babies and Toddlers Do?

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Synaptic Density From Rethinking the Brain: New Insights into Early Development by Rima Shore (NY: Families and Work Institute, 1997) Synaptic Density: Synapses are created with astonishing speed in the first three years of life. For the rest of the first decade, children’s brains have twice as many synapses as adults’ brains. (Drawing supplied by H.T. Chugani)

Permission to use for PLA?ALSC Early Literacy Project granted by Dr. Harry Chugani

Rethinking the Brain OLD THINKINGNEW THINKING How a brain develops depends on the genes you are born with. How a brain develops hinges on a complex interplay between genes you are born with and the experiences you have. The experiences you have before age three have a limited impact on later development. Early experiences have a decisive impact on the architecture of the brain, and on the nature and extent of adult capacities. A secure relationship with a primary caregiver creates a favorable context for early development and learning. Early interactions don’t just create a context; they directly affect the way the brain is “wired.” Brain development is linear: the brain’s capacity to learn and change grows steadily as an infant progresses toward adulthood. Brain development is non-linear: there are prime times for acquiring different kinds of knowledge and skills. A toddler’s brain is much less active than the brain of a college student. By the time children reach age three, their brains are twice as active as those of adults. Activity levels drop during adolescence.

WHAT IS EARLY LITERACY?

EARLY LITERACY Early literacy is what children know about reading and writing before they can actually read or write.

SIX SKILLS TO GET READY TO READ Print Motivation Phonological Awareness Vocabulary Narrative Skills Print Awareness Letter Knowledge

Print Motivation  child’s interest in and enjoyment of books  Children who enjoy books and reading will read more. Children become good readers by practicing.

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Phonological Awareness  the ability to hear and play with the smaller sounds in words  helps children sound out words as they begin to read

Language of Literacy Phoneme The smallest part of spoken language that makes a difference in the meaning of words. English has about 41 phonemes. The word “if” has two phonemes (/i/ /f/). The word “check” has three phonemes (/ch/ /e/ /ck/). Sometimes one phoneme is represented by more than one letter. Phonemic Awareness The ability to hear, identify, and manipulate the individual sounds (phonemes) in spoken words. Phonological Awareness The understanding that spoken language is made up of individual and separate sounds. A broad term that includes phonemic awareness in addition to work with rhymes, words, syllables, and beginning sounds. Grapheme The smallest part of written language that represents a phoneme in the spelling of a word. A grapheme may be just one letter, such as b, f, p, s, or several letters such as ch, sh, ea, igh. Phonics The understanding that there is a predictable relationship between phonemes (the sounds of the spoken language) and graphemes (the letters and spellings that represent those sounds in written language). Syllable A word part that contains a vowel or, in spoken language, a vowel sound. From Put Reading First: The Research Building Blocks for Teaching Children to Read, U.S. Department of Education, Downloadable at National Institute for Literacy

? ? ? Vocabulary  knowing the names of things  helps children understand what they read  helps children recognize words when they try to sound them out

ALA granted permission from Janellen Huttenlocher.

Narrative Skills  the ability to describe things and events, and to tell stories  will help children understand what they read

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Print Awareness  noticing print everywhere  knowing how we follow the words on a page, knowing how to handle a book  helps children feel comfortable with books so they can concentrate on reading

Letter Knowledge  knowing that letters are different from each other, that they have different names and sounds  helps children understand that words are made of smaller parts, and to know the names of those parts

Five Easy Steps for Sharing Books With Your Baby Pick the best time Choose a time when you and your baby are in a good mood and ready to enjoy each other. Show Baby the book Point to the pictures, and talk naturally and cheerfully. Talk and have fun Remember to touch and love your baby the whole time. Watch what Baby does Let your baby play with the book if he wants to; and stop for now if he gets upset. Share a book with your baby every day Even just a few minutes a day is important

Infants Focusing on Patterns

What books are good for this age? How do I know what to choose?

What books are good for this age? How do I know what to choose? Thick study cover and pages Small size, for little hands Bright colorful pictures Simple geometric shapes Clear pictures Pictures of human faces Few words Nursery rhymes

Have fun together!

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