Developing Literacy Naturally

Integrating Literacy Naturally is a guide for nurturing a love of literacy in both teachers and young children. More than a hundred children’s book titles and other resources serve as springboards for cultivating that love and meeting individual literacy needs in developmentally appropriate ways. And, educator spotlight stories show how theories move to practice. Pinkerton and Hewitt draw on their love of literacy and over four decades of combined experience to help readers navigate individualized instruction, purposeful play, literacy integration, classroom libraries, and a reimagined workshop approach. Examples for how to do all of this with children’s texts are presented throughout the book. Eight guiding principles provide an easy path to becoming an intentional, authentic teacher who focuses on the individual needs of children and avoids one-sized literacy instruction. The principles grew from heart to heart conversations the authors had about joyful reading and writing experiences being reduced to worksheets and rote memorization in many classrooms. This book moves teachers far away from drill the skill literacy. Use it as a guide on your path to making literacy learning both playful and intentional in the early childhood classroom.

This volume begins with an overview of theories supporting natural language development-Piagetian, Vygotskian, and cognitive or information processing. Following the theoretical basis for natural language processes in reading and writing, chapters explore the following: how young children acquire rapid growth in oral language without direct instruction; the universality of play in language learning; and portfolio assessment. The contributors develop specific approaches for developing literacy, as chapters focus on the development of preschool early writing, in-school techniques for developing effective collaborative writing experiences, recommendations for creating and facilitating literacy classrooms, children's literature, metacognition in the reading process, and the notion of the theme unit through literature.

This book demonstrates how musical activities can support the development of literacy skills for young children aged from birth to 8 years. The relationship between music and literacy is investigated, and through a wealth of ideas and resources, guidance is given on how to use music as a practical tool to develop skills vital to literacy. As music is naturally inclusive, the activities are suitable for all children. Each chapter includes activities to explore, and the book covers: - the myriad of skills which may be elicited through music making - the importance of sound discrimination to literacy - the links between how the brain processes both music and language - how to develop literacy skills through musical activities - ideas to support teaching literacy through phonics Written for teachers, practitioners, teaching assistants and childminders, as well as for anyone working with children in nursery and primary schools, children′s centres and at home, this book provides a wealth of information. It is an invaluable resource to support the development of children′s literacy skills in an enjoyable and effective way. Maria Kay is a teacher and music and literacy specialist, currently developing and delivering literacy- through-music programmes.

The Hanen Centre's newest guidebook brings to life the most current research on promoting children's emergent literacy in early childhood classrooms. With the goal of preparing preschool children to learn to read and write successfully, ABC and Beyond shows educators how they can build language and literacy learning naturally into everyday conversations and activities. By translating the most current research into user-friendly strategies for educators, ABC and Beyond addresses the various prerequisites of literacy, including vocabulary, story comprehension, decontextualized (abstract) language, print knowledge and phonological awareness. More than 120 color photographs and many easy-to follow charts with detailed, practical examples beautifully illustrate how the strategies are applied in real-life contexts.

Primary literacy involves many different learning processes, which can make it challenging to teach, particularly in diverse classroom environments. Combining an examination of theory and research with practical case studies and real examples of teaching practice, this book shows trainee and early career teachers how to engage and motivate children to develop a range of primary English skills. Chapters incorporate broader aspects of primary teaching such as active learning, self-regulation and assessment, and activities and discussion points explore how to apply important principles to your own teaching. Drawing from international research and aware of policy developments in different countries, the book covers key topics on primary teacher education courses, including: The foundations of reading, writing and oracy skills Planning, assessment and classroom organisation Using new technologies and social media as tools for learning Engaging with the literacy needs of diverse learners. This is essential reading for students on university-based and school-based courses preparing to teach in primary education, and early career teachers seeking to continue their professional learning. Dr Gary Woolley is senior lecturer at the University of the Sunshine Coast, Australia.

Reading & Writing with English Learners offers kindergarten through fifth grade reading and writing educators a user-friendly guide and framework for supporting English learners in balanced literacy classrooms. Authors Valentina Gonzalez and Melinda Miller lead readers in exploring the components of Reading & Writing with English Learners with a special eye for increasing the effectiveness of instructional methods and quality of instruction to serve English learners. This book shares practical and effective techniques for accommodating reading and writing instruction to design learning that simultaneously increases literacy and language development. Reading & Writing with English Learners was written for: • K-5 Classroom Teachers • ESL Teachers • Reading and Writing Instructional Coaches • District Leaders Reading & Writing with English Learners includes: • the components of Reading & Writing Workshop • accommodations that support English Learners • high yield practices for Reading & Writing Workshop during remote teaching • the role of phonics • a culturally inclusive booklist • activities that support Reading & Writing Workshop And more!