II: EARLY LITERACY

Objectives

As a result of reading and studying this chapter students will be able to:

• Understand the interdependence and simultaneous development of the three early literacy domains.
• Recognize the importance of the alphabetic principle in early literacy.

Key Terms

• Print awareness
• Letter knowledge
• Phonological awareness
• Phonemic awareness
• Alphabetic principle

Assessment

Instructional PowerPoint

Web Resources

The following websites and resources may be useful to reading teachers in planning and implementing their lessons.

• "The Alphabetic Principle" by Texas Education Agency
  Tips and strategies for presenting the alphabetic principle (the understanding that there are systematic and predictable relationships between written letters and spoken sounds), the rate of instruction, and the sequence in which it should be presented to children.
• Name Talk: Exploring Letter-Sound Knowledge in the Primary Classroom
  A two session lesson plan created by Read, Write, Think. The lesson reinforces letter knowledge and letter sounds using combinations of letters in children's names and an interactive stapleless book.
• Queensland Government: Active Alphabet
  This program, sponsored by the government of Queensland, Australia, uses a kinesthetic approach to letter instruction. Downloadable PDFs of the parent and students books provide the entire curriculum.
• Handwriting Without Tears ® Research Review
  This research review of Handwriting Without Tears presents the benefits of handwriting instruction and the need for a more organized approach to the instruction.
• "Handwriting Readiness: Locatives and Visuomotor Skills in the Kindergarten Year" by Deborah Marr, Mary-Margaret Windsor, & Sharon Cermak: ECRP
  This research study investigated children's cognitive ability to understand spatial and temporal concepts and handwriting.
• "Phonemic Awareness in Young Children" by Marilyn J. Adams, Barbara Foorman, Ingvar Lundberg, and Terri Beeler (1998)
  This paper (referenced on page 123 of the Teaching Reading Sourcebook) introduces phonemic awareness and the research that connects formal instruction of phonemic awareness with the ability to read and write. The paper concludes with links to classroom activities and lessons that introduce and reinforce phonemic awareness.