Early Childhood - Connecticut State Department of Education

Language And Literacy Development Chapter 5
Principles
Teaching young children
involves making decisions:
when to use direct instruction,
facilitation and support
depending on the children, the
objectives and the setting.
Parents and families must be
recognized and supported as key
partners in nurturing children’s
literacy development.
LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT
Performance Standards
Speak clearly, including use of appropriate tone and
inflection.
Use multiple-word sentences or phrases to describe
ideas, feelings and actions.
Speak to initiate a conversation or enter into a play
situation.
Speak for a variety of purposes.
Use multiple-word sentences or phrases to describe
ideas, feelings and actions.
Demonstrate understanding of basic conversational
vocabulary.
Preschool children exhibit varying skill levels
depending on their individual development, home
environment and experiences. Children develop oral
language skills in a natural and sequential order as
a result of interacting with others. Initially, children
Quotes From Research
“….the need for teachers
to make intentional efforts
to push children’s thinking
and support their literacy
development as they converse
with children throughout the
day, plan their classroom
day and the content of the
curriculum, and organize their
classroom environment. For
a teacher to provide children
optimal supports in all these
areas, he or she must have
a deep understanding of
what children need, skillful
ability to provide appropriate
experiences throughout the
day, and the willingness to
expend the energy needed
to support children’s
development all day long.
These are the qualities of
intentional teaching.”
“You may have tangible
wealth untold: Caskets of
jewels and coffers of gold.
Richer than I you can never
be- I had a Mother who read
to me.”
73
Source
Dickinson & Tabors, (2001)
Strickland Gillian, Trelease,
(2001)
use language to gain attention and fulfill basic needs,
imitating the language of their environment and creating
their own. As children grow, oral language becomes a
useful tool for communicating ideas and emotions, and
for developing relationships and connecting with others.
Children use language as a tool for imagining, planning
and solving problems.
Children need both varied experiences and
opportunities to practice, to gain knowledge. Background
knowledge is a key predictor for successful reading
comprehension. Opportunities to hear and practice
sophisticated vocabulary are key to strengthening
background knowledge, as well as emerging skills.
Children need multiple purposes for using language,
strong models of appropriate language use and an
audience. Interesting opportunities to label, categorize
and summarize information provide children with
mature purposes for use of oral language and listening
skills. As children use language to describe and sort, they
develop relationships, concepts and understandings, and
enhance their thinking skills.