Communication, Language & Literacy

What does this mean for the preschool child?

Purpose of the WorkshopTo explore how the preschool child develops

communication, language and literacy skillsTo give parents/carers information about why

language delay happensTo give parents/carers information about the

activities provided at preschoolTo help parents/carers support their child’s

language development at home

The Importance of Communication

• 50% of children are starting school with weak language skills

• Language delay at this age can lead to problems later on in a child’s education

• Early intervention can overcome any difficulties

• The home environment is a key factor for success in developing language skills

Typical Developmental Milestones

• Children all develop at different rates, but …• 12-15 months – babbling with a wide range of

sounds (b, p, m, d, n), one or more words• 18-24 months – 20 words by 18 months, 50 or

more words by 24 months• 2-3 years – too many words to count, can

combine three or more words in sentences, produces words/phrases spontaneously, rather than imitating or using gestures

Why does Language Delay Happen?

• Increase in young children’s exposure to TV and technology

• Less time for adult/child talk• Special educational needs (SEN):

Developmental delayLearning needsPhysical (motor) delaySocial, emotional, behavioural needs

Language and SEN

• SEN does not mean your child has something ‘wrong’ with them – it just means they would benefit from additional support in education

• Young children’s brains develop quickly – early intervention is crucial for later success

• Language delay can be caused by a variety of special educational needs – hearing issues, motor difficulties, social or emotional needs

Preschool Activities to Support LanguageSongs, rhymes, exploring sounds togetherListening – stories, Show and Tell, CDsSpeaking in different contexts – role plays,

shared sustained thinkingMark making in different contextsChatting/socialising with adults and peersFine and gross motor development

Beginning to Write

Children need to develop their motor skills, before they can learn to write ‘properly’

Gross motor – climbing, balancing, throwing – large whole body movements – lines, curves

Fine motor – picking up, threading, holding a brush – small, finger and wrist movements

Boys typically begin to write later than girls, but develop more quickly in other areas

Learning to Read - Phonics

Children need to learn to hear the individual sounds within words

Phonemes = sounds (letter/group of letters)Blending sounds together to make words –

CVC words ‘cat’ (consonant/vowel/consonant)Talk about the sound of letters, rather than

the nameSo, not ‘See’ for ‘C’ but ‘Kuh’ for the sound it

makes when it’s in a word

Supporting Your Child at HomeRead stories and talk together as much as

possibleSupport them in making sounds correctlyUse facial expression and vocal tone, e.g. put

a pleased tone in your voice, widen your eyes‘Model’ talk for your child, for instance talking

through an activity as you do it togetherUse a rich and varied vocabulary – talk with

your child about what words mean

A Final Thought – Tricky Words!

I take it you already knowOf tough and bough and cough and dough?Others may stumble, but not you,On hiccough, thorough, plough and through?Well done! And now you wish, perhaps,To learn of less familiar traps?Beware of heard, a dreadful wordThat looks like beard and sounds like bird,And dead: it's said like bed, not bead – For goodness sake don't call it deed!Watch out for meat and great and threat(They rhyme with suite and straight and debt).

A moth is not a moth in mother,Nor both in bother, broth in brother,And here is not a match for thereNor dear and fear for bear and pear,And then there's dose and rose and loseJust look them up - and goose and choose, And cork and work and card and ward,And font and front and word and sword,And do and go and thwart and cart – Come, come, I've hardly made a start!A dreadful language? Man alive!I'd mastered it when I was five!