This Professional Development Opportunity is provided to you courtesy of Angela Gossett

This PD fulfills the requirements of The Masters of Education Program at MSU

Methods and Materials of Teaching the Gifted (EDU692-01-SP09)

"There are many little ways to enlarge your child's world. Love of books is the best of all."

— Jacqueline Kennedy

As educators it is our singular goal to do what is best for children. You well know that what is best for children is success – success in life, success in school, and success in reading. This success begins long before they enter the school building on that first whirlwind day of Kindergarten.

A child's success or failure in school begins with their earliest literacy experiences at home. But it is not solely up to the parents to provide these rich experiences. As it has been said, “It takes a village to raise a child.” All those with vested interest in a child's success must take responsibility for that child's success in school – families, teachers, and administrators. This PD will address the ways in which each party is expected to participate in the success of students.

What is the problem? Parents often struggle to provide the needed language and literacy experiences to their preschool children that they will need for success in reading upon entering school.

Hadaway is quoted to say “Limited verbal language opportunities at home may be linked to many factors: caregivers' educational/literacy level, work schedules, socioeconomic pressures, attitudes toward the importance of verbal engagement with children, etc. Whatever the reason, the lack of oral language stimulation for many young children entering school remains an obstacle to their future literacy learning efforts.” (p.11)

Who is responsible for a child's success or failure in reading?

Families

Teachers

Administrators

What is my role as a parent?

Parents: Read to and with your Read to and with your children beginning at a very young children beginning at a very young age.age.

What is my role as a teacher?

Teachers: Provide research-based Provide research-based literacy programming that is literacy programming that is implemented in a flexible grouping implemented in a flexible grouping environment.environment.

What is my role as an administrator?

Administrators: The school's role in this The school's role in this plan is to connect the classroom to the plan is to connect the classroom to the home. This can be accomplished through home. This can be accomplished through parent training/equipping programs parent training/equipping programs provided to preschool families through provided to preschool families through collaboration with the family resource collaboration with the family resource center and local health and welfare center and local health and welfare services. services.

Research Based Strategies - Parents “regular parent-child reading sessions, which include meaningful conversations and interactions, influence early reading acquisition significantly more than their family's backgrounds or SES.” (Bailey p.310) Read with your child frequently and talk about what you read together.

“Researchers suggest that the earlier children are exposed to reading strategies, the more likely they are to become early readers.” (Bailey p.310) Begin exposing your child to books and reading as young as possible.

“Parents should know that their willingness to read to their children regularly, at least 3 or 4 times a week, might increase the likelihood that their child will achieve early reading literacy.” (Bailey p.314) Set aside time each day for reading. Model the importance of reading.

“Children reared in families where parents provide rich language and literacy do better in school than those who do not. (...) Exposure to less common, more sophisticated vocabulary at home relates directly to children's vocabulary acquisition (...) There is a strong relationship between vocabulary development and reading achievement.” (Strickland p.87)Don't use “baby talk.” Use rich vocabulary when appropriate in every day conversations with your child.

Research Based Strategies - Teachers “The research suggested that children who attended preschools that exposed them to early literacy activities, while allowing their families easy access to the reading literacy materials, served to positively influence the rates at which they acquire critical pre-reading and reading skills.” (Bailey p.310)Preschool and Kindergarten curriculums must not only provide rich literacy experiences for students while at school, but must include parents by allowing access to materials for at-home use. (School-to-home libraries)

“First, oral language and literacy develop together.(...)It is not enough to simply teach early literacy skills in isolation. Teaching children to apply the skills they learn has a significantly greater effect on their ability to read ” (Stickland p.86)Preschool and Kindergarten curriculum should provide oral language as well as literacy skills activities that are taught in real-world contexts. Basil reading series are not recommended. The use of picture books and culturally diverse texts are much more beneficial in meeting the needs of diverse learners even at an early age.

“ the lack of oral language stimulation for many young children entering school remains an obstacle to their future literacy learning efforts.(...) research has indicated that the phonological awareness of children as young as 4 years of age can be improved through training. (Hadaway p.11, 14)Oral language and phonological awareness should be at the primary focus of early literacy programs.

Research Based Strategies - Principals “even a small increase in the quality of classroom experiences produces positive effects on children's language development and pre-literacy skills. Moreover, part of the preschool focus can also be directed toward parent training outreach in an effort to encourage increased interaction in the home.” (Hadaway p.12)Encourage best practices in classrooms and promote school-to-home communications.

“Successful programs include parents and the entire staff in an effort to connect home and school. Everyone benefits from the sharing of information and an atmosphere of shared purpose.” (Stickland p.88)Provide regular opportunities for families to visit their child's classrooms and communicate freely with their child's teachers. Promote an “open door” policy in which families feel welcome to visit, ask questions, and share expertise with their child's class as well as the school at large.

“School administrators need to know that making reading material available to parents/families and making recommendations for home learning activities is important.” (Bailey p.314)Create a parent resource center in your school where parents can collect materials on reading with children at home as well as other health and wellness resources. Also ask teachers to provide an area in their classrooms or the library where supplemental materials and books that may be take for at-home use can be accessed by parents.

TAKE ACTION!Now you are equipped with the research-based strategies that you need to help prepare preschool families and improve our

preschool/kindergarten programs.

LET'S TAKE ACTION! Conduct Family Knowledge/Needs Surveys.

Reach out to families and provide them with the resources needed to create positive early literacy experiences at home. Create a reading resource center for parents.

Examine current curriculum in Preschool/Kindergarten and refocus program from social skills to reading readiness.

Host training seminars and giving away or loan out reading readiness resources for at-home use.

Resources

Bailey, L. (2006). Examining Gifted Students Who Are Economically At-Risk to Determine Factors that Influence Their Early Reading Success. Early Childhood Education Journal 33 (5), 307-315

Hadaway, Nancy L.(2005) The Press for Achievement and the Promise of Preschool Literacy Experiences. The New England Reading Association Journal. 41 (2), 11-17

Strickland, Dorothy S. (2004) Working with Families as Partners in Early Literacy. The Reading Teacher. 58 (1), 86-88