improving literacy environments and experiences for children birth to five: research and resources...
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Improving Literacy Environments and Experiences
for Children Birth to Five: Research and Resources
Nell K. Duke & Annie M. Moses,
Michigan State University & the Literacy Achievement Research Center
Plan for this Presentation
Results of survey and observation study
Professional resources for improving literacy for children birth to five
Excerpts of a videotape on promoting emergent literacy in child care settings
Strategies for improving literacy for children birth to five
Survey and Observation Study
Very little research has examined literacy environments and activities available in child care settings.
To our knowledge, no research has examined this in family and group home care settings.
Few needs assessments related to professional development around literacy birth to five are available.
Research QuestionsSurvey: What do center-based and home-based child care
providers report that they know about and do with respect to emergent literacy environments and activities?
Observation Study: What do center-based child care providers actually do
with respect to providing emergent literacy activities and environments?
Survey and Observation Study: To what extent do child care providers’ reports match
what is observed in centers with respect to emergent literacy environments and activities?
Participants
Survey: A stratified (by care setting type) random sample of
337 center, group and home providers from across Michigan
Observation: 15 centers within 45 minutes of MSU (randomly
selected but with some centers declining to participate) 6 observed rooms had mostly 2-year-olds 3 observed rooms had mostly 3-year-olds 6 observed rooms had mostly 4-year-olds
Measures
Survey: Questions related to:
Providers’ use of ELA with infants, toddlers and preschoolers
Demographic information Access to different media and preferences
for receiving professional development materials
Response rate of 57.1%
Measures, cont.Observation: PELLC survey PELLC observation form:
• identifying and background information • activities (whether activity was observed, how many
times, and for how many minutes) • characteristics of the print environment, and final
notes and comments ELLCO (Early Language and Literacy Classroom
Observation Record; Smith & Dickinson, with Sangeorge & Anastasopoulos, 2001):• literacy environment checklist • literacy activities rating scale
Measures Quality
Survey: Internal consistency, when measurable, high
(Cronbach’s alpha .917 - .920)
Observation: Correlated well with ELLCO on comparable
items Rankings of centers correlated .74
Survey and Observation: Generally corresponded well but with
discrepancies on some items
The Survey: Select Results
Reading storybooks for each age was the highest reported ELA happening at least once a day:
• For toddlers: 86.4%
• For preschoolers: 89.4% Other highly reported activities (between 80.5 –
87.5%) include:
• Singing songs, having children look at books of their choice, have children draw or write (preschoolers), and including reading and writing materials in play centers (preschoolers)
The Survey: Select Results
Some of the lower reported ELA happening at least once a day (for toddlers & preschoolers):• Act out stories or have children do so (toddlers:
15.1%, preschoolers: 19.0%)• Teach parents how to read and write with children
(toddlers: 7.7%, preschoolers: 8.6%)• Read information books or nonfiction (toddlers:
27.5%, preschoolers: 37.7%)• Show children how people use reading and writing
in everyday life (toddlers: 26.9%, preschoolers: 36.5%)
• Talk about or point to writing displayed in the room (toddlers: 44.7%, preschoolers: 54.9%)
The Survey: Select ResultsReporting 30 Minutes or More of Literacy Activities
Infants (%) Toddlers (%)
Preschoolers (%)
Kindergarteners (%)
NEVER 15.5 3.8 1.0 6.1
1-2 DAYS/ WEEK
28.0 14.0 6.2 9.8
3-4 DAYS/ WEEK
19.8 21.9 19.3 14.3
EVERY DAY
36.7 60.4 73.5 69.8
n 207 265 306 245
The Survey: Select ResultsReporting 30 Minutes or More of Literacy Activities
30 minutes or more least common with infants, then toddlers, then preschoolers
Even in preschool, more than 1 in 4 centers did not report providing 30 minutes or more
Center settings generally reported more time with literacy than family or group settings (statistically significant differences for all age groups)
The Survey: Select ResultsPrimary Caregiver Reported Understanding
"developmentally appropriate" (%)
"emergent literacy" (%)
NO UNDERSTANDING
.6 4.6
LITTLE UNDERSTANDING
.6 13.4
SOME UNDERSTANDING
19.3 34.5
STRONG UNDERSTANDING
79.5 47.6
n 331 328Note: Reported understanding generally lower in family and group care settings than in center settings.
Observations: Select Results
Total number of minutes spent in ELA:• Most number of minutes observed:
210 minutes (43.75% of the 8 hours involved ELA)
• Least number of minutes observed: 27 minutes (5.63% of the 8 hours involved ELA)
Observations: Select Results
Storybook reading observed in all but one site (4.65 minutes - 60.71 minutes total) (information book reading observed in only three sites)
Other commonly observed activities include:• singing (13 centers)• asking children to explain something (9 centers)• allowing children to look at books of their choice
(9 centers)
Observations: Select Results
Rarely observed activities include:• writing in front of or with children (4 and 3 centers
respectively)• tell stories or have children act out or tell stories
(1, 2 and 1 centers respectively)• encourage or teach parents to read and write
with children at home (not observed at all)• show children how people use reading and
writing in everyday life (2 centers)• take children to library or visit mobile library (1
and 0 centers respectively)• help children learn to read and write their names
(6 centers) or other words (2 centers)
05
101520253035404550
1-10 11-24 25-49 50-99 More than100
Books available
Pe
rce
nt
Observations Results: Access to Books
05
1015202530354045
none 4-6 7-10 More than 10
Books displayed (covers showing)
Per
cent
Observations Results: Books Displayed
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
None present Some present A great dealpresent
Play areas with print
Pe
rce
nt
Observations Results: Play Areas with Print
05
1015202530354045
Nonepresent
1-5 6-10 11-20 Morethan 20
Number of Labels & Captions
Pe
rce
nt
Observations Results: Number of Labels & Captions
05
101520253035404550
1-5 pieces 6-10pieces
11-20pieces
More than20 pieces
Amount of Print on Walls
Pe
rce
nt
Observations Results: Amount of Print on Walls
Professional Resources for Improving Literacy Birth to Five
College and university courses District, regional, or state professional
development initiatives Professional conferences Early Literacy Curricula, for example:
• Breakthrough to Literacy• Literacy Express• High/Scope• And many others!
Professional Resources for Improving Literacy Birth to Five
Professional books, for example:• Starting Out Right (Burns, Snow, & Griffin, 1999)• Learning to Read and Write: Developmentally
Appropriate Practices for Young Children (Neuman, Copple, & Bredekamp, 2000)
• New IRA Preschool Literacy Series• Literacy and the Youngest Learner: Best
Practices for Educators of Children from Birth to Five (Bennett-Armistead, Duke, & Moses, 2005)
• And many more!
Videotapes and hypermedia materials
PELLC (Promoting Emergent Literacy In Licensed Care) Videotape
Focuses on research-based strategies for promoting emergent literacy in child care settings
Features photographs and videoclips from exemplary group and center settings (includes infants, toddlers and preschoolers)
Includes commentary from Governor Jennifer Granholm, two literacy professors, and child care providers
Video authors: Duke, Moses, Billman, Zhang & Bennett-Armistead; Video partners: MSU FACT Coalition, Michigan
FIA, Michigan Community Coordinated Child Care
PELLC (Promoting Emergent Literacy In Licensed Care) Videotape
Approximately 90 minutes, with six sections:1. Promoting emergent literacy (20m)2. Aspects of emergent literacy (12m)3. Creating a rich literacy environment
(18m)4. Read aloud (16m)5. Other literacy activities (14m)6. Literacy beyond the walls of the care
environment (16m)
Part 1: Introduction
Importance of literacy Fundamental concepts underlying
videotape:• developmentally appropriate practice• emergent literacy• responsive teaching
Importance of oral language Strategies for using the videotape
Part 2: Aspects of Literacy to Develop in Early Childhood
Concepts of print Phonological awareness Letter-sound knowledge Word recognition Genre knowledge Understanding of text Production of text Interest in and love of literacy and learning World knowledge
Part 4: Read Aloud
Why:• Build phonological awareness & letter-sound
knowledge• Build concepts of print • Build comprehension skills• Build knowledge about the world
How:• Lap reading with one or few children• Interactive reading• Expressive reading
Book Selection
Part 6: Literacy Beyond the Walls of the Care Environment
Literacy outdoors Literacy on field trips
• Environmental print walks• Field trips to literacy-focused destinations• Field trips to other destinations
Connecting with families
Connecting with Families
Incentive programs Take home bags and cubbies Literacy-related notices Modeling and documentation “Funds of knowledge” activities Surveys/focus groups/interviews/home
visits Workshops and family coaching
An Example of an Effective Parent Involvement Program for Language in K
Project EASE (Jordan, Snow, & Porche, 2000) Five parent coaching sessions, one per month, on
different themes related to language interactions around books
Followed a discussion outline; provided a take home guide; followed by parent-child practice activity
For three weeks following: scripted activities, involving books, sent home related to that month’s theme
The five themes were words, words, words; telling personal event narratives; discussing storybook narratives; discussing information-rich books; learning about letters and sounds.
Front
Strategies for Improving Literacy for Children Birth to Five
Implementing state-level initiatives (Michigan’s approach)
Making college and university courses accessible
Providing literacy-focused regional, local or care-setting-based professional development
Conducting family/parent education programs
Involving the K-12 community
Ways the K-12 Community Can Promote Emergent Literacy in Child Care Settings
Hold workshops for or with local child care providers• e.g., “Important knowledge skills for kindergarten”• e.g., “Working together: A summit of child care
providers and elementary educators” Distribute literacy-related materials to child care
providers• e.g., Books and videotapes
Host literacy-related celebrations for children in child care (and elementary school)• e.g., A read-in, plays, and sing-alongs
Service learning programs involving child care settings as service sites
On Your Way Out . . .
Please sign up if you would like a copy of the paper about the survey and observation study
Please sign up if you would like to be notified if/when PELLC videotape is available for sale at cost
Please be in touch if you would like to pursue a doctorate specializing in early literacy
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