How do I teach learners at the PreK3 levels?

How do I teach learners at the PreK3 levels?17/02/2016I. Cherrington MS in Education1

Emergent and Beginning Literacy Learners

Literacy learners: Who are they?17/02/2016I. Cherrington MS in Education2Despite these variations, teachers need to create literacy environments that enhance learning and engagement.Literacy educators have the responsibility to scaffold all children through valuable reading and writing processes as described in the literacy framework for reading and writing development (Walden University, n.d) to achieve fluency.

The DifferencesI. Cherrington MS in Education317/02/2016

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What teachers can do?17/02/2016I. Cherrington MS in Education6

Assess Students NeedsEngage/Support StudentsChoose Appropriate TextConsider Students InterestsThrough reading, teachers can increase students world knowledge and integrate skills and knowledge of the various content area through theme teaching. Neuman and Roskos (2012) purports that it is not sufficient for students to read a few books within a year. Rather, children need to read a broad range of books from different genres to expand their knowledge and understanding of the reading process.

Teachers may utilize a wide variety of strategies and approaches to help both emergent and beginning readers to develop proficiency in the various strands of literacy whether they are native speakers of English or English as second language learners. Some of these include modelled-reading/writing, direct vocabulary instruction, guided reading and writers workshop. Additionally, the physical environment should permit countless opportunities for direct and indirect engagement with resources that have a strong focus on meeting students literacy needs. Resources may be printed text or digital media.

As teachers work to meet students needs and help them to become independent learners, they need to make students earliest experiences with reading and writing enjoyable and exciting because they tend to become less interested in writing as they move up through the grades (Kear, Coffman, Mckenna, & Ambrosio, 2000).

Reutzel and Cooter (2016), suggest that teachers use assessment data to determine students level of literacy development before they begin instruction. Teachers should use this data to design instruction to fill learning gaps and provide the skills that should come next. Teachers may also incorporate students experiences, culture, interest and learning styles into instructional design. Research suggests that educators get to know their students as a whole as they work together to cover the curriculum (Laureate Education, 2014c).

17/02/2016I. Cherrington MS in Education7Design and Implement Instruction: Effective StrategiesThrough modelled-reading and read-alouds, students can learn to make connections between print and spoken language, develop an understanding that letters make sounds, that form words which are used to compose sentences. Through guided reading, students get the opportunity control their reading pace and independently use strategies that they have learned. Teachers observe as students practice and enhance their ability make predictions, decode words, and draw conclusions. Teachers need to encourage comprehension through questioning. Davoudi and Sadeghi (2015) state that, asking children higher-level questions, positively influences their critical thinking ability and encourages them to ask higher-level questions in turn. As students respond to questions, teachers can determine students level of listening and reading comprehension, their ability to use context to derive meaning from words and to make connections with prior knowledge. Reutzel and Cooter (2016) state that listening comprehension influences children's level of success in reading comprehension as they grow older. Therefore, teachers need to check if students are making meaning of what they hear and see regularly throughout the day especially in linguistically and culturally diverse classrooms to aid students understanding. According to Chung (2012), teachers need to teach vocabulary directly and indirectly to all learners especially to English language learners (ells) who acquire fewer words incidentally than their native English-speaking counterparts.Through writers workshop, students can strengthen their reading comprehension by retelling stories using illustrations and captions. These descriptions will provide opportunities for students to practice using new words learned. Brown (2010) purports that students authentic writing in the early stages of writing development help them to develop a love for reading and provide essential information for educators to use in designing instruction. Graham and Herbert (2010) indicate that writing can improve reading as pupils develop an understanding of both as being communication processes.

17/02/2016I. Cherrington MS in Education8Reading and Writing Development

A Tool for Evaluating Texts

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Conclusion17/02/2016I. Cherrington MS in Education10

17/02/2016I. Cherrington MS in Education11ReferencesBrown, K. M. (2010). Young authors: Writing workshop in kindergarten. Young Children, 65(1), 24-28.Chung, S. F. (2012). Research-based vocabulary instruction for English language learners. Reading Matrix: An International Online Journal, 12(2), 105-120.Ciampa, K. (2012). Reading in the digital age: Using electronic books as a teaching tool for beginning readers. Retrieved from http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ981797.pdfDavoudi, M., & Sadeghi, N. A. (2015). A systematic review of research on questioning as a high-level cognitive strategy. English Language Teaching, 8(10), 76-90.

Neuman, S. B., & Roskos, K. (2012). Helping children become more knowledgeable through text. Reading Teacher, 66(3), 207210.Reutzel, D. R., & Cooter, R. B., Jr. (2016). Strategies for reading assessment and instruction: Helping every child succeed (5th ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson. Wei-Fan, C., & Chung-Pei, C. (2011). Effect of varied types of collaborative learning strategies on young children: an experimental study. International Journal Of Instructional Media, 38(4), 351-358.Walden University. (n. d). Reading and writing development. Retrieved from https://class.waldenu.edu/webapps/blackboard/content/listContent.jsp?course_id=_13726377_1&content_id=_31959986_1

Graham, S., & Herbert, M. (2010). Writing to read: Evidence for how writing can improve reading. Retrieved from https://www.carnegie.org/media/filer_public/9d/e2/9de20604-a055-42da-bc00-77da949b29d7/ccny_report_2010_writing.pdfKear, D. J., Coffman, G. A., McKenna, M. C., & Ambrosio, A. L. (2000). Measuring attitude toward writing: A new tool for teachers. Reading Teacher, 54(1), 1023.Laureate Education (Producer). (2014a). Reading and writing in the pre-k classroom [Video file]. Baltimore, MD: Author.Laureate Education (Producer). (2014b). Assessing word knowledge [Video file]. Baltimore, MD: Author.Laureate Education (Producer). (2014c). Getting to know your students [Video file]. Baltimore, MD: Author.