Early childhood literacy (also called emergent literacy)  is what children need to know about reading and writing before they actually learn to read and write.

"Children start to learn language from the day they are born. As they grow and develop, their speech and language skills become increasingly more complex. They learn to understand and use language to express their ideas, thoughts, and feelings, and to communicate with others. During early speech and language development, children learn skills that are important to the development of literacy (reading and writing). This stage, known as emergent literacy, begins at birth and continues through the preschool years. Children see and interact with print (e.g., books, magazines, grocery lists) in everyday situations (e.g., home, in preschool, and at daycare) well before they start elementary school. Parents can see their child's growing appreciation and enjoyment of print as he or she begins to recognize words that rhyme, scribble with crayons, point out logos and street signs, and name some letters of the alphabet. Gradually, children combine what they know about speaking and listening with what they know about print and become ready to learn to read and write."

(Roth, Froma et al. Emergent Literacy: Early Reading and Writing Development, ASHA 2006)

 Speech Patterning:

     *Gurgling (crib noises)

     *Babbling

     *Intention

     *Single Words

     *Understood

     *Gibberish

     *Words joined, with other words left out

     *Words and gestures, (body language)

     *Word--sentence--paragraph--page--book

Research on Early Childhood Literacy

Every Child Ready to Read @ Your Library

• Characteristics for Each Literacy Skill
• Storytime--Every Child Ready to Read Resources

MCLS Programs and Services

Resources for programs

Funding

see also:

1000 Books B4K

Early Literacy Video Tips

Family Reading Partnership

Fry Sight Word List

Promote Brain Development

Raising A Reader

How Brains Are Built

Ready Readers Adventure Activity Sheet

Saroj Ghoting, Early Childhood Literacy Consultant; see also: STAR POWER

Teaching Your Child to Read

What not to say to emerging readers

Dad's Playbook

(PUBYAC 8-2012)  Every parent wants to do the best for their kid.

When talking with patrons, start out with "Did you know" statements:

Did you know that what your child hears and reads in his or her first three years starts them on the road to success in school and life?

Did you know that every time you sing a song, say a nursery rhyme, or read a sign out loud it will help your child learn to read?

Did you know that even scribbles lead to reading and writing later?

You want the parents to feel that they are the best resource for their child, (even though they cannot provide books in the home), they can get help from the library.