Literacy Link

Dear Parents,

Recent research indicates that young children generally know a great deal about literacy before entering kindergarten.  This knowledge is not aquired magically but is supported by the family, particularly by you, the parent.  Family literacy experiences before, during, and after kindergarten will make a real difference to your child’s ongoing success in learning to read and write.  In kindergarten, three major areas work together to help your child be successful: Print Awareness, Phonological Awareness, and Oral Language.  Examples for each are provided below.

Print Awareness:

-your child’s understanding of: a book, a letter, and a word

-your child’s ability to recognize the letters of the alphabet, a very important skill

– your child’s ability to print letters of the alphabet, his or her name, and a few other words

Phonological Awareness:

-your child’s ability to play with sounds, such: rhyming, blending sounds (e.g., c-at=cat) and recognizing the first sound in a word (e.g., /c/ in cat)

Oral Language:

-your child’s ability to communicate by: using sentences, joining group conversations, using appropriate vocabulary in conversation and attending to and making sense of discussions, conversations, and book readings

I will be sending you through the school year a literacy home link that will provide you with many ideas to support your child’s early literacy learnings at home.

“Enhancing children’s letter knowledge and phonological awareness skill should be a priority goal in the kindergarten classroom” (Snow 188)

Enjoy the reading!