Overview
Children must be able to use language for higher level thinking processes and literacy development.
Children must have well developed oral language to effectively participate in literacy tasks.
Competent readers and writers use language to:
- generate common language patterns
- communicate their needs
- give and get information
- express certain intentions
- perform a variety of tasks
- read and write independently
In an effective balanced literacy program, teachers
- provide opportunities to share experiences orally in small and large groups.
- model and discuss words to describe feelings and ideas.
- have children describe classroom experiences in all content areas.
- converse and read to children regularly.
- enable children to retell events in story-like form and create new stories based on a pattern or an original idea.
- ask questions individually and in groups, providing "wait time" so all children have the opportunity to think.
- help children to give and receive simple explanations, information, and directions.
- encourage children to recognize language patterns in song, poetry, and stories.
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Macomb Intermediate School District Early Literacy Committee
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