Emergent Literacy: Supporting Learners Birth through Kindergarten Entry

Ohio’s Ready School Guide for Language and Literacy and Implementing Ohio’s Plan to Raise Literacy Achievement: A Guide for Early Care and Education Leaders is available to support the implementation of evidence-based practices in Ohio’s Plan to Raise Literacy Achievement for children birth – kindergarten entry. Administrators in early care and education have a crucial role to play in enhancing language and literacy outcomes in their programs. Meaningful change must address four key areas: High-Quality Instruction, Key Beliefs and Dispositions, Family Partnerships and Multi-Tiered Systems of Support. Additional resources are available below as part of the Birth–Kindergarten entry Toolkit.

For questions about Ohio's Comprehensive Literacy State Development Grant, please contact ComprehensiveLiteracy@education.ohio.gov.

High-Quality Instruction

• IES Practice Guide: Preparing Young Children for School: details seven evidence-based practices designed to be used by teachers; center and program directors; district or state personnel involved in adopting curricula for preschool programs; and parents and caregivers. 
• This Professional Learning Community: Emergent Literacy was developed to support preschool teachers through collaborative learning experiences in a professional learning community (PLC). This suite of materials was prepared in collaboration with the REL Southeast School Readiness Partnership and includes four modules: Print Knowledge, Phonological Awareness, Vocabulary, and Oral Language.
• Ohio’s Early Learning and Development Standards in all domains of school readiness to reflect the comprehensive development of children beginning at birth to the end of preschool. 
• Cox Campus’ coursework allows educators the opportunity to expand their professional knowledge of the emergent and early language and literacy development for children birth through kindergarten entry. Always no cost and now Ohio Approved through OCCRRA, early childhood educators can earn a credential from the Rollins Center for Language and Literacy based on the level of coursework completed.

Key Beliefs and Dispositions

• OCALI Literacy Access for All explores strategies grounded in research that are designed to ensure all learners have access to the general curriculum. 
• Ohio Literacy Academy 2021, Birth to K-entry strand (Julie Washington) discusses language differences and language disorders and how they can be supported to lead to later reading and writing success.
• Practices that support dual language learners; Early Childhood Learning and Knowledge Center provides early care and education programs strategies that lead to optimal language and literacy services for children who speak English and for those who are dual language learners (DLLs).

Family Partnerships

• Reframing Family, School, and Community Engagement: A communications toolkit. is designed to collectively build the understanding and support needed to change the narrative around family, school, and community engagement. 
• Center for Early Literacy Learning: Parent and Practitioner Practice Guides include educator and family-friendly language and literacy practice guides for infants, toddlers, and preschoolers. 
• Day by Day Ohio provides a perpetual calendar featuring songs, language and literacy activities, book suggestions, and videos.
• Introduction to Building School-Family Partnerships: A Guide for School Leaders contains the basics of high-quality family engagement practices. It is written with school leaders in mind, with examples of how to support system-wide improvements in schools. 
• The Understanding Evidence-Based Literacy Practices PreK-3: Family Edition toolkit is available from the National Center on Improving Literacy

Multi-Tiered Systems of Support

• Early Language and Literacy: Universal Tier for Families and Home Visitors and Early Language and Literacy: Universal Tier for Center-Based Programs provides strategies that are appropriate for all children to support successful development of language and literacy skills.
• MTSS Framework in Early Childhood: CEC Division for Early Childhood Revised Position Statement 2021 describes how the needs of every child are addressed by integrating assessment and intervention within a multilevel framework to maximize outcomes.  
• Monitoring Progress in Language and Literacy in the Early Years from Cox Campus builds teachers’ skills in monitoring and assessing children’s developmental progress, with a focus on language and literacy development. 
• First Words Project - Florida State University provides a way to observe early gestures and milestones, providing a critical snapshot of infant and toddler early communication development. 

Last Modified: 2/8/2024 10:17:14 AM

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