Early Literacy and Reading Policy

Staff involvement
This policy was drawn up in the consultation with the Head Teacher of Taynuilt Primary School and the staff of Taynuilt Pre 5 Unit.

Rationale
‘Children should be encouraged to develop an enthusiasm for stories by hearing wonderful stories and rhymes, by re-telling familiar stories, by browsing through books together and by using them to find interesting information’ (Curriculum Framework for Children 3-5)

Aims
To enable the children to:

Have fun with language by making sounds, words and creating stories.
Listen with enjoyment and respond to stories, songs, music and rhymes.
Realise that books can be used to find interesting information.
Understand some of the language and layout of books.
Learn some letter sounds.
Recognise letters of the alphabet

Involving the children in:

Selecting the books thus familiarising themselves with the books available.
Displaying the books.
Designing the book area/corner and making displaying which will encourage them to take an interest in books and will help them to use the area independently.
Selecting other resources in the book area/corner such as CD player with audio tapes and CDs, puppets and props, story sacks and song box.
Making their own books, stories, pictures and posters for the book corner.
Discussing which books are the most popular,
Discussing which books they read at home creating contexts for children to think about books in different ways.
Discussing which books they would like to see more of which will make them feel that the books belong to them and encourage them to take responsibility of them.

Creating attractive spaces

Ensure the area is comfortable, attractive and welcoming with posters, pictures, the children’s art work, cushions, bean bags, teddies and soft toys to encourage children to explore and choose their own stories.
The area must also be available for any children who just want their own space, a ‘chill out’ or some quiet time.
There is enough room for all the children sit in the book area and share books.
The books are displayed well with easy access.
The front covers of the books are on display.
The area is separated off in some way.

Use the following criteria for the selection of high quality resources:

Is the book eye catching and attractive?
Is it visually stimulating?
Are there appropriate illustrations in the books that immediately capture a reader’s interest and imagination?
Do they represent a multicultural society?
Do they show positive images of characters?
Are they suited to the intended age range?
Are they challenging to extend the children’s learning?
Is it an appropriate size and shape?
Are they robust and practical?
Is it safe?
Are the books easy to read with lots of pictures for thought, imagination and asking questions?
Are the letters correctly represented?
Will the story stimulate enjoyment and relevant to the audience?
Is there a good balance of text and illustrations?
Is the book good for storytelling or more suited for use on a one-to-one basis?
Always ensure there is a range of literacy activities available around the play room e.g drawing/writing areas, writing bags, name cards, spongy letters in messy play, books (not just in the story corner), posters, words, song box, the calendar.

Developing Literacy activities through play by:

Ensuring there is a choice of literacy activities throughout the whole playroom and not just in one area.
Creating a rich environment with appropriate resources to develop children’s curiosity in literacy.
Helping children to develop talking, listening, reading and writing and help them to understand the connections.
Talk about letter sounds and rhyming words.
Use rich open ended questions to encourage learning.
Act as role models for children in terms of literacy.
Help to encourage children to hold their paintbrush/pencil the correct way.
Ensure there are pincer grip activities available.
Ensure literacy experiences are meaningful to children.
Ensure there are appropriate labels and posters on display in the room to encourage children to ‘read’ and explore them.
Monitor children’s progress.
Observe children in order to support and extend their learning about literacy.
Take account of individual patterns of learning and stages of development.
Provide support for children with additional support needs.
Provide support for children for whom English is an additional language.
Develop liaison with other professionals to ensure a collaborative approach.
Asking the children questions about their likes/dislikes of stories and encourage them to talk about the characters and to explain what is happening in the pictures.
Explaining to the children what the role of the author and illustrator is.
Involve parents as partners.

Involving parents as partners

At Taynuilt Pre 5 Unit we aim to ensure parents are aware of how to help develop and reinforce their children’s skills at home and take an active role in their learning by:

Regular communication regarding their children’s progress and stage of development.
Ensuring written information on developing skills in all aspects of communication and language are available.
Organising parent workshops/open days, where possible, on specific aspects of developing communication and language in young children.
The introduction of a lending library for appropriate books to encourage both children and parents to see the benefits of reading as an enjoyable and profitable experience.
Use story sacks to encourage parents to develop their child’s literacy skills at home through the medium of play.

Monitoring and Review
It is the responsibility of the Head Teacher along with the Pre 5 staff to monitor, evaluate and review the above arrangements and effectiveness of this policy and adjust them according to need.