Millions of Words: Building Literacy from the Beginning

Getting Started with Literacy

In a recent PEW report (September 15, 2015), “Libraries at the Crossroads,” one of the top findings of this survey of 2000 people was the belief that libraries should offer free early literacy programs to help young children prepare for school. Clearly, the need to help children become literate is a national priority and we need all the help we can get. Fortunately, there are many excellent resources available to libraries, teachers, families, and institutions as we strive toward this goal—in both print and digital form. For example, the American Library Association recently developed a new program, “Babies Need Words Every Day: Talk, Read, Sing, Play,” with shareable resources designed “to bridge the 30 million word gap” by providing adults with proven ways to build the literacy skills of young children.

The 30 Million Word Gap

What is the “30 million word gap”? It’s the notion that children who hear a lot of words in their very first years of life come to learn language (and speak it and eventually read it) more quickly then children who do not—and many children do not have this exposure due to a variety of factors in the home and that difference can be as great as 30 million words! This finding comes from the ground-breaking research of Betty Hart and Todd Risley who studied families and young children and their interactions in their homes. Anne Fernald features their work in her engaging TED talk, “Why Talking to Little Kids Matters.” Parents can be the very first models of language for their children at home, however, siblings, grandparents, cousins, aunts/uncles, friends, other children, and daycare providers can also provide some of those million words for the early years. In addition, children are exposed to many forms of literacy activities in every facet of everyday life and we need to value and encourage that wide range (from cooking to driving to playing to reading) and help families see how important talking through these activities is for their children’s literacy development. Some early childhood experts even advocate using “baby sign language” as an intermediate step in helping children communicate their needs before their verbal vocabulary is fully developed.

Collaborating with Public Libraries

The public library sector has long been a source of parent and family support with story times, lapsit programs, toddler activities, and other organized opportunities for promoting children’s literacy by reaching out to parents and families and their littlest ones since the 1930s. In recent years, the Public Library Association and the Association for Library Service to Children have collaborated to create the “Every Child Ready to Read @ your library® Project,” complete with training opportunities for librarians (see http://everychildreadytoread.org/). Many picture book story times involve parents and other caregivers as a way to provide a shared and interactive experience between children and adults. In addition, this models the read aloud experience for family members who would like to try this with their own children at home. Many public libraries feature 'lapsit' programs that provide very young children (0 - 2 years) with exposure to books, usually beginning with board books. This expansion of the traditional story times for 3-5 year olds has gained momentum as there is a considerable body of research that links early exposure to books with brain development. Some libraries add book toys to their collections, acquiring dolls, plush toys, and puppets that relate to popular picture books.

Reading Aloud

Fernald talks about the need for a “rich diet of language” and what is a better source of rich language than books for young children? For young children, “reading” the pictures is an important part of early literacy and often the pictures include details that are not explicit in the words of the story and kids are typically the first to catch them—like the little mouse in Good Night Moon. This sharing encourages conversation and interaction around the books and pictures—more words. In the landmark study from the 1980s, Becoming a Nation of Readers (1985), the Commission on Reading found that "the single most important activity for building the knowledge required for eventual success in reading is reading aloud to children…. It is a practice that should continue throughout the grades." Fortunately, we have access to so many wonderful books for young children and those books now merit their very own awards too. For example, in 2006 the American Library Association established the Theodor Seuss Geisel Award, named after Dr. Seuss, given annually to the author and illustrator of the most distinguished beginning reader book published each year. In addition, the Charlotte Zolotow Award is presented by the Cooperative Children’s Book Center at the University of Wisconsin- Madison for the best picture book text for young children (birth through age seven). And of course many Caldecott award books noted for their illustrations have great appeal to emerging readers.

Easy Readers

As children develop the ability to read a picture book on their own, we can also provide “easy readers” that help children transition from reading picture books to reading novels. Back in the mid-1950s, Dr. Seuss was commissioned to write a children's book using less than 300 different words and the result was the benchmark book, The Cat in the Hat (Random House) in 1957. It takes a great deal of talent to craft an engaging story using only a handful of quickly recognized vocabulary. The Frog and Toad series manages this beautifully, as does Mo Willems’ Elephant and Piggie series and Kevin Henkes with his Penny books, to name a few. Easy readers offer a helpful bridge to children who want to read a more "grown up" book with more words and distinct chapters, but are not quite ready to leave the pictures of picture books behind. These are heavily illustrated with pictures on every page, text in a large font, with limited vocabulary and short sentences, generous white space and margins, simple and direct plots, and generally 40-80 pages long. And kids feel so successful when they finish one!

Conclusion

As the late Bernice Cullinan (1995, p. 7) observed, “Readers are made in childhood. The models we provide, and the books we select, influence children in lasting ways." The home, classroom, and library can help provide support for parents in building this background, can supplement family activities with organized programs, and can provide reference books for parent education on literacy development.

Digital Resources for Early Literacy

Colorin Colorado. Serving Families of English Language Learners http://www.colorincolorado.org/

First Book. Access to new books for children in need http://www.firstbook.org

Reach Out and Read. Literacy Support from the Doctors’ Office http://www.reachoutandread.org/

Reading Rockets. Free evidence-based information about reading http://www.readingrockets.org/

Print Resources for Promoting Literacy and Literature

Codell, Esmé Raji. How to Get Your Child to Love Reading: For Ravenous and Reluctant Readers Alike. Algonquin, 2003.

Fox, Mem. Reading Magic: Why Reading Aloud to Our Children Will Change Their Lives Forever (Updated and Revised Edition). Mariner Books, 2008.

Miller, Donalyn. The Book Whisperer: Awakening the Inner Reader in Every Child. Jossey-Boss, 2009.

Silvey, Anita. Children’s Book-a-Day Almanac. Roaring Brook Press, 2012.

Trelease, Jim. The Read-Aloud Handbook. 7th Ed., Penguin, 2013.

Works Cited

Cullinan, Bernice, Marilyn Scala, and Virginia Schroder. Three Voices: An Invitation to Poetry Across the Curriculum. Stenhouse, 1995.

Hart, B. and T.R. Risley. Meaningful Differences in the Everyday Experiences of Young American Children. Brookes Publishing, 1995.

PEW Report. “Libraries at the Crossroads.” http://www.pewinternet.org/2015/09/15/libraries-at-the-crossroads/

Anne Fernald explains her research of young children responding to words with their eyes.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I7HN5LJOc-w&feature=youtu.be

TED talk, “Why Talking to Little Kids Matters” by Anne Fernald https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IpHwJyjm7rM