Treehouse Literacy Program Update
Our Treehouse literacy program focuses on oral language development. This critical skill enables children to:
- Communicate – listen and respond when other people are talking
- Concepts – understand the meaning and concepts of a growing number of words and concepts
- Inquiry – obtain new information about things the children want to learn about
- Idea Expression – children learn to express their own ideas and thoughts using specific language.
Research shows that young children’s ability to use language and listen to, and understand the meaning of spoken words is related to their later literacy achievements in reading, writing and spelling.
At our Treehouse literacy program, I might ask the children to tell me about one of their favorite books or stories. This engages them in a shared conversation. This is a good way that adults can help children develop their oral language skills – by engaging them in conversation.
Sharing a book with a child provides a good platform for conversations with children. In our literacy program we also recite nursery rhymes, even with the kindergartners. The appeal of nursery rhymes is universal. They influenced so much in our childhood that we still remember them as adults. Part of the appeal of nursery rhymes is the nonsense of the images: Humpty Dumpty on the wall or mice running up the clock.
The children also enjoy nursery rhymes with actions. This helps them to remember the rhymes. Clapping the rhymes helps them develop coordination. When we play our ‘I Spy’ game we work on beginning sounds with the younger children, especially with the sounds of their own names. With the older children, e.g., Forest and River, we continue to work on middle and ending sounding words. We also spell out those words with a wooden moveable alphabet.
This year, ‘Read across America,’ which is sponsored by the National Education Association is celebrated on March 2nd. We will be celebrating the occasion at Treehouse with a tribute to Doctor Seuss. Although they have been around many years, Dr. Seuss’ books and characters still capture children’s imaginations. Even after many years, children and adults still like his books. You are welcome to borrow some of our Dr. Seuss books from the Treehouse library!
Ms. Charlotte