Dear Arizona Promising Practices Subscriber,

Welcome to another online addition of the Arizona Promising Practices forum. For those new to this service, each issue, which will now be sent to you on a regular basis, will focus on:

(1) Recommended National Education websites; and

(2) One promising practice article in condensed form. We welcome your recommendations for improvement to this forum or suggestions on future topics (these will be wide ranging so if nothing in this update interests you, hold on for future editions!)

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In this issue of the Promising Practices Forum we have been asked to provide some simple tips that educators can provide parents concerning literacy. Brought to you by the University of Michigan, these everyday tips can be practiced by parents daily to help boost students reading and critical thinking skills.

National Website of Importance - Engaging children in reading can sometimes be a challenge. Check out Reading Rockets, a website dedicated to effective reading instruction. www.readingrockets.org

Promising Practice Research and Teaching Tips

Literacy Tips

Excerpts taken from Fostering Early Literacy, Pierson, J.M., Craig, H.K., 2000, U-M Center for the Development of Language and Literacy

It's Never Too Early to Start Reading

What is literacy?

Literacy can mean different things to different people, at different times, and even in different places. In general, language is a way that we exchange meaning with our world. Language skills fall under two broad categories—oral communication (i.e., listening and speaking) and written communication (i.e. reading and writing). Early literacy refers to the literacy development that occurs before a child actually becomes a conventional reader and writer. You can help to begin to prepare your child during the preschool years so that he or she will experience success in literacy learning during the early primary grades of school.

Why is talking important to learning to read and write?

Oral communication development is critical in the development of early literacy skills necessary for both reading and writing. It is through the use of oral language that your child first experiences the exchange of information (i.e., meaning) with others. Reading and writing are two other ways to exchange meaning. And this is a very important literacy concept to learn-that information is exchanged between people through reading and writing!

TIPS:

• Develop your child's "world knowledge" (i.e., understanding and memory of people, places, and events) by taking your child to places. Take your child too many examples of the same place (e.g., the park near home, the park near grandmas, the park at the beach).
• Help your child discover that many words have more than one meaning. Many words refer to places, but can also mean something different, like an action (e.g., at the park; park the car).
• Develop your child's "word knowledge". Establish a core vocabulary of words important to your child. Encourage your child to both say and respond to these words. Point out similarities and differences between words.
• Use storybook reading to engage your child in language use. Make a comment or ask a question and then wait for your child to respond. Respond to your child by repeating and adding to the message.

http://www.umich.edu/~comdis/resources/literacy-tips.html