The Right Approach to Early Reading

At Creative World Schools, we are passionate about accommodating and encouraging the instinctual way that children learn. We see children as competent investigators of the world around them and seek to facilitate their natural inclination to absorb and assimilate knowledge.

This month, we have had a blast exploring Storybook Tales in our Exploratorium. We have selected, explored, experienced, and created stories!

In our custom Inquiry curriculum, we explain to teachers the philosophy behind our approach to early literacy:

“We embrace the concept of emergent literacy and believe that children’s literacy must focus on not a separation of letters but an approach that embraces how children communicate including speaking, reading, and writing together. Instead of a letter by letter approach, we playfully interact with a variety of letters and create print rich environments in our classes. We model and talk about how print works as we engage children in writing books and a variety of appropriate activities that you will find monthly in your curriculum supplement. We do not use dittos or have children practice isolated letters through ditto like activities. “

As children are given the freedom to explore and experiment with language, we see amazing language emerging! We love listening to the tales our young ones weave and encouraging them to notice and begin to understand the print-rich environment of each classroom… and the world around them!

Did you ever fall in love with literature? What are some of your earliest memories of recognizing a letter, realizing you could interpret a sign, or enjoying a book? These are the early childhood experiences that set a child’s trajectory for a lifelong love of learning!

At CWS Apollo Beach, children were encouraged to develop fine motor skills and alphabet recognition by using small branches to make letter shapes!

Storytelling can happen in so many different ways! Students at CWS Crosscreek used shadow puppets as a way to tell their favorite fairytales!

The length and sequence of words is something that even preliterate children can begin to identify. Young students at CWS Plainfield begin to recognize and re-create their names!

Environmental print is everywhere! As we explored an “Away We Go” Transportation Inquiry at CWS Noland, students covered many domains – including math and reading – by matching and investigating road signs.

We love involving the whole family. Students at CWS Rivercrest invited their parents to come in and read aloud to them! It’s so great that our amazing parents are invested in and see the value of growing young readers.