Think of some questions that you have about language and literacy development and write them down. How do you help children improve their language and literacy? What is the difference between memorizing and learning?

What are pre-literacy skills? What is the difference between knowing your alphabet and recognizing a word? There is some disagreement between the panelists. What do you think?

For a Print-Rich Environment:

• Point out letters and numbers with household items
• Make signs, labels and charts
• Plan playful literacy experiences

Where is print available in your environment? As you watch, look for things that the child care provider does that you would find helpful.

Consider what you do with your kids. How are your practices the same as what you saw? How are they different? What can you do to make a print-rich environment?

To Encourage Pre-Literacy:

• Label everything and use those labels when you refer to something
• Ask open-ended questions; Use full sentences; Use adjectives; Sing
• Read books out loud; Point out daily activities that use reading
• Encourage children to describe their experiences and ideas

Prepare to watch how the panelists react. Keep your questions and the active learning questions in mind and take notes.

Compare your reactions and notes with what they noticed. Did anyone notice the same things as you? Did they agree with you? What is most important for building pre-literacy skills?

Main Points:

• A print-rich environment may be adjusted for different ages and different needs
• Working with a print-rich environment encourages associations between objects, functions and words

Here's your chance to think about how to apply what you've learned. Think about how you have integrated language and literacy into play. What are your children learning when they do these activities with you?

How would you adjust this activity for kids of different ages? How many ways can you think of sorting and labeling objects found in a park, like a pine cone, leaves, rocks and sand?

This activity promotes:

• Creativity
• Appreciation for nature
• Pre-reading skills such as word association with objects and print