ABCs of Early Literacy
(helping kids start along a really great road)


​The Basics of Early Literacy


​In an effort to help children from birth to age six get prepared to read, the Noyes Children's Library Foundation - in partnership with Noyes Children's Library and MCPL - is making MORE Noyes by working to provide early literacy resources and activities that target both children and their parents and caregivers. These resources aim to help children build pre-reading and prewriting skills, while helping parents learn the best methods to engage children in the activities that build those skills.

The Six Pre-Literacy Skills


​Early Literacy is what children know about reading and writing before they actually read or write. There are ​SIX PRE-LITERACY SKILLS to help get children ready to learn to read. Knowing the ABCs is only one of the six skills. These early literacy skills are best developed through talking, singing, reading, writing and playing. At Noyes, there are books, sing-alongs, story times and expert staff eager to help you and your child on the road to reading!

Read more below about:
Print Motivation, Print Awareness, Letter Knowledge, Vocabulary, Phonological Awareness and Narrative Skills.

Print Motivation

...being interested and enjoying books
​
​Why is being interested in and enjoying books so important? 
Because kids who enjoy books and reading will be curious about reading and motivated to learn to read for themselves.

Motivation is important because learning to read is HARD WORK! It's important that we make sure our children start reading and listening to books from day one and that they have a good time with books. 

​
What Can You Do to Help Build this Skill?
  • Have fun!
  • Read books you both like
  • Stop (or shift gears) when it is no longer fun.
  • Length of time is not important; enjoyment is!

Print Awareness

... noticing print everywhere, knowing how to handle a book, and knowing how to follow the written word on the page
​​
Children have to be aware of words before they can read them. They need to know how books work - what's the front cover? what's upside down? What page do I start on? Do I look from left to right or right to left?

When kids are comfortable with books, from knowing how to open a book to understanding what those black squiggles are, they can concentrate on starting to read the words.
​
What Can You Do to Help Build This Skill?
  • Read board books that your child can handle on his/her own; let him/her turn ​the pages as you read together.
  • Sometimes point to the words as you read.
  • Talk about print even when you are not reading together. Look for letters and words on signs, labels, and lists.

Letter Knowledge

... knowing that letters are different from each other, knowing letter names and sounds, and recognizing letters everywhere
​​To read words, children have to understand that a word is made up of individual letters.
​
​What Can You Do to Help Build This Skill?
  • Look at and talk about different shapes (letters are based on shapes)
  • Play “same and different” type games
  • Look at “I Spy” type books
  • Notice different types of letters (“a” or “A”) on signs and in books
  • Read ABC books
  • Talk about and draw the letters of a child's own name

Vocabulary

... knowing all kinds of words
It's much easier to read a word when it's a word you already know. Children with bigger vocabularies have an easier time when they start to read, since it's much easier for them to make sense of what they're sounding out. 
​
What Can You Do to Help Build This Skill?
​
  • Encourage children to learn their native or home language first; this makes learning another language (speaking and reading) easier later.
  • Talk with children in positive and conversational ways; commands and “no’s” do not encourage language development.
  • Carry on lots of conversations with children.
  • Explain the meanings of new words.
  • Read books! Picture books use a different vocabulary than casual spoken conversation.

Phonological Awareness

... hearing and playing with the smaller sounds of words
Children who can hear how words "come apart" into separate sounds will be more successful at "sounding out" words when they start to read.

What Can You Do to Help Build This Skill?
  • Sing songs; most break words up into one syllable per note. Reading works with syllables also.
  • Recite rhymes; rhymes depend upon ending sounds.
  • Play with tongue twisters.
  • Pick a sound for the day. Notice it at the beginning of words and at the end of words.

Narrative Skills

... describing things and events, telling stories, knowing the order of events and making predictions
When children can describe something or retell stories, it shows that they are comprehending what they are reading. 
Understanding what they're reading is crucial to helping them stay motivated to keep reading.

What Can You Do to Help Build This Skill?
  • Ask open-ended questions that encourage conversations rather than yes/no or right/wrong answers.
  • Talk about your day and its series of events.
  • Mix up the events in a story; make it silly!
  • Guess what comes next—or come up with a different ending.
  • Read stories without words; they really help focus on this skill.
  • Name objects, feelings, and events.

With thanks to the Colorado Libraries for Early Literacy for the Six Pre-Literacy Skills.