Writing Development in the Nursery
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CLL
Communication, Language & Literacy in the nursery setting helps children to further develop skills in talking and listening and in reading and writing by providing a rich learning environment where books and children's writing and conversation are valued. Children here in our nursery learn these skills through well planned play, independent and adult led activities.
Writing Development
Many opportunities to develop their 'early writing' in a variety of ways, with different types of media are provided daily and weekly.
In the picture above the children are taking part independently in a shopping activity, pads and pencils are provided for the children to 'imerse' themselves in the role of shopper. The children freely use the media available and their early development of 'writing skills' to write shopping lists for the fruit they wish to buy. Receipts were available for the shop assistant to give out, after the fruit was purchased. As you can see from the picture, scales were available for the children to weigh the fruit, and money was used to pay-thus providing a cross curricular creative activity, supporting development in many cognitive areas.
If you look at the pictures below you will see the children taking part in activities and independent experiences that support writing development. We provide a few minutes a day where we introduce a letter and model its formation. The children then have the opportunity to practise the formation in a variety of contexts. Sound games are provided where the children can identify objects and words with the same sounds, linking letter to sound and sound to letter.
We also use an IWB to show letter formation being modelled, ICT has the ability to enhance children's experiences, providing access to a wide variety of fun online games and activities that support early writing and reading development.
In this activity you can see a child
writing his name on a firework.
The firework was created whilst
celebrating the festival of Diwali,
all children wrote their name
as a means of identifcation, on this
rocket and staff were able to observe
and assess the children's writing
development.
Early Literacy
From the earliest ages, children are .interacting with the world, and that includes the world of print. In the world at large, written language is always 'in context' and includes the additional symbol systems of numbers, colors, movement and shape, as well as cultural markers. Young children expect the print in the world to make sense and their earliest efforts to read and write, while not yet conventional, reflect the meaning they bring to their efforts. Knowing this means that nursery experiences need not begin with a blank slate. Rather, educators can tap into the diverse and rich experiences all language users have been experiencing. Planning and providing media to support children's writing through role play is an ideal way to provide the children with the opportunity to role-play writers.
This child is using their knowledge of letter
formation to independently write a note in
the writing corner. Through giving access to
well planned and independent writing activities
this child has developed as an early writer and
is able to form letters correctly, and make phonetically
plausable attempts to spell words.
Children are actively building a repertoire of understanding rich in print and cultural knowledge. This repertoire supports their writing development from early scribbles, strings of letters, and drawings that place-hold meaning, through invented spelling based on a blossoming knowledge of phonics, to more conventional written language. Their ideas and intentions take multiple forms, including notes, lists, letters, and stories. Writing within the 'social setting' school provides, further supports their efforts as children talk, dramatize and draw their way into written language.
Here you can see the children independently
taking part in a role-play activity, Resources
were provided to encourage the children
to use their writing skills.
'Well Planned Play' is Crucial to provide
good quality experiences.
Stages of Writing Development
These stages represent a way of looking at writing development in children. All stages overlap and children progress and reach writing stages at many different ages. The development of early writing skills is another aspect of your child's emergent literacy development. Regardless of which stage your child is at, writing development can be enhanced through being encouraged to write on a regular basis. Children should never be discouraged from exploring writing by the means they are able to do, whether it be scribbling, letter strings, invented spelling, or conventional spelling.
Stage |
Preliterate: Drawing uses drawing to stand for writing believes that drawings / writing is communication of a purposeful message read their drawings as if there were writing on them |
Preliterate: Scribbling scribbles but intends it as writing scribbling resembles writing holds and uses pencil like an adult |
Early Emergent: Letter-like forms shapes in writing actually resemble letters shapes are not actually letters look like poorly formed letters, but are unique creations |
Emergent: Random-letters or letter strings uses letter sequences perhaps learned from his/her name may write the same letters in many ways long strings of letters in random order |
Transitional: Writing via invented spelling creates own spelling when conventional spelling is not known one letter may represent an entire syllable words may overlay may not use proper spacing as writing matures, more words are spelled conventionally as writing matures, perhaps only one or two letters invented or omitted |
Fluency: Conventional spelling usually resembles adult writing |
Click here to to learn the letter formation /sounds of the alphabet
Click to go the next page -view Stepping Stone and ELG's for writing
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