Competency

Construct developmentally appropriate curriculum that promotes literacy learning.

Instructions

Through the lens of an experienced early childhood educator, you will produce a digital newsletter that can be used to inform families of your language and literacy curriculum, as well as developmentally appropriate practices. You will describe the language and literacy experiences that you are providing within your curriculum, as well as offer suggestions on activities that families can implement at home that will support continual growth. This resource will highlight your growing expertise in this field.

According to The National Association for the Education of Young Children, or NAEYC, it is important for practitioners to work in collaborative partnerships with families, establishing and maintaining regular, frequent two-way communication. It is also key for educators and the family to share with each other their knowledge and understanding of child development and learning.

Reflect on the various ways you support language use and literacy skills throughout your curriculum. In addition, consider the various ways that families can incorporate and support language and literacy development at home.  Reflect on effective activities that increase children’s awareness of the sounds of language, such as playing games, listening to stories, poems, and songs that involve rhyme, alliteration, and sound matching.

For your professional training resource, create a newsletter that focuses on describing a developmentally appropriate curriculum that promotes literacy learning. Choose a specific age group, such as birth-1 year, 12-24 months, 3-5 years. Describe the age and provide a paragraph that highlights some of the key language and literacy features commonly observed at this age.

Include 2-3 specific language or literacy activities for each of these learning areas: literacy, math, gross motor, sensory, art, science, outdoor play, music and movement, circle time, and dramatic play. Include information on how these activities support the different developmental domains.

You will also be teaching families more about the importance of fostering language and literacy development in young children. The newsletter will provide families with practical activities, material lists, and ideas for developmentally appropriate activities that support your curriculum and can be implemented at home.

You may use the “newsletter” template in Microsoft Word, something you find online, or build one of your own. The newsletter, however, must have a professional appearance, i.e. appropriate for immediate distribution to families.