FOUNDATIONAL LITERACY ESSAY TORI NELSON | 1

Foundational Literacy Essay

Tori Nelson

ECI 310

Northern Arizona University

11/2/2016
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While some children have the ability to learn and understand written language without

significant instructional help, most students learn how to read by being taught the skills and

strategies necessary to do so. Among these skills is the ability to understand spoken words and

the syllables and sounds they are made of; recognizing and correlating words and their meanings;

and reading comprehension. These are just some the foundational literacy skills teachers are

tasked with educating their students. Without proficient reading and comprehension skills, even

the simplest of tasks can prove to be quite challenging. According to statistics published by the

Write Express Corporation, 2 out of 3 students unable to read proficiently by the end of the 4th

grade will end up in jail or on welfare. Literacy Partners a non-profit organization dedicated to

developing literacy and language skills for both parents and children states that almost 800

million people worldwide maintain only basic or below-basic literacy levels. Over 90 million

Americans fall into this category, making it difficult for them to read even a basic newspaper

(2016). Through the use of effective literacy teaching methods, the teachers of today can actively

combat this growing figure in the leaders of tomorrow.

In addition to teaching reading skills and strategies, classroom environment, effective

instruction and assessing learning plays a critical role in helping students become strong readers.

An understanding of a childs literacy development is imperative to ensure their long-term

academic success. These skills and behaviors that develop early serve as a basis for later reading

and writing competency. They are building blocks that children learn to utilize to become

proficient readers. Most children follow a similar pattern and sequence of reading behaviors as

they learn how to read (Brown, 2014). This pattern begins with emergent literacy concepts,

followed by phonological and phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, comprehension and

vocabulary. Reading and learning how to read is a combination of all these skills.
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Emergent literacy concepts include the students ability to begin to differentiate letters

from numbers and recognize certain words, such as their names. Students also begin to engage in

experimental writing, which often resembles scribbling, and begin to learn a variety of new

vocabulary words. There are many activities teachers can do to support childrens emergent

literacy skills. Talking with children, singing, playing word games, reading to them, saying

nursery rhymes, taking them to the library and having access to writing materials and books will

benefit the students emergent literacy skills (Shrier, 2013).

Phonological and Phonemic Awareness is the next step in learning how to read.

According to Brown, phonological awareness is the ability to recognize that words are made up

of a variety of sound units. Phonemic awareness refers to students ability to identify and

manipulate phonemes. This is a subgroup of phonological awareness that focuses on relating

phonemes to graphemes (Brown, 2014). By engaging students in word play such as segmenting,

blending and manipulating phonemes, onsets and rimes, students can learn to recognize patterns

and acquire the knowledge necessary to read and build words. Another learning strategy that will

support phonological awareness is clapping out syllables or identifying and making rhymes.

The goal of phonics is to teach students the relationship between letters and speech

sounds. Instructional examples that may support phonics in the school include class books that

children create, as well as purposefully using games to support sound-letter connections, such as

tongue twisters (Brown, 2014). It is imperative that students have a solid grasp on these skills so

that they may recognize words and decode texts. If students are able to grasp these strategies,

they can utilize them when they come to a word they dont know in the future.

Reading fluency is the students ability to read quickly and accurately with correct

phrasing, intonations, and pronunciation (Tompkins, 2006). Support for this skill in the
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classroom may include echo reading and reading aloud as a way to model fluency. Fluency is an

important skill for students to acquire as it is tied to decoding and reading comprehension

(Brown, 2014).

Comprehension refers to the students ability to acquire meaning from a text they are

reading. Once students are able to comprehend what they are reading, they can begin to learn

new material. It has been said that students learn to read from kindergarten to second grade, and

then read to learn at the beginning of the third grade. While many students learn comprehension

strategies informally, there are many instructional strategies teachers can utilize to enhance

understanding. One example of a strategy is engaging students in cooperative learning.

Cooperative learning consists of students discussing new material in a group setting. Teachers

should guide and facilitate these discussions to determine what the students understood from the

text. These types of discussions also allow students to learn from each other since they may all

identify different elements of the text (Gagen). Comprehension is the goal of proficient reading.

Once students attain the ability to utilize comprehension skills, they are able to read and

demonstrate their understanding of almost any text. Various instructional strategies designed to

improve reading comprehension are also effective in building vocabulary knowledge.

Vocabulary knowledge is distinguished from the skill of decoding print as it primarily

pertains to the understanding of the word. Expanding students vocabulary knowledge can be

done through both incidental exposure and direct instruction. Learning strategies that will

support vocabulary knowledge includes highlighting and defining unknown words in a text,

word games, and direct instruction in the most common affixes. Vocabulary acquisition is

important to reading development since it leads to improved reading fluency and comprehension.
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A literature rich classroom environment sets the stage for a students success. Creating

this environment requires teachers to consider the classroom community, the physical

environment and the instructional organization.

To maintain a literate and welcoming classroom community, it is important to develop

and maintain a positive relationship with the students and parents. Parents and guardians should

be kept up to date about their childs growth. In addition, it is the teachers duty to encourage

family involvement in school events and activities (Tompkins, 2006). Another way to create a

positive classroom community is to have students work together in reading and writing activities.

Since students value opportunities for social interaction, this will enhance their achievement and

motivation (Tompkins, 2006). Also, a literature rich teaching disposition sends an overall

positive message and creates a literature rich classroom community. This entails modeling a love

for literature and having a strong belief in the success of students and their ability to achieve

their reading goals.

In regards to the classrooms physical environment, the teacher should create a

comfortable, safe, and warm environment where all students feel welcomed. Students should feel

safe enough to take risks and dig deep into texts. Teachers can accomplish this by setting up an

area with pillows or comfortable chairs where students can enjoy reading. An easily accessible

classroom library that students can freely choose a book of their choice during designated

reading or free time should be incorporated. The classroom library should be well organized with

books at various reading levels and genres. Another way to create a literate classroom

environment is to utilize the wall space in the classroom with posters, anchor charts, students

work, and word walls.

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Developing reading routines and practices not only allow students to improve on reading

and writing skills, but also allows students to find joy in reading. Literacy centers and stations

should be utilized often. Literacy centers promote student collaboration and allows for student

choice. Teachers should also participate in interactive read-alouds. Read-alouds can be used for

many different subjects and purposes. By using read-alouds for different topics, it offers students

new perspectives. In addition, reader-response experiences and questions created from the

blooms-taxonomy for students to answer before, during and after the story keeps students

involved and motivated. These activities are also necessary to track the students level of

comprehension and vocabulary acquisition.

In reading instruction, teachers assess students to determine their strengths and needs.

Dibbles testing is a way to assess students reading fluency and accuracy. When students

complete the tests, they will fall into one of four quadrants. The four quadrants are known as:

fast and inaccurate, fast and accurate, slow and inaccurate and slow and accurate. These

quadrants aid teachers in identifying the obstacles students may be facing while reading. The

students that fall into each category would require different instructional strategies during

intervention periods. If students identify with the first quadrantfast and inaccuratethey may

be struggling with phonics, irregular words, or prefixes and suffixes. If a student is identified as

slow and accurate, fluency and confidence should be addressed. Alternatively, test results

identifying a student as slow and inaccurate would indicate a need for improvement in both

phonemes and phonics. Although a student may be placed into the fast and accurate quadrant,

teachers should still implement strategies to improve comprehension skills.

Another way for teachers to assess whether students are effectively understanding

literacy concepts would be to test them informally and formally throughout units. Both types of
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assessments allow teachers to monitor the progress of their students so that they may alter or

modify instruction. Methods to informally assess students include running records, projects and

presentations. Scores such as 20 out of 25 or percent of words read correctly are given from this

type of assessment. On the other hand, formal assessments include exams, screenings, and

intelligence tests. Formal assessments have a pre-determined method of grading as well as

interpretation of those grades. Therefore, teachers can assess students quickly and effectively.

By participating in the aforementioned practices and considering the natural sequence in

which children learn to read, I will not only express my belief of the importance of reading, but

also create lifelong learners. As a teacher, I intend to utilize the knowledge I have gained

throughout this course to help combat the growing illiteracy statistics currently facing the United

States. Through the use of these methods, teachers can impart upon their students a greater

understanding of, if not a passion for, literature and language.

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Works Cited

Shrier, C. (2013, November 18). ABC's of early literacy: The importance of developing early

literacy skills. Retrieved from

http://msue.anr.msu.edu/news/abcs_of_early_literacy_the_importance_of_developing_early_liter

acy_skills

Tompkins, G. E. (2006). Literacy for the 21st century: A balanced approach. Upper Saddle

River, NJ: Pearson Education/Merrill/Prentice Hall.

Brown, C. S. (2014). Language and literacy in the early years. Language and Literacy

Development in the Early Years: Foundational Skills That Support Emergent Readers, 24, 35-49.

Retrieved November 2, 2016, from

http://eric.ed.gov/?q=language+and+literacy+development+in+the+early+years&id=EJ1034914

Gagen, M. (n.d.). Developing and improving reading comprehension skills. Retrieved from

http://righttrackreading.com/readingcomprehension.html

Literacy facts. (2016). Retrieved from https://literacypartners.org/literacy-in-america/literacy-

facts