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The National Institute for Literacy's Early Literacy Panel just released its "Developing Early Literacy" report. The report identified essential early skills and abilities important to later literacy development. It also found that parent involvement had a significant impact on measures of oral language skills and cognitive abilities.
The findings and recommendations inspired Liza McFadden, president of the Volunteer USA Foundation, to compile this "To Do" list of actions to help children become "super-ready" for school.
Finding #1. Alphabet Knowledge
"Alphabet Knowledge" is theknowledge of the names and sounds associated with printed letters. I think of this finding as if my kids were wearing superhero costumes while becoming "masters of the alphabet." Their job: to learn the name of every letter and the sound each letter makes. My job: to switch on the TV closed-caption option so words are part of my child's every TV experience; to point to the beginning letter of words and make the sounds of the letter.
Finding #2. Phonological Awareness
This finding says super-ready kids have "phonological awareness"— which means they have the ability to distinguish words and syllables, independent of their meaning. It's critical that children truly hear the sounds in words and play with these sounds. It means reading fun poetry like Dr. Seuss books and singing songs like "Clap, Clap, Clap your Hands" where children clap to syllables.
Finding #3. Rapid/Random Order Learning
By age 5, super-ready kids must be able to instantly identify letters, numbers, colors and objects in "rapid" and "random order." So it's not just knowing the numbers one to 10 in order—it's important to recognize them quickly in any order.
Finding #4. Writing Skills
Super-ready kids need to be able to wield powerful pencils. While most of us spend lots of time reading bedtime stories, I'm not sure we've been as conscientious about writing skills. Specifically, at age 5 children should be able to write their own name and write any letters that are called out. One idea is to have your child write their name in all their books.
Finding #5. Phonological Memory
This finding is a doozey; researchers call it developing a child's "phonological memory." Simply stated, super-ready kids have great recall and we know how they love to "retell" their favorite stories.
Previous reading research suggested parents read to their kids 20 minutes a day. If you've been doing this, you're ahead of the curve! But the takeaway here is that simply reading doesn't get us all the way there.
With just a little more effort, we can become Super-Parents to our Super-Kids. For more tips, go to Volunteer USA's Love.Read.Learn program.
Liza McFadden is president and founder of Volunteer USA Foundation. To learn more, go to volunteerusafoundation.org.
You worry how your kids are being influenced by TV shows and movies. You wonder what messages your kids' music might be giving them. You keep an eye on how long your kids spend playing video games, and whether those games are violent. You try to keep up with how your kids are using their cell phones and the Internet to talk to friends.
Monitoring your kids' media use can be overwhelming and PTA is here to help. Over the next couple months, this newsletter will feature a six-part series on how you can protect your kids and promote responsible media and technology use in your family. The series will cover television, music, movies, the Internet, video games, and cell phones. Stay tuned!
Guiding Your Family's Television Time (the first in a six-part series on media and technology use)
Super Bowl Sunday. It brings even the most uninterested sports fans to the couch to enjoy the big game with friends and family. But TVs aren't put in a closet once the confetti falls for the winners. The TV tends to occupy a prominent place in most living rooms.
While TV programs can inform, educate, and entertain, not all programs are suitable for all audiences. The popularity and abundance of reality TV shows has the potential to create confusion about what is appropriate to share publicly and what behaviors are socially acceptable.
Here are some tips to help you make sure your family can relax in front of the TV without the risk of exposure to something inappropriate:
- Do your homework before you or your children watch a show.
- Learn how to program your v-chip and use your cable provider's parental controls.
- Watch with your child.
- Establish a media use contract with each child in your family.
Go to pta.org/tvtipsheets to learn more.
- Take Your Family to School Week—Just a Couple Weeks Away!
Join your child at school for lunch or breakfast. Contribute to a school mural. Find out if you are smarter than a 5th grader. Explore the diverse cultures in your community. Take part in a poetry slam. See how technology can enhance learning. Read to your child and his or her friends. Learn more about your child's curriculum and classes. Catch a magic show. Connect with your child's teachers and principals. Celebrate PTA Take Your Family to School Week, February 8-14.
Join families across the nation in becoming stronger partners in children's education. Contact your school or PTA to find out what activities are planned for Take Your Family to School Week.
More than 30 years of research shows that children do better in school when their parents are involved. Go to www.pta.org/familytoschool to learn more about this special week connecting families and schools.
- PTA MORE Announces New Partners
PTA MORE (Men Organized to Raise Engagement) is proud to add Strong Fathers-Strong Families, Fort Worth, Texas; and the National Partnership for Community Leadership, Washington, DC, as new MORE members. PTA MORE members serve as a conduit for greater father and significant male role model involvement, resulting in positive outcomes and successful relationships for children, parents, schools and communities. For more information, go to PTA.org/MORE.
- PTA Launches Blog to Cover Inauguration
PTA National President Jan Harp Domene and PTA National CEO Byron V. Garrett attended the inauguration and related events on January 20, as did several staff members from the PTA national office. To share their experiences, PTA produced a web page and blog dedicated to bringing readers a first-hand perspective of this historic occasion.
PTA has always valued its alliance with our nation's leaders and has been at the forefront of child advocacy and parent involvement.
Coverage can be found at PTA.org/inaug09. The blog is located at PTA.org/blog.
- PTA Asks You…
What is your biggest concern regarding your child’s health and safety?
Parents have a big job taking care of their children’s needs, and health and safety are a top priority. New flu strains show up, new technologies cause concern, new freedoms children gain as they grow, such as driving or engaging in rough sports, can make parents nervous. If you could make one health or safety concern disappear, what would it be?
If your response is selected for publication in the April/May 2009 issue of Our Children magazine, “Preparing Your Child for College,” PTA will send you a $25 gift card.
Deadline for submission: Wednesday, January 28, 2009.
When submitting your response to forum@pta.org, please include
- Your name,
- The name and town of your PTA,
- Your position in your PTA, and
- Your home mailing address so we can send you a gift card if your submission is published.
By sending an e-mail, you'll be granting PTA the right to publish your response, which may be edited for grammar, length, and/or clarity.
- Action: Write to your congressional representative about the importance of creating strong comprehensive federal guidelines on school siting.
- Why: Few state laws (and no federal laws) prevent a school from being built on or near toxic, contaminated sites, according to the Center for Health, Environment & Justice.
- How: Fill out a form letter online created by the Center for Health, Environment & Justice specifically to encourage creation of a strong, comprehensive school siting law.
There are many ways that you can help your child succeed! A few small activities each week will pay huge dividends over the course of the year. Here are a few that you can do this week:
- Provide encouragement and praise for your child's efforts.
Aliente y felicite a su hijo por sus esfuerzos.
- Share your interests, hobbies, and talents with your child.
Comparta sus intereses, pasatiempos y talentos con su hijo.
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