Discuss about the Diversity in Literacy and Language Development.
The early childhood stage is an integral stage in the overall growth and development of a child. At a tender age, children’s brain development is at its fastest and most complex and the neural pathways aiding and boosting growth in the later years of learning and growth are largely defined in the early years of a child (Shonkoff & Phillips, 2000).In designing the early childhood program, care givers should use diverse learning experiences that adopt a socially just and anti-bias teaching approach that enable children to interact freely with people of diverse linguistic ability ( Edwards & Forman, 1998). Some of the learning experiences to be employed include; storytelling, imitation, demonstration, drama and role play. Various resources and teaching/learning activities should be employed during the program.
An effective curriculum should be learner centred as opposed to teacher centred approach. The designers of the curriculum ought to be aware of the children’s individual abilities and strengths to enable them devise ways to engage and expand them (Maamouri, 1998). One way of doing this could be by organizing for a rich variety of learning experiences appealing to the visual, auditory and physical senses. Another way could be by alternating individual, partnered, small group and large group activities to enable children experience the various kinds of social interaction (Coleman, 1967).
Make drawings of alphabetical letters of different sizes to accommodate children of varied visual capabilities. Draw letters in different colours (red, yellow, orange, green, blue and purple) on manila papers and place them where each child will see clearly.
In cases of dual language learners, use visual cues as this will help them function in the classroom and know what to expect in the course of the lesson. This can be done by displaying photographs to emphasize the classroom schedule and in some cases the classroom rules. It can also be done by displaying the pupil’s work and helper charts plus other organizers that are used in the classroom. Pictures of children participating in daily activities should be drawn as this will boost their morale as they enter the classroom and encourage them come to school as they are able to associate the classroom with themselves as they see their pictures. For instance, pictures of children holding brooms can be drawn and under the picture post the word “sweeping.” This increases their memory as they are able to know the daily routine even if they do not comprehend the meaning of the word.
Start with vowels in capital letters and then followed by small letters and ask the children to pronounce properly. Draw alphabetical letters and ask each child to read loud. From the various letters, form words beginning with simple ones to complex ones. Draw pictures of various animals and assign them names both in capital and small letters. From simple names, form sentences (Morrow, 2001). Drawings and symbols serve to provide visual context for dual language learners. For instance, a drawing of a boy on a recipe card with the word boy below it helps the child connect between the symbol and the word.
Place the children into groups; mixing slow learners and fast learners with each fast learner having to teach the slow learner.
Involve the children in word play by cutting pieces of letters and let each child ask the partner to select the named letter. The children could then put the letters together to form various names of selected animals and letter formed sentences.
Laminate alphabetical letters printed in different fonts and ask the children to differentiate a lower case from an upper case. Design letters with finger paint, thread, string, yarn, porcelain and pipe cleaners. Use materials printed in the home language of the children. For instance, display song lyrics, poems, rhymes, chants and other materials that children are familiar with in the home language (Edwards & Forman, 1998). Also, create a housekeeping area where materials such as food containers with names printed in the children’s home language are displayed. To accommodate children with visual impairness, the formed letters ought to be enlarged and placed at a strategic distance to enable children with both short sighted and the long sighted cases see and read the letters. For the blind children, the letters should be read out loud and brought closer for them to feel.
In some cases apply the use of braille machine to aid the blind. Dictate the words to tell various stories. This enables children build awareness that different words can be assembled together to construct sentences. To boost children morale and encourage better performance, reward those who correctly put letters together to form words and sentences with gifts such as candies.
I involved the children in word play to take away boredom and to break the monotony of creating letters and sentences. This also enables one identify children with special talents. It also helps boost self-esteem and confidence. In order to do this, use puzzles where you request the children to complete the missing words in the puzzle. These words once filled, leads to creation of names of the common animals children see at home or on TV and as a result, it is fun playing with words.
Sing familiar songs that the children are conversant with. In line with this, also employ the use of audio, visual and audio-visual materials such as radio, TV programs. Moreover, provide cassettes and cassette recorders to parents so that they can record the songs and lullabies that their children listen to at home to be played in the classroom. Also, employ the use of musical instruments from the various children’s cultures in the classroom. To capture the attention of all children from diverse backgrounds, use religious songs from all religions; Islam, Christian, Hindu and traditional lullabies while at the same time selecting songs accompanied by simple musical instruments.
Play music in the language spoken by members of the classroom. The songs used should be repetitive in nature to enhance quick learning and mastery. The songs used should have a positive message such as those encouraging positive values like honesty, generosity, hard-work and discipline, while at the same time discouraging anti-social vices such as theft and bullying. At the same time, demonstrate correct and creative movements such as melody, rhythm, and tempo of the song so that children could imitate. Through the use of their bodies such as dancing, children increase their understanding by having consistence and increasing complex experiences with the music. After singing, aske the children to identify the message in the song and allow them perform the song (Bodrva, 2010).
Children learn best by observation and practice. For the deaf and dump, employ the use of sign language to enable them get the message in the song. Singing enables one capture the children’s attention and arouse their interest in class activities. It also helps during transition from one activity to another, for instance, when transitioning from letter formation to word and sentence formation and when introducing a story. Some songs, for instance religious songs, usually help the children to respect Supreme Being and promote their spiritual and moral well-being. In composing songs, the following considerations ought to be emphasized (Bredekamp & Rosegrant, 1992);
Assign children roles to play in drama. All children have to participate and more emphasize should be put on shy kids to encourage them and instil confidence in them. To ensure gender equality and empower children of both genders, both girls and boys should be assigned roles to play in the drama (Gonzalez-Mena & Eyer, 2007).
Use themes that appreciate diversity of culture, gender and social issues and those that enable children to adjust to be more inclusive. Use costumes and dolls that reflect the diversity of the children in the classroom. Ensure that children are able to see their skin tone and different facial features in the materials used in drama such as dolls (Stipek & Byler, 1997). This is very essential as it will promote children’s social and emotional development while at the same time boosting and encouraging language development as children are naturally likely to engage in pretend play if they use materials such as dolls that look like them (Wood & Attfield, 2005).
Moreover, in setting the drama theme, chose themes that are able to represent and appreciate diversity and enhance children’s experiences. Through drama, the children are able to associate with issues of the day and identify with the experiences and characters in the play. Drama takes away boredom and enables breaking of the monotony. It also enables one identify special talents among children.
Recite stories to children. Invite families of the children into the classroom to record stories that can be shared among the children in the classroom. This not only serves as a way of including all families in nurturing children but also helps families who speak a language in which there are not enough learning resources and also serves as a way to promote the oral tradition of storytelling (Cleave, 2005).
Through storytelling, one gets an opportunity to explore the various ideas held by the children and asked them questions. It will be noticed that children never lack stories to tell every day ranging from family to peer stories. Through storytelling, children are able to see the world through their own lenses and by learning the experiences of other people, children are able to live in a diverse world and see themselves and everyone around them as important and belonging. In reciting, use interesting stories from books. prepare a list of all the essential facts that children could recall after they had listened to a book story read aloud. From this list, create an original piece of nonfiction work, for instance, make a “big book” on a topic that you notice that children had really enjoyed and developed a special interest in (Bodisch, etal, 2006).
To ensure inclusivity of all the children of diverse ability, describe the various ideas of the stories both verbally and through drawings. Use stories that reflect the language and culture of the children in your classroom as this will not only make the children feel welcomed in the class but also boost their social and emotional development. Include the language of the children in the written materials that you display around the room as this will serve to motivate the children as they move and see pictures of themselves on the wall. Children’s social and emotional development is boosted and supported whenever they see items and images from their home included in school and in the end they develop a sense of belonging and connectedness to the school environment (Frost, etal, 2008).
Engage actively in read-aloud activities by asking questions, offering ideas, predicting or retelling important parts of a story or informational book
Provide the children with picture books; mostly pictures of items they interact with in their daily lives and ask them to identify them. This employs the look and say method and the inductive approach in child learning. Let the children identify the pictures of their families which are usually taken on their first day of school and displayed in the classroom to ease children’s transition. The family pictures and those of animals are then used to make a book. Lead the children in reading the books a loud and ask them to identify those in the picture and name the animals in the pictures. Read out stories to the children without illustrations and later ask them question on the story to enable them make pictures in their minds. Ask each individual child to read out a book and find out what they are able to remember. Let the children read the stories in groups at varying speeds to factor in both the fast learners and the slow learners. Provide a quiet area where children can have adequate time to read and memorize books so that they can answer questions thereafter (Graham, 2010).
For the children who are dual language learners, they need a quiet and peaceful environment to be able to understand whatever they read. Select vocabularies and write them on flash cards. Lead children into reading them aloud. Thereafter, chose learners one after the other to come at the front of the class and lead his/her fellow learners into reading the words aloud. This boosts the confidence of the children and self-esteem. After reading the story, guide the children into retelling the stories one after the other (Obidike & Enemuo, 2013).
For fun, breaking monotony and testing children’s abilities and talents, introduce the use of tongue twisters, rhymes and poetry. Encourage the children to ask questions and read stories in their languages.
Assign children the task of reciting family stories. Invite various family members to act as resource persons by sharing family stories and their experiences. Read out stories written in home languages of children. Involve parents to help you identify books with the best stories (Morrow,2001). Parents can make for their children homemade books with highlighting family stories which when read aloud promotes common identity among the children. Ensure that the children in the classroom are able to see themselves reflected in some of the stories read out in the classroom. However, the various illustrations that you employ ought to represent authentic images and not stereotypical representations (Campbel, etal, 2001).
Conclusion
A good curriculum for Early Childhood Development should be reflective of the child’s family language, cultures and customs. Such a program creates a welcoming classroom environment for children as they are able to feel at home while in school (DoDEA & Education, 2001). Families serve as the best source of information when creating a curriculum that incorporates culture and language throughout the environment. Even though some families may share a common ethnic background, each is unique in how it lives. This makes it essential to incorporate each in the formulation of the classroom curriculum (Nyaga, 2013). Obtaining feedback from all families and not just from families of dual language learners helps the teacher create a socially just and anti-bias teaching approach that is inclusive of all the children and also bridges the gap between the home and school environment (Derman-Sparks, 1989).
References
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Maamouri, M. (1998). Language Education and Human Development: Arabic Diglossia and Its Impact on the Quality of Education in the Arab Region.
Bodrova, E., & Leong, D. (2010). Curriculum and play in early child development. Encyclopedia on early childhood development, 1-6.
Gonzalez-Mena, J., & Eyer, D. W. (2007). Infants, toddlers, and caregivers: A curriculum of respectful, responsive care and education. Boston, MA: McGraw-Hill Higher Education.
Bodisch Lynch, K., Uhl, M., Reece, J., McGuire Buck, D., & Gilles, D. L. (2016). Impact of a statewide early childhood curriculum enhancement initiative on community college faculty and paraprofessional students. Journal of Early Childhood Teacher Education, 37(3), 245-259.
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Graham, B. E. (2010). Mother tongue education: necessary? Possible? Sustainable?. Language and education, 24(4), 309-321.
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