Language and Literacy

There are 4 stages of learning a language.

• Listening 
• talking/speaking
• reading
• writing 

 are all parts of early literacy learning.

On the road to becoming readers and writers,

1. young children need many opportunities to hear and understand spoken language. This helps them become aware of the different sounds of language. 
2. They also need to learn about print—letters and words seen in books and all around them at home and in their community. 
3. Young children need reading to help them learn about writing, and vice versa, they need writing to help them learn about reading.

However, they need to talk and listen before learning to read and write.

First of all they need to be aware of specific types of marks/prints are words and that it corresponds with spoken words.

Here is a blogpost on how we can use the children's name as the first step in getting them to recognise words.
Stages of learning names 


Here are two articles from NAEYC, National Association for the Education of Young Children (a large nonprofit association in the United States. It is a professional organization which promotes excellence in early childhood education, by providing information for educators and parents).

1. Detailed explanation on of what goes on behind learning the English language. Read from Page 3 "The beginning years (Birth through Preschool)" here
2. Ways to support your child's language development here