Areas of Learning and Development: Specific area: Literacy

NEW EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMME

'Literacy development involves encouraging children to link sounds and letters and to begin to read and write. Children must be given access to a wide range of reading materials (books, poems, and other written materials) to ignite their interest.' (Revised Statutory Framework, paragraph 1.6)

OLD EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMME

'Children's learning and competence in communicating, speaking and listening, being read to and beginning to read and write must be supported and extended. They must be provided with opportunity and encouragement to use their skills in a range of situations and for a range of purposes, and be supported in developing the confidence and disposition to do so.' (Current Statutory Framework, paragraph 2.9)

The existing area of Communication, Language and Literacy (CLL) has been split in two: the Prime area of Communication and Language (CL) and the Specific area of Literacy (L).

EARLY LEARNING GOALS

The expectations of the original early learning goals relating to reading and writing were an area of strong contention, with many critics contending that they were too demanding and placed inappropriate pressures on young children. The new versions will do nothing to reduce that concern, reflected in the final consultation responses where 28 per cent did not agree with the 'Reading' goal, while a third (32 per cent) were unhappy with the goal for 'Writing'.

WHAT'S NEW?

• Phonics for decoding words and reading them aloud is specified.

• Children are to show understanding of what they have read through talking about it.

• Writing includes some common words that are not written as they sound.

• Writing 'simple sentences which can be read by themselves and others' is new, and a step on from 'begin to form simple sentences', captions and even simple stories.

WHAT'S BEEN REMOVED?

• There is no Linking Sounds and Letters strand, and no list of phonics skills. Since these are useful only when applied to reading and writing, they are implied but not specified.

• The vague goal to 'Explore and experiment with sounds, words and texts' is gone.

• Knowing English print conventions of left to right, top to bottom has been removed. Again, it is implied if children are reading and writing.

• Elements of stories such as characters and how to use non-fiction texts have been removed.

• Different purposes for writing and forms such as labels and captions no longer appear.

• Punctuation has gone - although some might define a sentence as having punctuation.

WHAT'S BEEN MOVED?

• Retelling narratives with the language patterns of stories fits into the CL area.

• Handwriting is no longer part of Literacy - it has moved to Physical Development as a fine motor skill.

ESSENTIALS FOR PRACTICE

Although the emphasis in the new goals is on using phonics to read and write, it is important to ensure that Literacy does not stand on its own. It is firmly rooted in the Prime areas of:

Communication and Language, emphasising writing as a form of communication for a purpose that has meaning to the child. CL also draws attention to other skills that are part of reading such as vocabulary, and understanding of language in different forms

Personal, Social and Emotional Development, which relates to children's confidence and well-being and enables them to take pleasure in their activities, and

Physical Development, which supports appropriate expectations and support for mark-making and using writing tools.

Good support for development in Literacy also lies in the Characteristics of Effective Learning - 'Playing and exploring', 'Active learning' and 'Creating and thinking critically'. Children need not to be moved too soon or too tightly into programmed activities, but instead should have opportunities in their play to engage and experiment with words and texts, and to choose their own purposes and ways to use their developing literacy skills.

Deciding when and how to provide direct teaching of phonics skills, as with all planning in the EYFS, should be based on assessment of children's development and not by a particular age. Phonics teaching will often arise naturally as children seek support for their own literacy activities in play. Sessions to teach phonics skills should be designed to be playful, short and lively, with plenty active participation from the children.

EARLY LEARNING GOALS: NEW AND OLD

NEW

Literacy

Reading: children read and understand simple sentences. They use phonic knowledge to decode regular words and read them aloud accurately. They also read some common irregular words. They demonstrate understanding when talking with others about what they have read.

Writing: children use their phonic knowledge to write words in ways which match their spoken sounds. They also write some irregular common words. They write simple sentences which can be read by themselves and others. Some words are spelt correctly and others are phonetically plausible.

OLD

Communication, language and literacy (L only)

By the end of the EYFS, children should:

Linking sounds and letters

• Hear and say sounds in words in the order in which they occur

• Link sounds to letters, naming and sounding the letters of the alphabet

Reading

• Explore and experiment with sounds, words and texts

• Retell narratives in the correct sequence, drawing on language patterns of stories

• Read a range of familiar and common words and simple sentences independently

• Know that print carries meaning and, in English, is read from left to right and top to bottom

• Show an understanding of the elements of stories, such as main character, sequence of events and openings, and how information can be found in non-fiction texts to answer questions about where, who, why and how

Writing

• Use their phonic knowledge to write simple regular words and make phonetically plausible attempts at more complex words

• Attempt writing for different purposes, using features of different forms such as lists, stories and instructions

• Write their own names and other things such as labels and captions, and begin to form simple sentences, sometimes using punctuation

Handwriting

• Use a pencil and hold it effectively to form recognisable letters, most of which are correctly formed

EYFS CONSULTATION FEEDBACK

1st consultation - Do you agree with the early learning goals relating to Literacy? Yes (43%), No (29%), Partly (25%) and Not sure (3%)

2nd consultation - Do you think any ELGs are not worded or pitched correctly? Reading (28%); writing (32%)