EYFS Best practice: Be Specific ... Literacy

The area of Literacy has always been a theatre of tension and conflict within education generally and early years provision in particular - a tension that is likely to persist under the revised EYFS as Literacy becomes a Specific area of learning and development.

Of all the aspects of the curriculum Literacy is the one that provokes the most impassioned debate, polarises opinion and is subject to the highest amount of external and political interference. Everyone has a view on how and when reading and writing should be taught. The current Government's obsession with synthetic phonics as the panacea for all underachievement and social inequality is the most visible example of this, and the phonics screening test in Year 1 its most tangible manifestation.

This is not something new; early years practitioners have always been under pressure from politicians, the media, parents and non-early years colleagues to bear responsibility for raising standards of national literacy by adopting a particular approach, or a newly developed technique so that fluent and confident readers and writers will be created. As literacy has always been the most measurable and most keenly viewed aspect of educational outcomes, the pressure to establish its success has become greater. However, this concern and the tension and conflict that surround it are wholly understandable.

When we consider how important literacy is, it is right that there is such passion around the subject and such a keenly felt commitment to the aspiration of confident, fluent reading and writing skills for everyone.

The ex-Secretary General of the United Nation and Nobel Prize winner Kofi Annan stated that: 'Literacy unlocks the door to learning throughout life, is essential to development and health, and opens the way for democratic participation and active citizenship.' (1)

When we read, we grant ourselves access to other worlds and possibilities. Reading allows us to immerse ourselves in the ideas, thoughts and dreams of others. Through it, we can follow the paths of information, advice, guidance - the mundane facts and figures that life sometimes requires. Reading enables us to illuminate ourselves and the world we live in; it enables us to understand it and be part of it in a way that nothing else does.

When we write we make our own ideas, thoughts and dreams real to other people, we leave an indelible mark on the world and convert our invisible thought into something concrete. Writing is a unique declaration of self, a physical expression of the irrepressible desire to communicate; to inform, influence, persuade, defend, enchant and celebrate. Writing is making our own words permanent and allowing others to access our world.

We know that effective literacy skills lie at the heart of a civilised, inclusive and emancipated society and that being able to access and produce text is a prerequisite for this.

We know also of the devastating consequences of illiteracy, on self-esteem, productivity and any definition of success.

In 2001 a survey for the Home Office conducted by the Basic Skills Agency found that 'a third of prisoners are unable to read, nearly half cannot write ... (and) half of young offenders are unable to write "functionally"'. (2)

So, literacy skills are critically important to life and learning, which is why the area provokes such debate and interest. However, despite the constant furore that surrounds it, it is worth reminding ourselves at this point of what we know about how young children become literate and the key principles that underpin this. It is crucial that at all times this knowledge and our specialist professional understanding as early years practitioners defines and dictates what we do.

BECOMING LITERATE

First of all, becoming literate is a complex process that evolves from birth. As young infants, we do not learn from a set of instructed activities that are delivered at an adult-defined point in time, but through an absorption in the incidental world of print that surrounds them.

Reading and writing are 'behaviours' that are formed from watching, understanding and emulating the world around us and then, finally, acquiring the 'technical' skills and knowledge to be able to realise this. It is important to be aware that these 'technical' skills will need to be taught; this is how the 'final link' between spoken and written word is supported, but the judgement of when this is most effective can be a matter for discussion.

'There is research evidence that shows the extent of the rich store of knowledge about literacy the child acquires before schooling begins. This ... demonstrates the understandings that the children develop (from about the age of six months) incidentally and naturally from living in a print-filled world.' (3)

Literacy skills build, unsurprisingly, on strong, rich and varied language experiences that need to be secure before the 'formal' aspects of literacy such as phonetic knowledge, blending, segmenting, decoding and letter formation are taught. James Britton's famous quote that 'Reading and writing float on a sea of talk' (4) asserts that it is by encouraging and supporting children's language from birth that we shape their ability to be literate.

Equally, the supported development of literacy skills must have a meaningful context and link into children's understanding; it must have a real purpose that makes sense to children and isn't an artificial experience. Too often the idea of 'literacy' can be reduced to decoding words in reading (what used to be referred to as 'barking at print') and writing as a joyless chore of regurgitating learned sounds with no meaning or purpose.

'Until very young children are aware of both the nature and purpose of literacy very little progress towards reading and writing can be made.' (5)

Finally, supporting literacy must be developmentally appropriate, recognising the uniqueness of the learner, their overall development and their physical and cognitive skills and abilities. There needs to be an awareness and acceptance that it is a practitioner decision to introduce the more formal aspects when a child is at the point of development when this will be most effective.

This perhaps is the greatest area of conflict. The English education system stands relatively alone in the global expectation that formal literacy skills are acquired before the age of six or seven, which is the age at which this begins to be formally taught in comparable European countries. As early years practitioners, we suffer from the 'downward pressure' that regardless of children's development, they 'should' be taught formal literacy skills within the EYFS.

THE REVISED EYFS

Within the revised framework, the apparent 'relegation' of Literacy to a Specific rather than Prime area of Learning and Development should not be misunderstood. For maintained nurseries and reception classes in particular, it will remain a source of tension within the context of the wider expectations and status of Literacy.

The revised EYFS separates Literacy from Communication and Language, with the latter designated as a Prime area of learning and development. The previous strand of 'Linking sounds to letters' has disappeared, to be more specifically assimilated into the two early learning goals of 'Reading' and 'Writing'.

Educational programme

The 'educational programme' in the revised statutory framework asserts that: '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.' (6)

The statement is an interesting one as it emphasises the 'technical' skills of decoding and alphabetic knowledge over the purpose of reading and writing. The access to different forms of print seems to be identified as a way of enabling phonic knowledge, rather than the other way round. This is further compounded within the ELGs themselves.

ELG: Reading

The revised early learning goal for reading is now: '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.' (7)

The demonstration of understanding in discussion with others appears secondary to the prominence of phonic knowledge as shorthand for reading itself. However, reading is not merely decoding, it is being able to engage with print and understand it, use it, be inspired and excited by it.

This is what motivates the act of reading and ensures that young learners perceive the process as liberating. It ensures that they don't fall into the 'Can read, won't read' culture of later years. As poet and campaigner Michael Rosen says: 'We've got in place a system in which children can decode words but there's no indication they can read for meaning. If you can read for meaning ... you will want to go on reading because you find it useful.' (8)

The newly created ELG does little to encourage this. With the urge to simplify and 'strip down' the ELGs, experimenting with sounds, understanding elements of stories and the specified use of non-fiction texts - all of which are reading 'behaviours' and a vital component of lifelong literacy - have been removed. Added to which, the statutory and reportable phonic screening check at the end of Year 1 only serves to extend Mr Rosen's concerns.

ELG: Writing

The revised early learning goal for writing continues this unhelpfully decontextualised approach:

'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.' (9)

Again, the emphasis on technical phonetic knowledge is apparent, and although this knowledge is an essential element of writing, such a solitary emphasis precludes the purpose of writing in much the same way that it does with reading. Gone again are the requirements that children contextualise their writing in meaningful ways, using different forms and genres such as lists, stories and instructions.

The simple sentences that can be read do not require them to be understood or even make sense. Neither do the phonetically plausible words need to be in any context, have any meaning or relate to anything other than the word itself. The phonically plausible word could even be a 'nonsense' word as used controversially in the phonics screening test in Year 1.

The Government-feted and current doyenne of synthetic phonics, Ruth Miskin, stated that: 'Every word is a nonsense word until you know how to read it.' (10) But surely divorcing language from written text is a dangerous and disempowering act.

Put simply, some words are nonsense words, and some are not and it is important that children are aware of this in order to communicate in any way. It is only by having access to rich language experiences and developing an extensive meaningful vocabulary that children are enabled to make such a distinction and develop themselves as effective, erudite communicators in both speech and text.

Therefore, regardless of the limited appreciation of literacy that the statutory early learning goals provide, practitioners will continue to have a responsibility to enfold literacy within contexts that are meaningful and develop a full understanding for all children.

CROSS-CURRICULAR LINKS

Having established the importance of literacy and some of the principles necessary in its sustainable development, it is worth noting how its presence can emerge in other aspects of the statutory framework.

Prime Areas

Personal, Social and Emotional Development

The sense of self, security and confidence that PSED embodies will underpin and generate the dispositions to learning that will support children's acquirement of literacy skills.

Communication and Language

Needless to say, much of what emerges as literacy begins as a thorough understanding and use of language. A continual input of appropriate talk at all levels, enables children to develop their vocabulary, sentence structure, idiom and expression.

The use of songs and rhymes introduces children to the patterns of language and the versatility it offers. Inevitability, a rich diet of stories, both read and told, similarly enhances the foundations for effective and knowledgeable readers and writers.

Equally, the ability to distinguish between different sounds as a young infant is the precursor to making the distinctions between different phonemes later on during their EYFS and Year 1 experience.

Physical Development

The development of handwriting is linked to 'developing palm stretch', an inherent aspect of physical mobility. Any gross or fine motor activity or actions that involve hand-eye co-ordination equally supports the developing muscle strength and dexterity required for skilful pencil control later on.

Specific Areas

Mathematics

Numerical awareness, alongside text awareness, is a critical early skill as children begin to distinguish between numbers and letters. Different experiences and opportunities to 'immerse' themselves in this will enable children to ensure that the distinction becomes a familiar one.

Many traditional stories and rhymes have a number theme, and discussion of this in the context that it arises will help to reinforce young children's understanding of both areas of learning and development simultaneously.

Understanding the World

Children become literate through absorbing the world around them, their community, family and setting that they attend. Long before the technical skills are taught directly, children will be aware of print and all forms of text in the environments they are familiar with. Simple everyday objects, name labels and the environmental print at home and on local journeys will inevitably familiarise children with the world of print and its omnipresent importance.

Expressive Arts and Design

Early forms of literacy will lend themselves quite naturally to all things creative. Storytelling and role play will shape children's understanding of the language required to express themselves in different forms, taking different roles and acting out their understanding of story structure. When appropriate, mark-making will emerge to support this, falling naturally and spontaneously within children's interests and understanding. Dance, movement and both two and three-dimensional artwork will also refine children's language and physical skills, and these will be developed for literacy purposes later.

Characteristics of Effective Learning

Playing and Exploring; engagement

Supporting children's curiosity and focusing on their interests will actively support their development of spoken and heard language and, therefore, shape the prerequisites that the technical literacy skills will later build upon. Facilitating the 'can do' attitude and seeking challenge in what they do will also be learning behaviours that enhance their 'tackling' of what literacy will demand of them.

Creating and Thinking Critically; thinking

As children develop the confidence to try things out, express their own ideas and develop approaches to achieving their own goals, the skilled use of behaviours that enhance their dispositions to learning and understanding increased language - both in terms of being able to communicate ideas and articulating their own thoughts - will become an integral part. When appropriate, the need to record, using text or print as necessary, will also link this learning behaviour to literacy.

SUPPORTING LITERACY DEVELOPMENT: KEY CONSIDERATIONS

The importance of a sensitive, informed approach to literacy cannot be overstated, and this will have implications for how practitioners manage their planning, provision and interaction.

Fundamentally, literacy in the EYFS is based on the development of language - ensuring that there is enough talk for reading and writing to float on. Rather than rushing in to the more formal skills, effective approaches with children aged from birth to five will focus on developing 'literacy behaviours' so that children have a finely honed and contextualised awareness of its purpose and potency.

Much of this will be realised through the everyday modelling that practitioners will do naturally, through reading print in stories and signs, and writing for a range of purposes as they occur within the day.

Above all, despite the external pressures referred to previously, what we know about child development clearly tells us that the acquisition of the formal understanding of literacy skills is more likely to emerge at the very end of the EYFS. Practitioners should not engender any sense of panic or anxiety in any attempt to 'force the pace' of this earlier than necessary or appropriate. This runs the critical danger of transferring this anxiety to children with the severe consequences this could have on their self-perception as learners.

So, as with all aspects of learning, supporting children's literacy should derive from the careful observations of children that practitioners undertake, and the knowledge of how their development progresses. Ultimately, it will only be the practitioners who work with the children on a daily basis who will be in the position to exercise the most effective judgements as to the critical issue of timing. It is this judgement that must decide when the 'optimum' moment is to take literacy development forward.

Focusing on children's interests, their motivations and fascinations, and identifying how reading and writing behaviours will fall naturally and unassumingly into these remains a key tenet of any approach.

Equally important is the setting's consistency with parental understanding, involvement and support. Children's author Emilie Buchwald says that 'children are made readers on the laps of their parents'.

It is critical, therefore, that parents are aware of the most effective ways to support their children's literacy skills and of the importance of demonstrating those behaviours in the most appropriate ways possible. It has been widely demonstrated that the presence of literacy in the home environment impacts on children's understanding from a very early age.

Early years literacy specialist Marian Whitehead identifies four specific aspects within which supporting the development of literacy skills should be considered. These provide a useful overview and reference points that can connect the underlying principles together. (11)

Talk, play and representation

Evidently, any language and communication establishes the precursors for later literacy. Opportunities for extending and developing language and thinking through questions, comments, suggestion and the dialogue required in sustained shared thinking will enrich this.

Providing commentaries on children's activities and encouraging them to explain aspects of their play will again provide the beginnings of a tangible link between speech and text.

Rhyme, rhythm and language patterns

Everyday rhymes, songs and word games reinforce the pattern of sounds that later convert to text through the child's knowledge of phonemes. As young children learn to 'tune in' to the similarities in sound, they become able to refine their skill in distinguishing different nuances. This ability to differentiate sounds will become a vital skill that links with their knowledge of the alphabetic code.

Stories and narrative

'Children ... make sense of their world by creating a narrative of events that they experience.' (12) This skill of being able to organise their thoughts and experiences, select aspects of information and structure what they say to have coherence and logic grow in sophistication and detail as children gain mastery of language. The dimension of stories as texts, as well as modelling skilled adult book behaviour, adds phraseology, structure and possibilities to the growing lexicon of the child's knowledge and understanding.

Environmental print and messages

Ensuring that appropriate print is available in the setting provides the 'print rich' environment which nourishes a child's understanding of its pervasiveness and importance. Messages in the setting that the child might read with their parent, or with the practitioner, also provide the meaningful contexts in which the child understands its purpose.

FOOTNOTES

(1) United Nations: Press Release; SG/SM/8849 OBV/368; 5/09/2003; Literacy prerequisite for reaching global anti-poverty goals, says Secretary-General in Literacy Day message

(2) Reported by Nick Paton Walsh in The Observer, 10/6/2001

(3) 'Communication, language and literacy: learning through speaking and listening, reading and writing' by Jeni Riley and David Reedy in Learning in the Early Years: A guide for teachers of children 3 - 7. Paul Chapman, 2003

(4) Language and Learning by J Britton, Allen Lane, 1970

(5) Jeni Riley et al op cit

(6) Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage, DfE, March 2012

(7) DfE op cit

(8) Authors help tackle 'can read won't read culture'; Judith Burns, BBC News, 22 May 2012

(9) DfE op cit

(10) 'People see me as the phonics lady and have lost sight of why I'm doing it', Times Educational Supplement, 12/8/2011

(11) The Development of Language and Literacy by Marian Whitehead, Hodder and Stoughton, 1997

(12) 'Young children becoming literate' in Supporting Children's Learning in the Early Years by Robin Campbell, Ed Linda Miller et al. David Fulton, 2004

Photographs taken at Wingate Children's centre, County Durham.