Preface
Young children’s teachers enable families to build a basis for their children’s future success and well-being. Teachers who establish ties with their students and their families guarantee that kids continue to learn at home to support their achievement. In its natural growth in literacy, children’s emotions, social and physical development are directly influenced.
What is literacy bags?
Literacy packs are a great way to promote literacy at home. According to Providence Public Library (2020), ”there are literacy packs for babies, kids, and pre-school children that allow parents to share books and activities with their children, helping youngsters improve their abilities to promote school and life success.”. Sending home children’s books through reading, writing, listening or speaking activities might increase the ability of emerging readers. A package includes a fantastic children’s book and various toys, games, and activities related to and enhanced by the book.
Teachers utilize literacy packs in classrooms, but the most popular way is to send them home for a few days. According to Liz’s Early Learning Spot (2016), “encouraging children to engage in literacy learning at home with their families is an excellent way of reinforcing skills learned at school.”
The benefits
Many parents do not know how to assist the child to learn; these packages are rich in materials and relate to what the youngster learns. Parents are encouraged to read with their kids aloud. Learning aloud is one of the key actions a child may learn to read correctly. Over time, parents get ideas for their children to learn about literacy through their books.
For learning
Reading aloud allows children to learn how books work, have discussions about the text and illustrations, use new and varied vocabulary.
Shared reading allows children to develop alphabet awareness, vocabulary, phonological awareness (how sounds work: syllables, rhyme…), visual and auditory memory.
Additional activities help develop fine motor skills, time management skills and the ability to complete a task, writing and drawing skills, story sequencing, number confidence if the story relates to math.
Literacy bag 1
It may technically be named a math backpack because it is a number book, too! There are far more activities than a take-home kit would usually do. However, some can be dismissed according to the demands of a kid, or youngsters can pick their favorite activities or keep the pack at home for a more extended amount of time.
Science: children compare the volume of sound produced by using more or less bells.
Math: 2 large die for subitizing.
Example of activity 1
Select a few alphabet letters and move them around to make new sounds – bat, tab, abt – and see actual words. Practice sounding them out letter by letter, then saying the word – for example, ‘b-a-t makes the word bat.’ Start with lower-case letters, so a person does not confuse a child with the two different letter shapes for each sound.
Example of activity 2
It can seem contradictory to use technology to learn to handwrite, but some fantastic applications help students feel more gambling than hard labor through the process step by step.
Literacy bag 2
Here is a special literacy bag for Math. It contains:
- 2 large die for subitizing
- Kangaroo buttons for sequential counting and number recognition
- Little number books: made from one piece of folded paper. They are simple to make and fun to complete – it’s hard to go wrong with stickers!
Example of activity 1
Encourage a child to turn the pages and talk about what they see. Use a finger to guide the child’s eyes from left to right across the page as you read and point out certain numbers and objects.
Example of activity 2
The potential as a teaching tool for increased reality is immense. Even if a lecturer is connected to a student and easy to use, even smaller pupils, it offers youngsters quick access to direct teaching. Consider the increased realism as one step above QR codes. Installers scan a picture to access a video rather than scan a QR code.
Literacy activities
For a child’s actual growth, literacy is crucial. Literacy is the foundation for good school work, socialization, problem-solving, decision-making, independence, money management, and job. To talk, sing, play sound and word games, read, write and draw with a kid are excellent methods to create a strong foundation for learning about literacy. The excellent news is that daily activities, such as family dinners, baths, or shopping, offer literacy chances.
How to strengthen the Home-to-School Connection?
It is vital not only to instructors and parents but also to students to communicate with each other. According to Maryland Families Engage (2021), “engaging with parents and families is a crucial part of high-quality early learning.” Together parents and professors may offer a support system for children, which allows them to flourish and perform well at school.
For parents
Parents are the first professors in the life of a kid to lead them through these early stages. When parents are no longer the first educators, their children are placed in the school system at a disadvantage. They are not the primary connection to learning anymore. It is when the bond between the parent and instructor is essential. Communicating with teachers allows parents to remain connected to support what is going on in school.
However, parents who are active in educating their children and constantly interact with teachers do not just ensure that homework ends. They may urge their child to participate and show that they are involved in their child’s education in the academic curriculum. This curiosity leads to youngsters who are both intellectual and socially better at school.
For teachers
Teachers can better grasp the forces of the kid and its particular personality and learning style if they can interact with the parents. According to International Literacy Association, “people had used social media, brochures as connection opportunities” (2021). The more information they have about the kid, the more teachers can focus on teaching and tackle, as each child can face and overcome obstacles. Building a relationship via excellent and open communication is essential to children’s successful learning experiences.
Once instructors know whose kids they have for the year, they may establish contact with their parents. It can be just as simple as sending an email or call. It allows both parents and instructors to introduce one another early enough and to build up contact lines. Knowing that they may communicate with the instructor of their kid right from the start provides a parent the tranquility to participate in the education process.
Communications must be coherent and frequent in order to be effective. According to Mccutchen, “communication between home and school is important not just for teachers and parents but also for the student” (2020). Parents expect instructors to continuously provide feedback on how their children learn as much as their behavior. Compatible feedback is also helpful for instructors who may share a student’s accomplishments and other areas of concern. This constant communication also demonstrates to kids that their learning takes place both at school and at home.
References
International Literacy Association. International literacy association’s blog. Literacyworldwide. Web.
Liz’s Early Learning Spot. (2016). How to make awesomely effective literacy bags. Web.
Maryland Families Engage. Family literacy bags as family engagement. Marylandfamiliesengage. Web.
Mccutchen, M. (2020). 10 strategies for improving home and school communication – classcraft blog. Resource Hub for Schools and Districts. Web.
Providence Public Library. (2020). Family literacy bags. Web.