Literacy in Early Childhood

During our recent Book Week, we invited the families to come into the ECC and be a ‘mystery’ reader for the morning or afternoon. This initiative has been a great success with a wonderful community response from parents, grandparents, and aunties! It has been so rich for the children, families, and teachers that we have kept it going until the end of the year. Thank you to our ECC Minimbah community for participating in this rewarding experience for all the children of The Cocoon group.

As we approach the end of the year and think more about the value of literacy experiences, it is timely to be reminded by Mem Fox, a well-known children’s author, about what is important for young children to learn when considering reading skills and capabilities.

“Research around the world has proved that children who are read to regularly are better able to learn to read easily, happily, and quickly. Listening to beloved stories again and again is a step on the road to literacy that cannot be ignored, no matter how gifted children might be or how disadvantaged; no matter what grade a child is in, or how young or old, no matter which language children speak; no matter when they start school; no matter which country or city or town or suburb they live in; no matter how far behind they are in their schooling. Reading aloud cultivates the essential enchanting engagement with books, stories, rhymes and songs that every child has to experience before the formal teaching of reading can begin. The books that children listen to provide the best possible words in the best possible places. They teach children the language they will need. Learning language—learning how to speak—is the most important pre-reading skill of all. Learning how to talk clearly, with a wide, interesting vocabulary is far more important than anything else in preparing children to learn to read—much more important than learning the letters of the alphabet or letter/sound relationships. Put simply, children who can’t talk can’t learn to read. We have to teach them to talk first and reading aloud to them is the best way of doing it. “ (Mem Fox)

Nature in our hands

The children encounter the natural world with such natural curiosity, wonder, and engagement. Children are active hands-on learners when engaging with nature, whether in the ECC playground, the school gardens, the creek, on a neighbourhood walk or at the Derinya Reserve. We have noticed the children holding nature in their hands and wanted to capture these micro-moments of connection with nature.

Celebrating our year together

We are already planning and preparing for our ECC Assembly - please keep the date free Thursday 1 December. (More information to follow when we get closer).

A special Christmas end-of-year tradition in the ECC Cocoon group is designing our own Christmas Stocking. We have begun this process with the children, and great care and time are dedicated to this process. They are a beautiful keepsake to treasure forever and come home at the end of our year, which is fast approaching!

We look forward to the children sharing them with their families.

Warmest Regards,

THE COCOON TEACHERS