Eml1501 Guide

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University of South Africa
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EML1501/1/2019–2021
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CONTENTS
Page
PREFACEvii
STUDY UNIT 1: AN INTRODUCTORY ORIENTATION TO THE STUDY GUIDE1
1.1 INTRODUCTION1
1.2 Language as a concept 2
1.3 WHAT IS EMERGENT LITERACY? 4
1.3.1 Explanations of emergent literacy 4
1.4 EMERGENT SPEAKING 5
1.5 LISTENING SKILLS 5
1.5.1 Phonological awareness 6
1.5.2 Vocabulary6
1.5.3 Narrative skills 6
1.6 EMERGENT WRITING 7
1.6.1 Requirements for the development of writing skills 7
1.7 EMERGENT READING 8
1.7.1 Alphabet Knowledge 8
1.7.2 Print awareness 8
1.7.3 Comprehension8
1.8 THEORIES OF LANGUAGE ACQUISITION 9
1.8.1 The behaviourist approach to language learning 9
1.8.2 The nativist approach to language learning 9
1.8.3 The cognitive and social approach to language learning 10
1.9 STAGES OF LANGUAGE ACQUISITION 10
1.9.1 The pre-linguistic stage 10
1.10 THE INFLUENCE OF THE ENVIRONMENT 11
1.10.1 The home environment 12
1.11 THE ROLE OF TEACHERS AND OTHER ADULTS 12
1.11.1 The reflective teacher 12
1.11.2 The teacher as the pedagogical leader 13
1.11.3 Children’s literature 14
1.11.4 The use of developmentally appropriate materials 14
1.11.5 Activity14
1.11.6 Reflection questions 16
1.12 PLAY AS A PEDAGOGY FOR LANGUAGE LEARNING 16
1.12.1 What is play? 16
1.12.2 Theories about play 16
1.12.3 Types of play 18
1.12.4 Role of play 19
1.13 CONCLUSION20
1.14 QUESTIONS ON UNIT 1 20
STUDY UNIT 2: Theories of language development21
2.1 INTRODUCTION21
2.2 THE MEANING OF LANGUAGE 23
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CO N T EN T S
2.3 THE NATURE VERSUS NURTURE THEORETICAL VIEWPOINTS 24

2.3.1 Language as the product of nurture 24
2.3.2 Language as a product of nature 27
2.3.3 Piaget’s cognitive theory of language acquisition 28
2.4 APPLICATION OF THEORIES TO TEACHING 32
2.4.1 The Behaviourist theory for teaching language 32
2.4.2 The Nativist theory for teaching language 33
2.4.3 The Cognitivist theory for teaching language 33
2.4.4 Vygotsky’s theory for teaching language 34
2.5 CONCLUSION36
2.6 Questions on Unit 2 36
STUDY UNIT 3: EMERGENT READING38
3.1 INTRODUCTION38
3.2 LEARNING OUTCOMES 38
3.3 ENVIRONMENTAL PRINT 40
3.4 SCHOOL EXPERIENCES 42
3.5 CHARACTERISATION OF EMERGENT READING 43
3.6 LISTENING AND SPEAKING SKILLS 44
3.7 WHY READ TO CHILDREN? 45
3.7.1 Strategies for reading aloud 45
3.7.2 Activity48
3.7.3 Reflection48
3.8 MEDIA USED FOR STORY READING AND STORY TELLING 49
3.8.1 Puppets in storytelling and story reading 49
3.8.2 Flannel board stories 50
3.9 TECHNIQUES FOR READING 50
3.9.1 Shared Reading 50
3.9.2 Independent reading 51
3.10 APPROACHES OF PROMOTING EMERGENT READING 52
3.10.1 Whole word approach or the look and say approach 53
3.10.2 The language experience approach 53
3.10.3 PHONETIC APPROACH 55
3.11 CONCLUSION57
3.12 SELF-ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS 57
STUDY UNIT 4: EMERGENT WRITING58
4.1 INTRODUCTION58
4.2 DEFINITION OF EMERGENT WRITING 60
4.3 PREREQUISITES FOR THE ACQUISITION OF WRITING SKILLS 61
4.3.1 Physical development and writing skills 61
4.4 COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT AND EMERGENT WRITING 62
4.4.1 Conceptual knowledge and emergent writing. 63
4.4.2 Procedural knowledge 63
4.4.3 Implications for emergent writing 63
4.5 GENERATIVE KNOWLEDGE 64
4.6 ARTISTIC DEVELOPMENT AND EMERGENT WRITING 64
4.6.1 Implications for emergent writing 64
4.7 STAGES OF EMERGENT WRITING 64
4.8 THE DEVELOPMENT OF SPELLING 69
4.8.1 Phases in the development of spelling 69
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Co nte nt s
4.9 CHARACTERISTICS OF CHILDREN WITH EMERGENT WRITING SKILLS 71

4.10 THE ROLE OF THE TEACHER 71
4.10.1 The teacher’s knowledge 71
4.10.2 The teacher as a leader 72
4.10.3 The reflective teacher 72
4.11 CONCLUSION73
4.12 QUESTIONS ON UNIT 4 73
STUDY UNIT 5: ASSESSMENT OF PRESCHOOL CHILDREN75
5.1 INTRODUCTION75
5.2 WHAT IS ASSESSMENT? 76
5.3 WHAT IS EVALUATION? 77
5.3.1 Difference between assessment and evaluation 78
5.4 ASSESSMENT IN THE CLASSROOM 79
5.4.1 Conditions for undertaking assessment in the classroom 80
5.5 FORMS OF ASSESSMENT 80
5.5.1 Summative assessment 80
5.5.2 Formative assessment 81
5.5.3 Curriculum-based assessment 83
5.6 FOCUS ON PRESCHOOL CHILDREN’S ASSESSMENT 84
5.6.1 What is preschool assessment? 84
5.6.2 Why is preschool assessment important? 84
5.6.3 Guidelines on preschool assessment 87
5.7 ASSESSMENT TOOLS FOR PRESCHOOLERS 88
5.7.1 Checklists as tools for measuring reading readiness 88
5.7.2 Anecdotal observation forms 92
5.7.3 Daily tasks form 92
5.7.4 Videos and audio recordings 92
5.8 THE ROLE OF THE PRESCHOOL TEACHER 93
5.9 CONCLUSION94
5.10 QUESTIONS ON THE UNIT 94
BIBLIOGRAPHY95
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PR EFACE
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PREFACE
Emergent literacy is a module whose purpose is to equip you as a student

teacher with the knowledge, skills and techniques of how to teach early literacy
in the Foundation Phase (FP), which is Grade R to Grade 3. This module will
deepen your knowledge about emergent literacy as a sub-form of literacy and
in the way it manifests in children. Discussions on the definitions of emergent
literacy, on theories of play, on explanations about the different forms of play,
and other topics such as approaches to teaching phonics, seven principles
of developing vocabulary, assessment in early literacy and others important
concepts, are intended to strengthen your knowledge of the module. As an
aspirant teacher, you will learn and develop skills for guiding young children
to progress in their language development. You will also learn to choose
appropriate approaches to teach and develop young preschool children. It is
important for you to know the different stages of development that children
go through before they become literate and the children’s ages associated
with these stages.
Emergent literacy or the acquisition of early reading and writing skills begins
at birth when an infant interacts with adults, in particular the mother and
father/caregiver. Long before children can read and write conventionally, they
begin developing the knowledge necessary to acquire and practise these skills
successfully. During infancy and the toddler years, children must be exposed
to an enabling environment that will focus on their wellbeing. The enabling
environment will provide the necessary experiences underlying reading and
writing and will encourage rather than stifle curiosity and eagerness to learn.
It is through the realisation of that knowledge that has drawn attention to
emergent literacy or pre-literacy.
In our Foundation Phase (FP) programme, emergent literacy is a part of the core
modules. In fact, emergent literacy, is basic to all the content in the curriculum
because all learning starts with the acquisition of language. According to Phatudi
(2014) language acquisition is a subconscious and intuitive process whereby a
young child picks up or develops a language through regular exposure from an
early age. In the module about Child Development, language as an aspect of
cognitive development is explored. The Child Development module provides
student teachers with knowledge about the child’s physical, cognitive (language),
social, moral, perceptual and aesthetic development.
Two other modules in the FP, namely, Reading, Writing and Spelling – (First
Language) and Reading, Writing and Spelling – (First Additional Language) build
on gains achieved in this module on emergent literacy. Reading and writing
in the home language begin with emergent literacy, especially when the child
starts school. Reading and writing in the First Additional Language (FAL) ensures
that the child has acquired the home language before learning the FAL. The
approach employed to teaching the FAL resembles those of teaching literacy.
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PR EFACE
The module that specifically aims at promoting emergent literacy is Children’s

Literature. It is a module that promotes listening, speaking, reading and writing
in an informal manner using age-appropriate materials. The content targets
children from the age of one year up to the age of six years. The purpose of
the module is to instil in the child a love for reading.
With regard to you as a student teacher, I am certain you will realise how
important the Emergent Literacy module is. It lays the foundation for the other
modules and should therefore be studied in depth. In order to have a clearer
understanding of language modules in the FP curriculum, you are advised to
understand the Emergent Literacy module first, because it will indicate the
children’s level of development in literacy. You are advised to read Unit 1 of
this module with special attention because it explains the layout of this study
guide in detail.
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1 STUDY UNIT 1
An introductory orientation to the study

1
guide
THE AIM OF THE UNIT

The aim of Unit 1 is to introduce you as a student teacher to the concept
of emergent literacy or pre-literacy and to explain how a child’s language
acquisition develops from early childhood babblings to language that has the
same meaning as that of adults.
LEARNING OUTCOMES
After studying this unit, you should be able to:
•• Define emergent literacy using own words.
•• Outline the stages of language development from infancy to 5 years.
•• Discuss the acquisition of listening, speaking, reading and writing.
•• Name and indicate the significance of emergent literacy skills.
•• Describe the role of teachers in fostering emergent literacy skills.
•• Discuss play as a pedagogy in the early learning stages.
KEY CONCEPTS
•• Language as a concept
•• Emergent literacy
•• Emergent speaking
•• Emergent skills
•• Emergent writing
•• Emergent reading
•• Language acquisition
•• Children’s literature
•• Play as a pedagogy for language learning
1.1 INTRODUCTION
Welcome to the module on Emergent Literacy and we trust that you will enjoy
and find it interesting as much as we do. Unit 1 introduces you to the concept
of emergent literacy. It provides a cross-section of the content of the study
guide in brief but with clarity. The purpose is to guide you through all the units
of this study guide so that you become a well-grounded, knowledgeable and
reflective teacher who will lead pre-schoolers to the development of full literacy.
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Unit 1 explains how skills needed for the development of oral language, reading
and writing skills are acquired. Although the emphasis of the module is on the
Grade R child, we deemed it necessary to trace the development of literacy
from the age before Grade R for you to better understand the child’s journey
to literacy. The study guide elaborates on the role that teachers can play in
supporting young children to develop literacy skills. The content of this study
guide is simplified by a number of practical examples including illustrations that
further clarifies the topic under discussion. You will learn about the concept
“language” so that you develop an in-depth understanding about language as
a phenomenon and language as a factor in literacy development.
We start by presenting case studies to capture the different contexts in which

teaching and learning occurs. Defining emergent literacy and explaining its
components in detail follows next. The importance of a knowledgeable and
reflective teacher and the teacher as a pedagogical leader are discussed. Stages
of language development are also discussed as precursors to the section on
‘emergent speaking’.
A brief reference is made to theories that explain how language is acquired.

Full detail about theories of language development is given in Unit 2. Emergent
reading and emergent writing skills are mentioned in this unit (Unit 1) but
explained in detail in Units 3 and 4 respectively. Play as a popular pedagogy
in early learning is discussed in detail in this unit (Unit 1).
1.2 LANGUAGE AS A CONCEPT

Definitions of language vary from author to author partly because language
is studied from different angles. A study on the development of cognition, for
instance, will explain language differently from a study on communication.
According to Gordon and Browne (1996), language is an inborn characteristic

of humankind. In other words, it is acquired naturally and is not taught. It
comprises of sounds put together in a meaningful way or pattern. Language
can be receptive, that is, listened to and understood or it can be expressive,
that is, one can express oneself using words or vocabulary. The four parts of
language are listening, speaking, reading and writing. Although language is
not learned as four separate parts, it is convenient to adopt such an approach
for purposes of promoting your understanding.
Language is central to literacy and should therefore be integral to emergent

literacy. This means that children must be taught to listen and to speak by
exposing them to spoken language and encouraging them to speak, to read
and write and by exposing them to written texts. Children must hear and
relate stories, touch books and simulate reading and must view letters and
understand that a group of letters have meaning. The following picture shows
the alphabet in capital and small letters that the Foundation Phase classrooms
should have on display:
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S T U DY U N I T 1: A n i nt r o du c to r y o r i e nt at i o n to t h e s t u d y g u i d e
Before you read how emergent literacy is explained, please read the following
case studies and answer questions that follow.
1 AC TIVIT Y
CASE STUDY 1
Sooraya is a 3-year-old little girl who lives in Lenasia in a small house. Her
parents make a living by selling fruit at street corners and Sooraya goes along
because they cannot afford preschool fees. She does not have toys and so
plays with her imaginary son pretending to be the mother. She instructs her
son to do his homework the same way her mother does with her older brother.
She grabs the imaginary book from her son and ‘reads’ her son’s book. With
a smile she congratulates him on the work well done.
CASE STUDY 2
The 5-year-old boy Tommy lives in an affluent suburb of Johannesburg with
his parents. Every morning he is driven to a well-resourced preschool and
back. Upon his arrival at home, his mother asks what he did for the day at
the preschool. He is able to relate the events of the day and ‘reads’ the ‘letter’
(scribbles) to his mother.
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CASE STUDY 3
Matome is a 4-year-old boy who lives in a remote village in Limpopo with his
mother and two elder brothers. His brothers dropped out of school to look
after the family cattle since their father had died. Matome is given the chore
of herding their goats from the veld into the kraal. Every time he leads one
goat into the kraal he uses the stick he herds the goats with to make circular
marks and straight lines on the sand. When he is reprimanded not to play with
sand before leading all the goats into the kraal he explains that he is recording
those that are in. He points to the circles with lines diverging from the circle
out as the goats and the linear marks as names of the goats.
Please read the following explanations of what ‘emergent literacy’ is before

you answer the questions based on the three case studies.
1.3 WHAT IS EMERGENT LITERACY?

Emergent literacy encompasses the knowledge, skills, and attitudes that a child
develops in relation to reading and writing throughout the early childhood
period, starting at birth and before the onset of conventional reading and
writing instruction (United States Department of Education 2015:1)
1.3.1 Explanations of emergent literacy

(a) Emergent literacy refers to a stage in the development of speaking, reading
and writing skills that young children go through before they can read
and write in the conventional way.
(b) Emergent literacy is a term that is used to describe the process that children
go through before they learn to speak fluently and read and write formally.
(c) Children who are at the emergent literacy stage demonstrate that they
are aware of the process of reading and writing even though they cannot
perform the skills yet.
(d) When children of preschool ages imitate the processes of reading and
writing, it is a sign that they are in the emergent literacy phase, that is, on
their way to developing formal reading and writing skills.
Please read the following questions based on the three case studies carefully
and answer in detail.
QUESTIONS
1 Who of the three children shows evidence of being in the emergent
literacy stage? Please account for your answer.
2 Who of the three children does not show evidence of emergent literacy?
Account for your answer.
3 In what way do the children’s different home backgrounds influence their
literacy state?
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As you read the various above definitions of emergent literacy, you may have
noticed the common thread that went through all them. All referred to a form
of language that unfolds before children become literate. Emergent literacy
skills are known as ‘emergent speaking’, ‘emergent reading’, and ‘emergent
writing’ and unfold as follows:
In the past, children were considered to be literate only when they entered
school and were able to read and write words formally without picture clues
in the same way that adults do. In recent years, emergent literacy is traced as
far back as the age of one year. The argument in recent years is that, right after
birth, children are already in the process of becoming literate. It is as a result
of this perspective that researchers started focusing on children’s learning long
before they enter school.
Research has proven that the path to literacy is not simple to explain. It is
an intricate process that can be explained from different perspectives. The
existence of different theories that are intended to give clarity on how the
process of literacy unfolds from birth to school-going ages, are testimony to
that literacy is complex.
Although language is not learned as four separate skills, it is convenient to

adopt such an approach for purposes of promoting your understanding by
discussing the parts separately. Emergent listening, speaking, reading and
writing are thus discussed separately.
1.4 EMERGENT SPEAKING

When someone speaks a language with clarity, reads with understanding and
writes legibly, that person is said to be literate. This is why emergent literacy
is associated with young children. They are still developing and will learn
these competencies through the support of parents and other adults in their
environment.
Spoken language and sounds are converted into meaning in the mind during
story reading. Important factors in story reading that must be taken note of
are a listening environment, planned reading, conducting the reading, and
concluding the reading.
Children learn to speak by listening to those around them. Listening is the first
step to learning how to speak. Good stories not only help children to feel loved
and to develop a sense of belonging, they are also the beginning of literacy
and they lay the necessary foundation for later language development.
1.5 LISTENING SKILLS

The most important element in developing listening, speaking, reading, and
writing skills is an adult who stimulates a child’s interest, scaffolds experiences,
and responds to a child’s earnest attempts to learn a skill. Teachers and parents
are significant people in the child’s life and must be consciously aware of their
responsibilities towards the developing child.
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A listening environment: Children focus on what is read by filtering out other

extraneous sounds that are present when the story is read. This implies that
teachers should create an environment conducive to the development of
listening skills. The story reading environment must be a quiet and cosy area
where children can sit quietly and enjoy the stories.
The ability to listen to stories, also referred to as phonological awareness, is

one of the emergent literacy competencies.
1.5.1 Phonological awareness

Phonological awareness is about listening and refers to the child’s ability to hear
and respond to the smaller sounds in words. Through development, children
become aware that language can be broken into words, syllables, and smaller
units of sounds (phonemes). Young children learn to discriminate between the
similarities and differences of sounds in spoken language. Such awareness is
the foundation of young children’s abilities to hear and discriminate different
sounds in words.
Phonological awareness and phonemic awareness on Shutterstock YouTube
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tPm0WJBXfco
Children also learn to recognise rhyming words and syllables in children’s

books. They engage in phonological awareness games that involve rhyming,
which helps them to identify similar sounds in words. In one rhyming game,
the teacher can present three different “consonant-vowel-consonant” words
and ask children which word does not rhyme. For example, fat, cat, pen. Types
of phonological awareness include: phonemic awareness, syllable awareness,
word awareness and sentence awareness. Teachers can use other activities
such as rhyming songs or chants, games, and riddles. Phonological awareness
is discussed fully in Unit 3 which deals with emergent reading.
1.5.2 Vocabulary
Vocabulary development is a significant predictor to a child’s overall academic
achievement. A broad vocabulary is a sign that the child has acquired the
knowledge to name things and understand what words stand for. Such children
understand and use increasingly complex vocabulary. Children with rich
vocabularies possess a high educational advantage, since research has proven
that vocabulary is the best predictor of reading comprehension at the end
of the second and third grades and is otherwise linked to overall academic
achievement. It is also important to point out that children who acquire a large
vocabulary are able to read more efficiently and at a higher speed. A large
vocabulary also promotes comprehension.
1.5.3 Narrative skills

When children demonstrate the ability to narrate stories it may mean that they
have mastered narrative skills. Children can build narrative skills by describing
something that happened to them, for example the narration of their visit to a
doctor. Narrative skills are the literacy step when children develop the ability
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to tell a story or describe a sequence of events. Parents and teachers can

promote narrative skills by prompting children for further details.
1.6 EMERGENT WRITING

Emergent writing can be seen as a developmental writing process in which
children randomly scribble and draw and then assign “meaning” to the scribbles
and drawings. To them there is no difference between writing and drawing.
Tommy’s example of scribbles in case study 1, Unit 4, is a good example of
scribbles associated with children under the age of 5 years. These children
believe that their ‘writing’ is understood by adults in the same way they
understand what they have ‘written’. They are able to ‘read’ their ‘message’
closely the same way more than once.
Commonly, there are four stages of writing development that children go

through from 18 months to three years. These are:
Stage 1: Uncontrolled scribbling
Stage 2: Controlled scribbling
Stage 3: Pictures of objects and people interspersed with writing marks
Stage 4: Letter and word practice
By the time children reach the age of five years, they are able to write some
letters of the alphabet and especially those that form part of their names. There
are, however, certain prerequisites that children must have before they reach
the stage of writing some alphabets.
1.6.1 Requirements for the development of writing skills

Writing is a physical activity which can be learnt when a child’s physical
development has reached a certain stage.
1.6.1.1 Activities for motor development

The development of gross motor skills is promoted through activities that involve
movement of the entire body or of large parts of the body. Typical activities for
very young children should include rolling, creeping and crawling as examples.
These activities assist young children to be aware of and manipulate their bodies.
In order to develop fine motor skills, children should be exposed to activities

such as cutting with scissors, tying shoe laces or threading beads. Small muscles
of the body such as those in hands, fingers and toes need to be developed
to increase the child’s dexterity especially for holding a pen, colouring and
using scissors. Fine motor skills also allow children to button their clothes and
to pull their zippers.
1.6.1.2 Eye-hand coordination

Eye-hand coordination, also known as perceptual-motor, needs to develop
before a child can master colouring skills and copying something from a picture
book to a blank page. The skill develops from infancy when a baby manipulates
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an object and finally learns to use thumb and forefinger to grab or clutch the
object. A full discussion on emergent writing is presented in Unit 4.
1.7 EMERGENT READING

Reading can be broken down into small steps that finally lead to the development
of literacy, namely, alphabet knowledge, print awareness and comprehension.
1.7.1 Alphabet Knowledge

Children demonstrate knowledge of the alphabet when they are constantly
exposed to written words. They begin to recognise some printed letters,
especially those letters found in their own names. Letter awareness occurs
when children understand that letters are unique from each other and begin
to recognise different letters and their sounds.
To support young learners’ knowledge of letters, adults need to provide children

with easy and repeated meaningful interactions with written letters and words
within the context of daily experiences. Children learn well through play,
teachers should prepare and present the lessons in a playful and interesting way
that would actively involve children. Closely related to alphabet knowledge
is print awareness.
1.7.2 Print awareness

When children begin noticing print, knowing how to handle a book and
knowing how to follow words on a page, it is a sign that they are becoming
literate. They begin to know that books are organised from left to right, the
words are read from left to right and top to bottom, and how to tell words from
letters. Print awareness relates to the understanding that letters are different
from each other, knowing their names and sounds, and recognising letters
everywhere. Children get to know that messages are presented in letters.
Through daily experiences with printed materials, young children delight in
beginning to understand the connection between spoken and written words.
Print awareness and alphabet knowledge are invaluable to a child’s literacy

development because without these skills, a child will have difficulty learning
how to read and write. Evidence of print awareness shows a child’s interest
in and enjoyment of books. Children who have mastered the print awareness
might enjoy being read to, playing with books, pretending to write, and going
to the library.
1.7.3 Comprehension
Comprehension refers to the ability to understand or make sense of written
texts. An interest in reading stories and an understanding of difficult words
is a sign that comprehension is mastered. When a child shows confidence in
reading books with complex texts, it is a sign that such a child comprehends
what he or she is reading. Children gain understanding about language and
reading through their interactions with verbal language, print and daily routines.
In addition, children learn about reading concepts more if they live in a print-
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rich environment and are allowed to manipulate books. Emergent reading is

discussed in full in Unit 3.
Please note that the language skills, such as, print awareness and alphabet
knowledge, that we have just discussed are initial stages that occur before
literacy is achieved. They are competencies that must be mastered before the
child can be regarded as literate. It is important to note the difference between
‘the development of literacy’ and ‘language acquisition’.
1.8 THEORIES OF LANGUAGE ACQUISITION

Language acquisition is a skill that is basic to all development, including
the ability to read and write or what is referred to as literacy. While there is
agreement that there are different stages of language acquisition, it cannot be
said with certainty that there is agreement about how the process unfolds. A
brief discussion on language acquisition theories may shed more light on the
concept.
The following schools of thought will be discussed below, namely, behaviourists,

the nativist and the cognitive-social theories.
1.8.1 The behaviourist approach to language learning

The behaviourist believes that habits are formed by receiving linguistic input
from speakers in the surrounding environment, as well as receiving positive
reinforcement for the good attempt made to repeat, practice and imitate certain
linguistic patterns (Phatudi 2014). This means that the child’s family members
play a crucial role in child’s process of language acquisition. The child listens to
what other family members say or do and learn to say it. If the family members
praise him for what he/she has said, he/she will repeat it. If the child does
or says something wrongly, the family members will discourage that behave
which will make the child to forbid doing that behaviour. Skinner is one of the
proponents of Behaviourist theory and he advocated the theory of positive and
negative reinforcement (Vargas 2013). Phatudi (2014) states that when learners
are able to produce correct utterances and language approximate to that which
they hear and experience, their efforts will receive positive reinforcement and
habits will be formed.
In return, the infant responds by producing more ‘utterings’. This is how

children’s language develops even in the classroom environment. There is
no doubt that a combination of a good teacher and a resourceful classroom
(Literacy – Rich) are key to a child’s language acquisition and learning.
1.8.2 The nativist approach to language learning

The second school of thought maintains that language is a product of nature,
in other words it is innate or inborn. Chomsky (1965) as cited (in Ghonchepour
& Moghaddam 2018) suggests that children’s language mastery involves an
inborn knowledge of grammar and grammatical rules. Even though children
make grammatical errors when they are learning their first language, they rapidly
master the complex system of language on their own and without the use of
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parental instruction. Therefore, for language learning to take place, children

need something more than just the input they receive from their environment.
This means that to understand how children’s first language acquisition happens,
we must look inside the child and beyond outside influence. In a scientific
sense, language does not develop in the outside world, but rather in the minds
of children, therefore there is no learning in the traditional sense (Lenneberg
2002). Chomsky believes that children do not require reinforcements or practice
Ghonchepour & Moghaddam (2018). They do not even need the influence of
an adult because language acquisition is a natural phenomenon. Therefore,
children learn the grammar of their home languages by trial and error.
1.8.3 The cognitive and social approach to language learning

Cognitive and social approach view language acquisition as a mix of both natural
endowment and the influence of the environment. Vygotsky and Piaget are
two theorists associated with this cognitive theoretical perspective. According
to Piaget, children’s language develops in stages and it is the activities during
these stages that are responsible for language development. Children use senses
such as touching, tasting, hearing and smelling in their environment and these
senses encourage them to speak about the events as their active behaviour.
Vygotsky’s social relationships approach to language development explains that

children have an inborn capacity to produce language but this happens when
they hear language in their interactions with adults. Adults initially introduce
names and activities to children but later withdraw when children have learned
them. Next, they introduce more challenging structures that children must
learn to grow linguistically. This level of teaching is referred to as the ‘zone of
proximal development’ which is abbreviated as ZPD.
In the classroom situation, the adult role is played by teachers who teach
new content to children and assess how much was learned. Next, teachers
introduce language activities of a higher order (ZPD) to promote further language
development. It is important that children grow in the environment where they
will be exposed to opportunities for language acquisition.
1.9 STAGES OF LANGUAGE ACQUISITION

The acquisition of language is a sequential process that begins with crying
in babies and ends with meaningful structured utterances. The stages of
language development are fixed and the sequence is systematic. Research
has proven that crying, gurgling and cooing are important first steps in the
language-learning process. These steps are followed by babbling, holophrases,
two-word sentences, telegraphic sentences, joined sentences and finally
overgeneralisations.
1.9.1 The pre-linguistic stage

Baby’s vocalisation: This stage is characterised by a baby’s sounds. From birth,
mothers begin to speak to their babies even though all babies do is to cry,
gurgle and chuckle and producing cooing sounds. To researchers, this is the
beginning of the pre-linguistic stage. At the age of 6 months, babies begin to
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babble and by the time they reach the age of one year, they know their names
and can respond to the mother’s voice. Precursors of language development
at the pre-linguistic stage are cooing and babbling.
The holophrase or one-word sentence: Babies between the age of 10 months

and 13 months are at this stage. They are able to understand a number of
utterances from the mother or other caregivers even though they cannot
produce any utterances. With continued input from the mother, they ultimately
produce sounds such as “da-da-da” or “ma-ma-ma”.
The two-word sentence: Most children reach this stage by 18 months. Their
“sentences” usually comprise of a noun and a verb together with a qualifier.
This enables children to formulate a “sentence” which may indicate what
they want or what they don’t want, or they attempt to report something about
themselves. Example, “me want milk”. Very simple questions can be phrased
like “where big book?” Such attempts are usually supported by gestures and
body language.
Multiple-word sentences: This stage is reached between the ages of 2 and

2½ years. Grammatical structures begin to emerge and the use of tenses also
comes into being. In addition, children can form a sentence with a subject
and predicate, for example, “I want milk” or “where is my milk”? Although
children’s sentences are still telegraphic they may be quite long.
More complex grammatical structures: By the age of 2½ to 3 years, children

can produce more complex grammatical sentences joined by a conjunction
and with prepositions.
Adult-like language structures: Children who reach this stage are normally
in the preschool years between the ages of 5 and 6 years. Their language is
characterised by more complex sentences that resemble that of adults. They
are able to use adjectives such as “heavy”, (my book is heavy”) or “My dress
is red”.
All normal children irrespective of where they live pass through these stages
before learning to read and write conventionally, especially when they are in
the presence of adults who read and write. It does not matter if the child is
in a rural or urban environment, learning will take place as long as there are
adults and older siblings who engage in literacy activities.
The environment in which children grow influences their language skills in a

profound way. The extent and rate at which emergent literacy sets in is also
dependent on the child’s environment.
1.10 THE INFLUENCE OF THE ENVIRONMENT

The environment in which children grow plays a significant role in their
development in general and their language skills in particular. Some environments
are supportive because the parents and other significant adults in the family
are good role models for both the development of literacy and language
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acquisition. Other environments are poor and tend to reduce the potential to
acquire language or to develop literacy.
1.10.1 The home environment

What parents can do to encourage listening skills
In the early years before the child starts school, it is crucial for parents to be
actively involved in the education of their children. Since important literacy
skills begin in infancy, parents are the first important adults in a child’s reading
process. It is important and necessary to include them in their children’s
learning. They must be provided with the relevant information that will equip
them to help children. They could benefit from training organised by the school
or learning centre. Newsletters could be sent to provide information about
different activities aimed at promoting literacy, or they could be provided
with relevant videos. In teaching listening skills, we help children listen for
the beginning sound of a word, look at how a word is broken into syllables,
and explain how different words rhyme with each other.
Parents can do a lot to encourage literacy development by doing the following:

•• Interact with the child verbally and encourage them to talk back. This could
help identify if the child is able to listen. They could then seek assistance
if there is doubt about their hearing ability or if they need to be trained to
listen.
•• Tell stories or read books and magazines to promote listening.
•• Play tapes or video and then ask the child to relate what was said.
More ideas can be thought of on how parents can play a role in the development
of listening skills. This is also true about the other forms of language acquisition.
1.11 THE ROLE OF TEACHERS AND OTHER ADULTS

Speaking, reading and writing are language skills that should be taught in the
context of everyday activities and interactions. As a teacher, you may work
on a child’s writing skills by creating a shopping list of things to be purchased
for an art activity. Or you may help a child list the names of children going
on a field trip. Some teachers even help children develop a list of words that
rhyme with a particular word that can then be used to create a class storybook.
There are thousands of opportunities on a daily basis to use reading, writing,
listening and language teaching without resorting to word of the week, letter
of the day, vocabulary lists, and writing worksheets.
The success of teaching emergent literacy depends on the teachers’ knowledge

of the subject content and their ability to teach and to reflect on what they
teach and how they teach it.
1.11.1 The reflective teacher

A good teacher is one who can reflect on what she/he has taught and consider
a different approach if the teaching was not a success. Teachers should also
be pedagogical leaders by being proactive and by proposing solutions to
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challenging moments in teaching and learning. This calibre of teacher is one

who determines what is to be taught, how it is to be taught, and the relevance
of the content taught to the context, culture and diversity of the class.
Reflectivity is an act of looking back at a process that unfolded with the aim
of evaluating its success or otherwise. It is not just about evaluating a process
but it is also about the intentional intervention into the process that will yield
improved results. In this module, a reflective teacher is viewed as someone
who is able to determine the appropriateness of the learning environment
and content to suit the level of understanding of the learners. This is a teacher
who reflects back on her or his teaching activities, who evaluates them and
brings about changes that meet the aims of her or his lesson. A reflective
teacher is a pedagogical leader who takes initiative to create innovative ways
of promoting literacy.
1.11.2 The teacher as the pedagogical leader

Pedagogical leadership in literature (Fonsen, Aronen and Riekkola 2016) is a
term often associated with being a principal or a school director. It is often the
principal who is expected to give leadership in terms of ‘pedagogical needs’
i.e. to ensure that the context of learning is conducive for effective learning,
ensure that workshops are conducted to explain the curriculum, and give overall
leadership in as far as teaching and learning is concerned. Fonsen, Aronen and
Riekkola (2016) says that in Finland pedagogical leadership is understood as a
contextual and cultural phenomenon, meaning decisions regarding pedagogic
matters are based on the context of teaching and knowledge children bring
along to school.
In this study guide, the meaning of pedagogical leadership subscribes to

the definitions given above, but is strongly linked to the class teacher as the
determinant of what has to be learned and the one who is tasked with the
responsibility of creating the environment to optimise the success of both
teaching and learning.
A class teacher in the above case study is expected to take a leadership role
by contextualising the content of learning. It is incumbent that each teacher
should be willing and ready to take the pedagogical leadership in their own
classroom.
Planned reading: Planning to read a particular story before reading it to children

helps the teacher beforehand to know if the story is appropriate to them given
the different backgrounds from which the children come from. Reading books
that relate to the background of the children, especially if the characters’ names
resemble some of their own, is a good idea for promoting listening. The teacher
will be able to see ahead of reading whether the illustrations are related to the
children or not. The illustration must be bright and eye-catching.
Conducting storytelling: Storytelling should be regarded as an event that can

promote interaction among children. Children also enjoy listening to the story
because of the manner in which it is told. Involving them actively will also
show the teacher if they are listening. Storytelling differs from story-reading
in several ways. The teacher tells the story using facial expressions to capture
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the mood in the story. The teacher has eye contact with the group all the time
and that is important. This will help to establish if the story is enjoyed, if it is
within the children’s grasp and also identify those children with a short attention
span. Folktales are a good start for telling stories because traditionally, this is
how many children came to know stories.
Concluding the story: After reading or telling a story, the teacher should talk
about the exciting parts of the story. By asking children relevant questions and
encouraging them to relate the part of the story that fascinated them most, also
help establish if the children listened successfully. A teacher could read such
parts again or retell them so the children can listen more attentively.
1.11.3 Children’s literature

Children’s literature is one of the modules in the Foundation Phase curriculum.
In the Foundation phase Children’s Literature or tape recordings are the tools
used to promote listening skill. It is advisable to study the Children’s Literature
with the notion of emergent literacy in the background.
1.11.4 The use of developmentally appropriate materials

A child’s growth in all four literacy areas is based on triggering his/her learning
interest, enthusiasm, creativity, and desire for exploration and risk-taking. One
of the best ways to do this is through high-quality toys and a variety of age-
appropriate books and a range of music and a variety of musical instruments.
The essential component of these materials is that they require children to be

actively involved. In the Grade R class where the class is divided into areas, in
one of the areas for example, the block area children should talk to each other
about how they want to build their city. While in the music area, children listen
carefully to distinguish the nightingale in a record of bird songs. In the art area
a child carefully holds the paint brush and deliberately paints a picture of his or
her family. Most modern electric toys, including many so-called “educational
toys,” do not require active learning (Wardle, 1999).
Research confirms that if learning materials are embedded within play settings,
they have a tendency to attract children’s attention with positive and enhanced
literacy skills (Saracho and Spodek, 2006).
1.11.5 Activity
Reflect back on the days when you were young.
•• What are the types of play that you used to engage in?
•• Highlight literacy skills you learned from the play activities?
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Below are pictures of children at play.
FIGURE 1: Picture of four boys driving their self-built cars made from tins and
wires.
https://i.pinimg.com/474x/b6/59/3b/b6593bfedeb324969f7fc4e80cdf3724—
african-children-south-african-culture.jpg
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1.11.6 Reflection questions

•• Is there any play taking place in Figures 1?
•• Explain how the play scenario in the first figure differs from the second scene.
•• What conclusion can be drawn about the play scenarios?
1.12 PLAY AS A PEDAGOGY FOR LANGUAGE LEARNING

Children learn better when a lesson is repeated several times because the
content gets entrenched in their minds. However, the most effective and
quickest way of presenting a lesson is through play. Play is a natural way of
promoting growth in children, not only physically but mentally as well.
In order for you to embrace this mode of teaching and learning, this section will
define the concept of play, outline theories that support play as a pedagogy,
describe its different forms, explain how it is used and show how technology
has revitalised the different forms of play.
1.12.1 What is play?

Although play is explained in various ways by different writers, there is no
doubt about its significance to teaching and learning. Play is:
•• A window into the child’s world
•• A lens through which children experience their world and the world of others
•• An activity that is freely chosen, intrinsically motivated and personally
directed
•• An activity that occurs whether adults are present or not
•• Used by children with whatever props available for their imaginary play
•• An activity where children can play alone (solitary play) or with others
depending on their developmental stage
•• An activity that can include risk-taking, thus safety becomes of a paramount
concern (Karikoski; Ebbeck & Waniganayake 2016)
•• Imaginary, free flowing and flexible and therefore can be used even by
adults to scaffold learning to achieve certain objectives
To sum up the many different views about play, it is safe to say play is a
positive, versatile and enjoyable means to growing and learning. It provides
a wide range of opportunities that teachers can adopt and use for successful
learning. It is the most easily available means to use with young children all
the time and in any subject. It is one method of teaching that is not costly and
can be afforded by the poorest of schools since it uses what is freely available
in different learning environments.
1.12.2 Theories about play

According to Wood (2009: 21) a pedagogy of play is defined as the ways in which
early childhood professionals make provision for play and playful approaches
to learning and teaching, how they design play/learning environments, and
all the pedagogical decisions, techniques and strategies they use to enhance
learning and teaching through play. The children are able to accommodate one
another in a play situation; the creativity noted when children improvise with
what they have to make fun; and the relationships children build with their
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imaginary friends and pets, all raised questions about the significance of play
in children’s growth and development. Through a pedagogy of play, teachers
can provide opportunities for free play and spontaneous movement activities,
as well as guided movement experiences designed to support specific aspects
of gross motor, fine motor and perceptual-motor development, which, in the
end, facilitate emergent literacy in young children (Excell & Linington 2011: 36).
Four classical theories trying to explain why and how children play, namely,
the surplus energy theory, the recreation theory, the pre-exercise theory and
the instinct theory are notable (Mellou 1994: 91). The picture below illustrates
why and how children play and the implications of the four learning theories.
FIGURE 2: How children play
The surplus energy theory: Groos & Baldwin (1898) claims that children do
not have much to do and their energy builds up. They thus need to get rid of
the surplus energy through active play.
The recreation theory sees play as a way to recuperate from fatigue experienced
from hard work. In other words, play restores energy and provides more benefit
to the body than idleness (Mitchell and Mason, 1948).
Pre-Exercise theory regards play as the necessary practice for behaviours

that are essential to future survival. It is the same as in the playful fighting of
animals. The rough and tumble play of children is intuitively the practice of
skills that will later aid their survival (Groos & Baldwin 1898).
The instinct theory, suggests that play is inherited and that the child will engage
in behaviours and activities instinctively.
Piaget’s cognitive theory explains that children make sense of their environment
by active examination and through trials, thus gaining experiences they never
had before. During the sensorimotor and pre-operational stages, children
engage in active and repetitive activities that are mostly make believe.
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The repetitive activities associated with the sensorimotor stage bring joy to
children but most importantly, train them in recall which is a cognitive function.
The ability to imitate and give meaning to own experiences is also the beginning
of cognitive development. Cognitive development and language are closely
related to one another. The pre-operational stage signals the child’s growth
cognitively. Play during this stage develops to higher levels where children
can use other objects to fulfil a role.
Vygotsky’s social theory asserts that play promotes children’s social development
in different ways. Children’s role play with imaginary friends develops them
not only socially but linguistically too. When children imitate others, they
are developing a vocabulary that allows them to name and investigate the
environment around them. Less verbal children may talk more during imaginative
play than in other settings.
Children at play manoeuvre and experiment in the environment as they ‘talk’

to themselves. This happens through the process of inner speech, that is, they
are often talking out loud to themselves. It is regrettable that sometimes adults
do not support such behaviour because it may not be socially acceptable.
According to Vygotsky, language also serves the purpose of restraining or of

self-control over one’s own cognitive processes such as memory and thought. As
children develop, they become less critical of others and look into themselves.
They develop self-regulating skills that are socially acceptable in their social
environments.
1.12.3 Types of play

Play occurs from infancy right through childhood. Babies smile and chuckle
as parents interact with them. This mother-child social interaction is the
beginning of the child’s socialisation. The following are the different types of
play children engage in: Solitary play is associated with babies and toddlers
in the early stages. They are totally in the care of their parents and when the
parent is not on site they play alone.
As toddlers grow they become aware of other toddlers and play together in
what is referred to as parallel play. They are aware and happy about the other
toddler but are not involved in the same play.
Coordinated play occurs when the toddlers begin to coordinate their play.
They may for instance play bus driver and passenger. This type of play is also
referred to as associative play and is evident among pre-schoolers in the ages
of 3 years and above. Associative play is characterised by the formation of play
partners or by groups engaged in one activity but each having a share of play.
When children form closer ties in their play and join forces to plan how
to play by communicating verbally, cooperative play is established. This is
common among older pre-schoolers. In this type of play, there is a lot of peer
interaction which is exercised to develop further social ties and foster language
development.
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18
Usually play comes about naturally and it is thus referred to as spontaneous

play. It is unplanned, self-selected and children play freely. They often use
developmentally appropriate materials which they choose by preference.
Dramatic play is a form of imaginative play which is typically common among

3 to 4 year olds. In the play, children associate themselves with a particular
character they are imitating. Children’s inclinations can be identified during this
play. Some will play ‘superhero’ and destroy the ‘enemy’ with their supernatural
powers. Dramatic play allows children to deal with their likes and fears in an
easy way. It is to some extent a coping mechanism for those children who feel
helpless in certain situations.
Television play has taken the world by storm. The availability of video rentals
and affordable video machines has promoted this mode of play which
accommodates teenagers too. Regrettably, television games limit children’s
opportunity to play and to grow naturally. At the same time, television play
disturbs family bonding through communication as kids concentrate more on
watching television which hinders children to have enough conversation time
with parents and other members of the family. Television influenced families
in a profound way. With regard to children, television can:
•• Present very strong images that can affect young children’s sight. Constant
tuning in can actually affect language development negatively.
•• Children learn words less effectively as compared to when they interact
with adults in the family. However,
–– Children aged 2 and above learn to comprehend by viewing and listening
to stories on television.
–– A concerning observation is that television also consumes the attention
of parents and older siblings in families thus destroying family closeness.
1.12.4 Role of play

The United Nations (UN) Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) (1996)
declared play as one of the child’s basic rights. This is because in some
communities, children are denied the right to play as this is seen as immature
and a mere time filler (Scates, Almy, Nicolopoulou and Ervin-Tripp, 1991).
Despite play being associated with childhood, research has highlighted the
importance of play in preschools and lower classes and that learning should
integrate play and be experienced as pleasurable (Einrasdottir, 2014) South
Africa is a signatory of the CRC, and therefore promotes the right of a child
to play.
The role of play is itemised under the following four subheadings that relate
to different areas of language or child development.
1.12.4.1 Play and cognitive development

Play:
•• Teaches children to distinguish between fantasy and reality
•• Trains children in problem solving
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•• Helps children to acquire knowledge and to integrate learning

•• Improves children’s communication skills
1.12.4.2 Play and creativity

Play:
•• Encourages creative thinking
•• Alerts children to possible risks
•• Provides many experiences
•• Promotes musical, artistic and dance movements
1.12.4.3 Play and social development

Play:
•• Develops children’s personality
•• Teaches children to lead or follow
•• Promotes cultural identities
•• Promotes positive self-image and builds self-esteem
1.12.4.4 Play and emotional development

Play:
•• Strengthens children’s self-confidence
•• Teaches children to learn to accommodate different view points
•• Resolves inner fears
•• Promotes self-control
1.13 CONCLUSION
Unit 1 is a snap shot of the entire study guide and needs to be studied in depth
and with understanding. You are advised to sum up the content and to relate it
to other units that elaborate on the same content. It is also important to respond
to the questions based on some of the case studies to test your understanding.
1.14 QUESTIONS ON UNIT 1

1 Explain what you understand by the concept ‘emergent literacy’.
2 In what way does language acquisition differ from the development of
literacy?
3 Write notes about the importance of emergent listening and speaking.
4 How can you use ‘play’ to advance the child’s cognitive and emotional
development?
Discussion Points: Read case studies 1, 2, and 3. Find a peer and organise
discussion sessions. You can start the discussion sessions with your e-tutor.
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2 STUDY UNIT 2
2 Theories of language development
AIM AND OBJECTIVES OF THE UNIT

The aim of this unit is to equip you with the knowledge of language theories,
the skills to apply them in your teaching and the attitude to embrace them in
your understanding.
The following outcomes will enable you to demonstrate that you have acquired
the knowledge about the theories and you have the skill to apply them with
precision in your classroom teaching.
LEARNING OUTCOMES
•• Explain the different language theories in detail.
•• Compare the different theoretical perspectives critically.
•• List language stages in the correct sequence.
•• Apply the learned theories in your teaching with understanding.
•• Assess the relevance and application of specific theories for your teaching
context.
2.1 INTRODUCTION
In Unit 1 you were introduced to emergent literacy as it applies to babies and
toddlers. You read and gained insight about the meaning of emergent literacy
through the definitions that were provided. You also learned about the different
skills that children in that age group display after successful language acquisition.
Unit 2 builds upon this content. It is very important for you since it is about
theories of language development. Unit 2 builds on the first unit by moving from
the toddler to a focus on the pre-schooler. We urge you to study the contents
of this unit with deep understanding because it serves as the foundation for all
you will learn about the pre-schooler’s language development in this module.
It is also applicable not only to this module but also in modules such as “The
development of the home language”, “The acquisition of the First Additional
Language” and “Child development”. It is of utmost importance that you
understand the relevance of theories discussed in this unit on the development
of language and to know how to apply them in teaching children at different
stages of development.
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In this unit, you will learn about the different theories that explain how language
is acquired and what enhances its development. The theories discussed in this
unit provide different perspectives about language acquisition and development
and introduces you to the debate about the role of nature and nurture. Those
researchers who support the nature point of view claim that children are
naturally endowed to acquire language, and those against the nature point of
view maintain that the environment is instrumental in promoting acquisition.
The structure of this unit will therefore first describe this dichotomy and
then discuss the different theories under each perspective. This discussion
is preceded by two case studies. The case studies will set the context of the
discussion of these theories.
2 AC TIVIT Y
Read the following case studies and answer the following questions based on
them:
CASE STUDY 1
Thato and Mosa are twin boys aged five years. Their parents agreed to let
Mosa’s aunt, who did not have any children of her own, to raise him from in-
fancy while they remained with Thato and his three siblings. Mosa’s aunt had
a good job and lived in an affluent suburb while his mother was unemployed
and the family lived in an informal settlement. When both the boys started
preschool at age five in their different areas, Mosa had a large vocabulary and
could express himself efficiently. He could also hold a pen correctly and knew
that written print had meaning. Thato on the other hand could not express
himself as clearly as Mosa. Thato also did not show print awareness and could
not handle a pen correctly.
Answer the following questions based on case study 1:

•• How would you explain the different language abilities of these twin
boys?
•• Explain the reason behind your explanation above.
•• Which theories would best explain the twins’ language differences?
Read case study 2 below and answer the questions based on it:
CASE STUDY 2
Ben and Anne are siblings aged seven and five years respectively. Their work-
ing parents live in a township settlement with two other relatives. Ben is in
Grade 1 but cannot read, write or count correctly. Anne on the other hand,
although five years old, can read three word-sentences and count up to 50.
Both the children did not attend any early learning centre.
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S T U DY U N I T 2: T h e o r i e s o f l a n g u a g e d eve l o p m e nt
Questions:
•• How would you explain Ben and Anne’s different language abilities?
•• Account for your answer to the question above.
•• Which theories would explain these different abilities precisely?
In order for you to approach the two sets of questions from an informed angle,
you need to first know the meaning of ‘language’ as is discussed in this unit.
Secondly, you need to know the difference between the group of theories that
argue that language development is the result of environmental influences and
the group of theories that say language is a natural phenomenon that is inborn.
2.2 THE MEANING OF LANGUAGE

In Unit 1, you were given a general definition of language as an introduction
to the early stages of language development. The stages included the pre-
linguistic stage, the holophrase stage and the two-word stage, among others.
In this unit, ‘language’ is explained as a preamble to the different theories that
explain how language is acquired.
The concept “language” is explained or defined in different ways based on the

perspective of a specific theory. It may be explained as a natural process that is
uniquely human or its acquisition may be associated with the environment in
which the infant is growing. It is also regarded as a mix of the two theoretical
views. Language acquisition is also explained in the following ways:
1 Language acquisition is the process by which infants acquire the ability to
learn and to understand how to communicate with other people, usually
parents and siblings in their environment.
2 Language acquisition is the mechanism that enables children to break
apart a unit of spoken language or sounds they hear from adults around
them and to produce language that is grammatically understandable.
3 Language acquisition is a progressing system by which children learn how
to make meaning of what they hear, that is, speech perception and later
learn how to respond, that is, speech production.
4 Language acquisition can also be explained as a uniquely human feature
that promotes communication.
To sum up the different definitions, it can be said that language acquisition is

a process by which humans are able to produce and understand words and
sentences and to combine them to communicate. Language acquisition is
usually associated with infants’ acquisition of their home language.
In addition to the explanations above, language is seen as a system of

rules. This system refers to:
•• Phonemes – which refers to speech sounds such as “m” or “n”.
•• Phonology – which determines how phonemes are arranged: “pat”; “bat”.
•• Morpheme – that is the smallest unit of language that has meaning: “fall” as
against “tall”. The former has meaning of its own while the latter depends
on a full sentence.
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•• Morphology – also referred to as form, directs the sequencing of morphemes.

•• Syntax–ways that words are combined to form meaningful sentences or
the grammar of a sentence.
•• Semantics – vocabulary, meanings of words and sentences.
•• Pragmatics – which provides context in the understanding of language;
“She went to school”.
(DBE, 2011; Christie, Enz, Vukelich & Roskos, 2014; Beaty & Pratt, 2007)
There seems to be general agreement among researchers concerning the

language system and also with the order of acquisition. What remains a
controversy is how human beings learn to acquire and to use language. The
question whether language is the result of nature or whether it is a process
that is taught (nurture) remains.
It is a good idea to make your own analysis of the different definitions or

explanation of language and to come up with your own substantiated opinion.
Read the following theoretical standpoints.
2.3 THE NATURE VERSUS NURTURE THEORETICAL VIEWPOINTS

Before we commence discussion on the different viewpoints on the acquisition
of language, it is important for you to grasp the full meaning of ‘theory’ so you
can follow the different arguments about the acquisition of language.
A theory is:
•• a set of properly argued ideas intended to explain facts and events.
•• ideas, beliefs or claims about something which may or may not be found
true in practice.
•• an idea or a set of ideas that is intended to explain something about life or
the world that has not been proved to be true.
•• an idea that someone thinks is true but has no proof for it.
The question of whether language is a natural phenomenon or learned behaviour

is a historical debate that continues to rage among theorists. The first school
of thought says that language is innate or natural and that it emerges naturally
because we are human. The second school of thought maintains that language
is acquired and that the environment promotes or retards its development, in
other words language is a product of nurturing. The third school of thought
maintains that language acquisition is a mix of both natural endowment and
the influence of the environment.
The discussion on the nature versus nurture theoretical perspectives that follows
will assist you in answering the questions on the two case studies discussed at
the beginning of this unit. Please read them with concentration to get insight
into the different perspectives.
2.3.1 Language as the product of nurture

The second position with regard to the nature and nurture debate in language
acquisition is based on the assumption that language is a result of our large
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brains that enables us to think as humans and the fact that we are social beings.
The view is referred to as ‘empiricism’ and is also called ‘behaviourism’ (you
will learn about other behaviourists in your module on Child Development).
Behaviourism is the theory that explains that all human behaviour is learnt to
fit in with external conditions and is not influenced by people’s thoughts or
feelings.
Some of those in favour of this viewpoint include Pavlov and Skinner. Look at
the following theories that capture the nurture viewpoint.
2.3.1.1 Pavlov’s Classical Conditioning

Pavlov was a Russian scientist who studied the digestive system of dogs. The
people who fed his dogs wore lab coats. With time he realised that the dogs
began to drool whenever they saw lab coats, even if there was no food in
sight. He then conducted a study in which he rang a bell every time he fed
the dogs. Within time the dogs began to salivate at the sound of the bell even
when there was no food.
Pavlov called the dogs’ behaviour ‘classical conditioning’. He referred to the

bell as a neutral stimulus because it did not produce a reaction like salivation
on its own. He referred to the food as non-neutral or unconditioned stimulus
which produced an unconditioned response which is the salivation. From
the experiment, he concluded that if you paired the neutral stimulus and the
unconditioned stimulus together, eventually the dog will learn to associate the
two. After a while, the neutral stimulus by itself will produce the same response
as the unconditioned stimulus, like the dogs drooling when they heard the
bell. He called this behaviour a conditioned response.
It was this realisation that prompted him to apply a similar experiment with
children. To him, the unconditioned response was a completely natural reaction
(nature) and the conditioned response as something that we learned (nurture).
It was maintained by the behaviourist that language is also a sort of behaviour
that can be acquired in ideal social conditions. According to the behaviourist,
language is essentially the product of the society.
Theoretically, behaviourists such as Pavlov assume that language learning

is a result of formed habits just like other habits and it is learned over time.
Language learning is equalled to the development of new learned behaviour as
a result of practice or experience. It is an observable external happening that
results in a change of behaviour determined by stimuli from the environment.
It is not something associated with mental knowledge and can be explained
from what is observed externally. Only human beings have the capacity to
learn language. Pavlov’s argument is that a child’s environment is the most
important factor in the acquisition of the first language. He indicated that if
a child is exposed to a rich language environment, and encouraged to learn,
the child will develop proper language.
Skinner, as a behaviourist, holds the same view though his emphasis is on the
child’s imitation of adult language.
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2.3.1.2 Skinner’s Operant Conditioning

Skinner’s theory of operant conditioning takes language as a habit-forming
process that comes about as a stimulus-response. The theory is about
unconditioned stimuli, conditioned stimuli, and operant conditioning but
particularly the elements of operant conditioning. Operant conditioning refers
to a method of learning that is influenced by rewards for desired behaviour
and by punishments for undesired behaviour.
Behaviourists like Skinner claim that the ability of the human brain to understand
and produce language happens because of the connection of neurons that are
made in early childhood. When a baby makes a certain sound that is followed
by a positive action of a parent, there will be a neuronal connection in his
brain that will be excited. After a lot of repetitions this will lead to a neural
path which connects a sound with a meaning.
According to Skinner, language acquisition is a process of habit formation

that involves a period of trial and error where the child tries and fails to use
correct language until it succeeds. Infants also have human role models in
their environment that provide the stimuli and rewards required for operant
conditioning. Children utter words because they are rewarded by adults in
their environment. Adults also reinforce children’s ability to speak by giving
them what they want (reward) and by training and shaping them to acquire
correct forms of language that can be understood. Unwanted behaviour is
not rewarded.
When a child starts to babble, adults around the child reward the child
by smiling and repeating the sounds produced. This positive reinforcement
encourages the child to keep on making sounds because children repeat what
brings about pleasure to them. With repeated practice and through guidance of
adults in their environment, children eventually come to learn those utterances
that bring about satisfaction. Gradually, the child learns to associate certain
sounds with certain situations such as the sound of endearment a mother
produces when feeding her child. These sounds then become pleasurable for
the child on their own without being accompanied by food and eventually the
child will attempt to imitate these sounds to invite the attention of his mother
or another adult.
Children learn language through conditioning and habit formation which

Skinner referred to as ‘operant conditioning’. He claimed that the children’s
reactions to the human interactions in this environment have an effect on their
verbal expressions. They listen to verbalised communication and repeat what
they hear. They imitate the sounds and combination of sounds that they hear
in their surroundings. The positive feedback that they get from adults (reward)
strengthens this behaviour. A habit is formed when there is continuous, positive
reinforcement from parents and other siblings in the child’s environment.
Skinner also claims that all errors during first language acquisition are due to
‘bad habit formation,’ which, in due course, children correct as they hear and
imitate accurate speech. He argued that if correct utterances are positively
reinforced, the child will realise the communicative value of words and phrases.
For instance, if a child says ‘mine’ and realises that he or she gets what he or
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she wants (positive reinforcement) every time, the word ‘mine’ will be learned
because it brings about satisfaction to the child. The child’s understanding of
the meaning of that word will be reinforced making it more likely that he or
she will use that word in a similar situation in future.
2.3.1.3 Criticisms of Skinner’s theory

Arguments against Skinner’s idea of language acquisition through operant
conditioning are based on the fact that children often ignore language
corrections from adults. Instead, children typically follow a pattern of using
an irregular form of a word correctly, making errors later on, and eventually
returning to the proper use of the word. For example, a child may correctly
learn the word “took” (past tense of “take”), and later on use the word “taked”.
Eventually, the child will typically go back to learning the correct word, “took”.
It is difficult to explain this language behaviour in terms of Skinner’s theory of
language acquisition.
2.3.2 Language as a product of nature

Theorists who hold the view that language is uniquely human and that it is
inborn are referred to as ‘nativists’. Noam Chomsky, who holds that the human
brain is pre-programmed for language acquisition and its use, is renowned
for this view.
2.3.2.1 Chomsky’s theory of language acquisition

The argument of nativists such as Noam Chomsky Christie, Jean, Enz, Vukelich
& Roskos.(2014) is based on the grammatical aspects of language. They claim
that the observed children’s ability to figure out the grammatical aspects of
their native languages, irrespective of its complexity, is proof that language is
inborn. The innate knowledge of language is also called the language faculty.
They maintain that if children can understand language input (i.e. what they
hear), and manage to produce language output (i.e. verbal responses), shows
that language is present at birth. This is so despite children’s limited cognitive
abilities.
Chomsky argues that the rapid pace at which children learn languages cannot
be explained unless children have an innate ability to learn languages. The
fact that there are similar steps followed by children all across the world when
learning languages, and the fact that children make certain characteristic errors
as they learn their first language, attests to the nativist view.
Furthermore, Chomsky and those who hold this view consider the universal
grammar to be too complex to be acquired through environmental stimuli
(nurture). The different languages all have large vocabularies of words whose
meaning is facilitated by a phonological (sound) system. They all have a
grammatical system that governs the way in which words are combined. They
are also not seen to be static, as they evolve with time.
Chomsky concludes that the process of language acquisition in infants must

be genetically determined (innate) and closely controlled and guided by the
biologically self-controlling system in the human brain. According to Chomsky’s
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arguments, man is superior to animals with respect to language acquisition so

we can never apply the rules and principles to language learning which are
derived from experiments on animals. For Chomsky, the acquisition of very
complex language by children cannot simply be explained by imitation. It
definitely has something to do with innate capabilities.
2.3.2.2 Criticism
Other theorists, however, have criticised the possibility that infants’ ability
to acquire the grammar of their native language requires only their genetic
makeup. They insist that language cannot be learned in the same way as a
child learns how to walk, and that it is much more complicated. In particular,
there has been resistance to the possibility that human biology includes any
form of specialisation for language. This group believes that language is shaped
by the fact that we are human and also by the child’s social environment, in
other words, it is nurtured. The “nurture” viewpoint accounts for the fact that
humans raised in different societies acquire different languages.
Chomsky, who is known for his nativist approach, argued that if language
were solely acquired through behavioural conditioning, children would not
likely learn the proper use of a word and suddenly use the word incorrectly. In
addition, children also do not imitate everything they hear; it is noted that they
produce a large amount of words, an occurrence that seems to be controlled
by an internal language support system. It is such observations that made
Chomsky to believe that human beings are born with an innate capacity for
language development based on a study of syntax, that is, grammar.
The following view on children’s language acquisition neither supports nor

rejects the forgoing schools of thought.
2.3.3 Piaget’s cognitive theory of language acquisition

Piaget is renowned for his study on the development of cognitive processes
from infancy through to adulthood. Although he also wrote about language
development, his study was mainly about the relationship between cognitive
development and the development of language skills. He maintained that
cognitive development and language development are closely related and
interwoven.
Piaget’s cognitive theory states that children’s language development is a product

of their thinking and reasoning. He theorised that the mind has a section where
thought process takes place, and that there is another section of the mind that is
utilised at certain times for other specific functions such as supporting language
development. His cognitive theory of language learning states that learning
starts with adaptation. One can achieve that adaptation through assimilation.
Assimilation is the way that a person takes in information and makes sense of
it. Accommodation is a process of adapting information and making it suit a
specific situation. The person may change existing information to suit a specific
situation. For instance, a child’s knowledge of opening a cupboard door by
pulling it may be used as information to open a drawer.
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Accommodation and assimilation go hand in hand. When a child accommodates,

he or she is using assimilation to change his or her thought patterns. Piaget
further says that in language learning, it is necessary to apply a classification
system to improve understanding. Certain words and sounds need to be
grouped together to make meaning and to better understand and use them
in speech.
Piaget (Morrow, 2012) saw language skills as basically physical. Babies try to
figure out what their bodies, including their mouths, can do because they don’t
realise they can control movements such as opening their fingers or waving
the legs followed by more complex tasks like crawling and finally walking.
In the process of ‘testing’ its mouth the baby learns how to imitate some of
the sounds she hears her parents making and in what context those sounds
should be made.
According to this theory, all children develop cognitive abilities such as language
in four stages. Each stage is labelled differently and associated with a specific
age group.
The stages are discussed below.

•• The Sensory-Motor Period – (birth to 2 years): During this stage emphasis
is on movement and physical reactions. Piaget states that children are born
with “action schemas” to “assimilate” information about the world such
as sucking or grasping. A schema can be compared to inborn knowledge
such as sucking. In this period, children’s language is “egocentric” and they
‘talk’ either for themselves or for the pleasure of associating anyone who
happens to be there with the activity of the moment.
•• The Pre-Operational Period – (2 to 7 years): According to Piaget, children at
this stage are egocentric. However, language makes rapid progress and their
development of their “mental schema” lets them quickly “accommodate”
new words and situations. The child seems to talk constantly, but much
of what he says does not need to be said out loud. For instance, the child
might describe what he is doing even though others can easily see what he
is doing. Language is considered egocentric because they see things purely
from their own perspective.
•• The Concrete Operational Period – (7 to 11 years): Language at this stage
reveals the movement of their thinking from immature to mature and from
illogical to logical. At this stage, children are capable of using logic and of
solving problems in the form of stories, as long as the story deals only with
facts rather than abstract ideas. Language at this stage is used to refer to
specific and concrete facts, not mental concepts.
•• The Formal Operational Stage – (11 years to adulthood): At this stage,
children can start to use abstract reason and to make a mental distinction
between themselves and the ideas they are considering. They are also able
to move away from themselves or to view things from the perspectives of
other people. It is at this point that children’s language becomes “socialised”
and includes things such as questions, answers, commands and criticisms.
Piaget believed that these four stages of cognitive and linguistic development
were universal and that no children ever skipped over one of the four steps.
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2.3.3.1 Criticisms of Piaget’s theory

There are those that challenged Piaget’s studies. For example, the psychologist
Lev Vygotsky (Morrow, 2012) claims that Piaget did not take cultural differences
into consideration with his theories on language learning. He also believed
that some learning tasks were too sophisticated for a child and assistance was
needed to successfully learn. He questioned whether language was strictly
acquisition resulting from nature or whether it was a combination of both
natural traits such as a big human brain and nurture or the influence of different
environmental factors. To him, it could be genetic features that predestined us
to develop vocal communication and a consequence of environmental factors,
such as upbringing or the use of symbols.
A discussion of Vygotsky’s social theory follows below.
2.3.3.2 Vygotsky’s Social Interaction theory

Thus far, we have discussed language theories that pointed out that language
acquisition is exclusively controlled by nature. We have also discussed theories
that claim that language is strictly the result of nurturing or the influence of
the environment. You may be asking yourself which of the two views carries
more weight or you may have realised that both views have some merit in
their explanation.
One theorist who questioned whether the issue of language acquisition is truly
a matter of nature versus nurture or whether it is a combination of nature
and nurture is Vygotsky. It is true that some aspects of human behaviour can
be explained in terms of genetic makeup or by nurture. Maybe some genetic
features, such as our large brain or nutritional requirements, have predestined
us in some way to develop vocal communication. It is also true that some other
aspects can be the result of environmental influences.
Both Piaget and Vygotsky believed that as children develop language, they
actively build a symbol system, which helps them to understand the world.
They differed in the way in which they viewed how language and thought
interact with one another. Piaget believed that cognitive development led to the
growth of language whereas Vygotsky viewed language as developing thought.
Complete language development could be shaped by environmental factors,

such as upbringing, social system or the use of symbols. It can therefore be
said that language development is fostered by a collaboration of genetic and
environmental aspects. Vygotsky is one theorist who holds this view. His social
interaction theory explains that language development is the result of social
interaction between the developing child and linguistically knowledgeable
adults.
In contrast to other approaches, Vygotsky’s theory emphasises the role of

feedback and reinforcement in language acquisition. In particular, it maintains
that a major part of children’s language development is a consequence of
verbal display by parents as well as interaction with them and other people
in the family. Although the theories of Skinner, Chomsky and Piaget may be
used to explain some aspects of language development, they don’t necessarily
take into account the fact that children don’t encounter language in isolation.
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The interaction theory proposes that language exists for the purpose of
communication and can only be learned in the context of interaction with
adults and older children. In a broader sense, context, sometimes called social
context, may refer to any aspects of a situation in which speech takes place.
It includes the social setting which may be a home or a classroom and refers
to both the speaker and the person who is listening.
The theory focuses on the importance of the environment and culture in

which the language is being learned during early childhood development.
The environment is important because the social interaction between the
child and other family members provides the child with the means of making
sense of their own behaviour.
When adults speak to infants, they use exaggerated intonation, high frequency,
repetition, simple syntax and concrete vocabulary in a slow manner. This
manner of speaking to children increases the phonemic (sound) contrasts
and pronunciation of correct forms known as child-directed speech (CDS).
According to researchers, children eventually learn to use what they have
acquired linguistically in the same way that parents and others do.
The first argument of Vygotsky’s theoretical framework is that social interaction

forms the core in the development of language or cognition. Vygotsky believed
everything is learned on two levels. First, through interaction with others, and
then integrated into the individual’s mental structure.
A second aspect of Vygotsky’s theory is the thought that children’s potential for
language development is influenced by the ‘zone of proximal development’
(ZPD). The ZPD can be explained as the task levels that a child is unable to
complete alone but is able to complete with the assistance of an adult. The
adult interacting with the child, usually the mother, spends time talking about
what the child already knows. In the early stages of a child`s life this is usually
done through ‘motherese’ or ‘baby talk’. In this way, the mother or a more
experienced person is able to provide the child with “scaffolding” to increase
the child’s developing and changing mind structures. Scaffolding refers to a
support system that is provided by adults to children and young learners to
enable them to reach higher levels of knowledge. It facilitates the learning of
higher knowledge. In order for the scaffolding to be effective, it must match
the child’s developmental level so the child is comfortable enough to use
the guidance. To the child, the guidance or the coercion to reach higher
learning levels may present a lot of challenges but is necessary for the child’s
development.
Vygotsky also developed the concepts of private speech which is when children
speak to themselves in a self-guiding and directing way.
(i) Teaching a maturationist perspective, teaching from a developmental
psychology perspective and teaching from a critical perspective taking into
account the social constructivist theory but acknowledging that the power
bases within different socio-political contexts are not equal (Hill, 2008).
Hill (2008) contends that critical perspectives view cultural and social
identities as complex. It is understood that language and literacy is viewed
by Bourdieu (1986) cited in Hill (2008) to grasp the idea that capital – what
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children bring to school can be “cashed” for practice. Teachers therefore

need to be aware of the social and cultural capital children bring with
them from their early childhood setting and also consciously aware of
their own world views.
(ii) Hall (2003) argues that it is important that we resist attempts to polarise and
pigeonhole these perspectives and should consider the psycho-linguistic,
cognitive-psychological, socio-cultural and socio-political perspectives
(Sara, 2012).
2.4 APPLICATION OF THEORIES TO TEACHING

Often student teachers have the perception that the content on theories of
development is irrelevant and that theories are unrelated to classroom practice.
Under this heading, we show you the relevance of developmental theories
and we outline their usefulness in the classroom. You will be able to see how
insights from theories can be translated into practice. Discussions will be
according to the three groups of theories namely, the behaviourist, the nativist,
and the social interaction theories.
2.4.1 The Behaviourist theory for teaching language

Behaviourism was propagated by a number of theorists, but we select Pavlov
(outdated) and Skinner as key theorists. Researchers have realised that certain
aspects of these theories can be applied to humans to some extent and can
also be considered in the teaching of language in the home and at school.
We explained earlier in this Unit that Pavlov’s classical conditioning was the
result of his studies on dogs. Applied to human beings, the study explains how
people can associate two stimuli in their minds and react to one of them as
though it was related to the other. In the home, the nursery or the classroom,
the theory can be used to inculcate certain observable behaviour by pairing
two stimuli at first and later removing one but still have the children produce
the desired behaviour. For instance, during conditioning a mother or teacher
who wants to teach a child to say ‘thank you’ could offer a cookie to the child
and ask the child to say ‘thank you’. After repeating this process several times,
the mother or teacher can just show the child the cookie without asking the
child to say ‘thank you’ but the child will say ‘thank you’. In other words, the
child’s behaviour will be conditioned.
In another example, the teacher could play a certain tune and instruct the little
ones to sit on the mat to listen to a story. Later, the teacher can just play the
tune without saying anything but the children will leave what they are doing
and sit on the mat to listen to the story. In this way, the children’s behaviour
will be conditioned.
The behaviourist view suggests that nurture plays a significant part in children’s
acquisition of language and that two basic processes, namely, classical and
operant conditioning are responsible. Skinner’s operant conditioning theory
focused on rewards and punishments to alter behaviour. He manipulated the
environment to bring about favourable consequences or avoid adverse ones.
He maintained that the same ideas of operant conditioning can also be applied
to language acquisition in the home, the nursery and the classroom.
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Language acquisition and learning is seen as a process of habit formation and

is acquired through trial and error. Adults in the home or learning environment
teach children language and reward attempts made by children. For instance,
a baby’s babbling sounds is rewarded by the mother with a kiss or smile and
it finds pleasure in the response. The babbling sounds are strengthened and
may result in the acquisition of a word or two because of the pleasurable
feedback that is always received.
In the nursery class, for instance, a child may be taught to name different parts
of her or his body. The correct response is rewarded and the wrong one is
ignored. In this way, children get to know more correct language examples
and drop wrong ones because they are not rewarded. Children also learn to
utter words because they receive what they want and they will only be given
what they want once the adult has trained them to say what they must say
through reinforcement and rewards. Ultimately their speech gets to resemble
that of adults closely.
It is important to note that the behaviourist theory has limitations. Language

acquisition is not controlled by external stimuli only; the child is also actively
involved in the acquisition naturally. This outlook is evidenced by the fact
that universally, children produce the same mistakes in language despite the
intervention of adults. For instance, children will say ‘gived’ or ‘comed’ even
if adults say the correct ‘gave’ and ‘came’ respectively.
2.4.2 The Nativist theory for teaching language

Noam Chomsky’s Nativist theory is widely discussed as a typical ‘nature’ based
theory. His theory came about as resistance of Skinner’s Operant Conditioning
theory. He argued that language is based on a set of structures or rules, which
could not be initiated by imitating adults’ exemplary sayings. Chomsky insisted
that children must have an inborn faculty for language acquisition.
A child will acquire speech at the correct time that he is supposed to because
the brain is structured in that way. Nativists believe that children have inborn
capacity to learn language and no amount of adult input will force them to learn
what they are not ready to learn. According to Chomsky, children will learn
to communicate even without adult intervention because language is innate.
Therefore to him the environment (maybe a nursery or school) is a catalyst that
will start the acquisition of language, not the adults in those environments. By
listening to language forms such as ‘stopped’, ‘jumped’, ‘loved’ the child notes
that the past tense of words end in a ‘d’ hence the generalisation that the past
tense of ‘come’ is ‘comed’, and ‘take’ becomes ‘taked’, and so on.
2.4.3 The Cognitivist theory for teaching language

The name associated with the cognitive theory is that of Piaget. His theory’s
point of departure is that every time an adult interacts with a child, the child’s
cognitive structure changes. In the case of language, it is important to note
that every time an adult engages a child in a conversation, the child’s language
structure changes or improves.
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Piaget’s four stages of cognitive development are also relevant to language

development, especially his assertion that language is one aspect of cognition.
To him, a child’s cognitive development is the result of maturation. In terms
of language, he argued that a child must understand a concept before he or
she can learn to use a particular language form. For instance, it is important
for teachers to note that a child in the concrete operational level cannot
use language forms that relate to abstract things or situations such as ‘idea’,
‘argument’ or ‘interest’. Children in this stage need to know the concept first
(argument, idea, or interest) before they can acquire language to communicate
about it.
Piaget also noted the cognitive stages at which children are able to acquire vast
knowledge about things and those during which acquisition is at its lowest.
According to the theory, language acquisition is at its fastest during the ages of
2 and 3 years and teachers should take the opportunity to introduce children to
a lot of experiences and objects in order to increase their vocabulary. Language
acquisition is said to be slower at the formal operational stage, that is, after
age of eleven years. The implication is that teachers must be concerned if a
child of this age has a limited vocabulary and cannot express himself or herself
effectively in his home language.
Furthermore, teachers in nursery centres should concern themselves with

Piaget’s sensory motor stage because their children are at that stage. They must
create a language-rich environment that can assist children to develop a broad
vocabulary and opportunities to talk about what they see. They must be able
to accommodate children’s egocentricity and understand when the children
are talking to themselves. They must also be aware of children’s self-coined
words and try to understand them.
Teachers in the foundation phase, including the preschool, should continue to

use concrete examples in their teaching and remember to keep their instruction
short in order to accommodate children’s short span of attention. Even at this
stage, they must still be aware of children’s egocentric behaviour and the fact
that they still see the world only from their side. Most importantly, teachers
should know that young children learn through action and must therefore
involve children in linguistic activities that will foster language development.
2.4.4 Vygotsky’s theory for teaching language

The main researcher associated with the theory of social interactionism is
Levy Vygotsky. He is particularly renowned for his standpoint that thinking
and learning are not solely internal processes but are highly influenced by
social interaction and culture. He is agreeable to Piaget’s stages of cognitive
development but differs in the instance that learning is more the product of
social interaction and cultural influences.
He is also known for his model of collaborative learning. Collaborative

learning is the idea that conversations with older people can help children
both cognitively and linguistically. This is the basis of what he refers to as
‘scaffolding’. In a learning environment, be it in the home, the nursery or the
school, adults provide support to children to promote learning. If the objective
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of the teacher is to introduce new words or increase children’s vocabulary,

children may be asked about something they know and new words related to
this knowledge can then be introduced.
For instance, a teacher may want to increase children’s vocabulary about farm
animals. In this case, he or she could bring a picture of a cow on a farm and
ask children questions about the animal.
The question could be “What is this animal?”

Child 1: It is a cow. It lives on a farm.
Teacher: Yes, what else?

Child 2: It is black.
Teacher: Yes, what else?
No response from all children. The teacher can then point to the horns and ask:
Teacher: What are these?

No response from the children.
Teacher: It is horns. What is the cow doing?

Child 3: It is eating grass
Teacher: Yes. What other word do we use for ‘eating’ grass?

No response.
Teacher: We say “the cow is grazing on grass”.
This picture aims at increasing the vocabulary about the farm, making use of
Vygotsky’s scaffolding and the zone of proximal development.
(Retrieved on 23 October 2017)

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In this example, the teacher’s first question about the animal’s name could be
a way of establishing what the children already know about the farm animals.
It is an important start to initiate conversation with children and to determine
how to develop their language further.
The picture in the example can be referred to as a prompt or it can serve as

scaffolding because it can help the children’s thinking. It is also a support that
the teacher is providing the children. It would not be easy for children at this
age to talk about something they do not see at that moment. It is therefore
important for teachers to do or bring something that can support children’s
communication.
The teacher’s question about the appropriate word for ‘eating grass ’ can serve
as an example of the zone of proximal development (ZPD) because ‘grazing’
is a word slightly above the children’s knowledge. The introduction of the new
word ‘graze’ is a way of increasing the children’s vocabulary (Morrow, 2012).
2.5 CONCLUSION
By now you should realise the importance of learning about language theories
in your curriculum. What you are not aware of is that you may have used
a self-coined theory or one of the theories you have just learned in your
teaching based on your experience as a teacher. You knew how you initiated
conversation during your language period and why you were doing it. You
repeated certain language activities several times and understood why you
did it. You knew when to introduce certain language lessons and why you
introduced them at that stage.
After learning all the theories in this unit, it is imperative that you must know
two things; one, that you should know the content of the theories that will
advise your teaching and two, that you should know how to apply the theories
in your teaching.
You must know the extent to which children are pre-programmed to acquire
language, and know whether language acquisition is independent of cognitive
development or not. You must know the theory of Chomsky, who believes that
children come with specific linguistic knowledge; Skinner, who believes that
language, is completely a matter of conditioning; Piaget, who sees language
development as a product of cognitive development; and Vygotsky, who
emphasises the importance of the child’s social interaction with adults and/or
other significant people in the environment.
Question 1
(a) Explain the meaning of “theory” in your own words.
(b) What is the difference between the nature and the nurture theories?
(c) How does ‘positive reinforcement’ in Skinner’s theory promote language
acquisition?
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36
(d) Why is ‘scaffolding’ necessary in language acquisition?

(e) What is the meaning of the ‘zone of proximal development’ in Vygotsky’s
theory?
Question 2
Discuss any three of the following language theories in detail:
(a) Pavlov’s Classic Conditioning theory
(b) Skinner’s Operant Conditioning theory
(c) Chomsky’s Nativist theory
(d) Piaget’s Cognitive theory
(e) Vygotsky’s Social Constructivist theory
Question 3
(a) Provide an example of a classroom lesson where you apply Skinner’s
theory to promote the acquisition of language.
(b) Compare and contrast Chomsky’s and Vygotsky’s theories critically.
Question 4
Write an informative essay on Piaget’s stages of language development.
Recommended reading
Morrow, L.M. (2012). Literacy Development in the Early Years: Helping Children
Read and Write. Pearson United States.
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3 STUDY UNIT 3
3 Emergent reading
3.1 INTRODUCTION
Literacy learning begins in infancy (Unit 1) and develops as children become
aware that a spoken word can be represented by a letter/s and words.
Emergent literacy is a predecessor of the actual reading and writing where
written words are seen and interpreted as meaningful (Home language:
Reading writing module). One’s ability to read depends on the number of
vocabulary one has accumulated. The child has to be able to listen and
speak before any reading can occur, especially if reading is done with
understanding.
In this unit, we are going to talk about emergent reading, how it manifests
itself and strategies that both parents and teachers can use to promote its
development. This unit is going to embed listening and speaking skills as
precursors of the reading skills as reading is dependent on the number of
words children have come across and understand their meaning before the
emergent reading. It is very important to understand that development in
children takes place at different rates thus emergent literacy too may take
place at different paces. It is therefore important for a teacher to closely
monitor the development of the language of children by using any of the
assessment tools (Unit 6) for recording the progress made. The information
recorded will enable you to give more attention to a child who exhibits some
delays. This unit is closely aligned to Units 1, 2, 3 and 6. Cross-referencing
between the units will be done from time to time. Therefore, you must have
the other units close by as you go through this unit.
3.2 LEARNING OUTCOMES

At the end of this unit you should be able to do the following:
•• Create an environment conducive for developing emergent reading.
•• Use appropriate techniques and strategies to promote listening and speaking
skills.
•• Choose appropriate strategies for developing emergent reading in your class.
•• Choose appropriate resources and media for enhancing emergent reading.
•• Use different approaches and techniques for promoting and developing
emergent reading.
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38
S T U DY U N I T 3: Em e r g e nt r e a d i n g
KEY CONCEPTS
•• Environmental Print
•• Shared reading
•• Independent reading
•• Language Experience Approach
•• Reading Aloud
•• Whole word approach
3 Ac tivit y
I want you to reflect back at your early days and write a paragraph on when and
how you learned how to read. Was it in the classroom or home? How did you
know that you could read?
Read the following case study to assist you with your reflection on how you
started reading:
CASE STUDY 1
Thabo is 3 years old. He likes driving around with his mother. One afternoon
he and his mother were driving around town, suddenly Thabo shouted out
loud, “mama, mama see Kentucky on the big board”. Indeed mother looked
out in the direction Thabo was pointing, and there was a big bill board with
the advertisement for Kentucky fried chicken. “Yes, you are right Thabo, it is
Kentucky fried chicken” said the mother.
Thabo was so excited and proud that he could read. All along the way as they
drove home, he saw more of the words that he could recognise. He saw and
read words like Vodacom, DSTV, Omo, and many others. He really felt proud
that he could read words that he had previously seen on TV.
(1) Why does Thabo believe that he can read?

(2) If the words are taken away from the pictures and written separately on a
word card, will Thabo be able to read the words?
(3) How would you describe Thabo’s reading ability?
(4) Why is Thabo’s mother repeating the answer?
4 Fe e dback
Thabo is demonstrating some literacy knowledge. Thabo recognises that written
words can be read. Despite the fact that if the words are written away from the
pictures, he would find it difficult to recognise them, he is excited for the fact
that through association he could identify the words and read them. Thabo’s
mother is also reinforcing learning by repeating each word Thabo says aloud.
Acknowledging Thabo’s efforts and reinforcing his efforts is a positive response
towards his development in reading.
I want us to focus our attention on the environment for developing and sustaining
emergent reading and how it can be created and nurtured. It is important for
us as parents and teachers to create the environment suitable for developing
emergent reading.
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Conducive environment for developing emergent reading

Emergent literacy begins at home and so too does emergent reading. By the time
children come to preschool and eventually to the big school, they are aware that
a spoken word can be written and that a written word can be read. We have to
be aware at all times that is a conducive environment that will propel children to
want to learn. If the environment is devoid of written words, be it in books, labels
or names of shops, it will not encourage a child to read. The following section
is going to discuss the environment suitable for promoting emergent reading.
3.3 ENVIRONMENTAL PRINT

Environmental print is familiar print that can be found in the environment where
the child is, such as food labels, bill boards, road signs, names of shops and
familiar logos such as Vodacom (name the alternatives). These environmental
prints are found in the homes and outside homes. Environmental print, gives
clues to the decoding of words by always giving the context of the word. A bill
board with Vodacom will always have the picture of a cellphone which gives
clues to the word. Neumann, Hood & Ford (2013) maintains that interaction
with the environmental print is an important way that children build experience
of the importance of print. It is often that the child reads the sign and not the
print, however, he /she uses association to read the sign. Interactions with print
need not be confined to the home front, but on the streets, in the shops and
in the classroom. Environmental prints available to children in the home, are
food containers, detergents packets, soup packets and many others. These
offer children an opportunity to read the pictures and associate print with the
picture. The print starts to become part of a child’s sight vocabulary (Morrow,
2012). A family which writes a grocery list with their children affords such
children experiences of the importance of writing and the meaning attached
to the activity. Notices attached to the refrigerator or somewhere in the house
such as behind the kitchen door where they are visible to other members
of the family, reflect the significance written words have as a reminder and
source of knowledge.
Children who are being read to at home, imitate reading behaviours like turning
pages, retelling the story in their own words and using book like language
(Cox, 2005). These traits are important as foundation to emergent literacy.
Selecting appropriate books for children will be dealt with in the module.
Children’s literature.
Include small sections on the Emergent reading phase, reading behaviours and
reading development from Hill (2008).
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40
5 AC TIVIT Y
Read the following case study and answer questions that follow:
CASE STUDY 2
Tom was driving with his son in the city centre. They like talking about the
buildings, shops and people on the streets. When approaching a red robot,
Tom would ask his son, “what does the robot say?”. Tshepo would proudly
say “stop”. When coming to the big street in town he would ask, “What is the
name of the street”. Tshepo would give the correct answer, not from knowing
how the name is written, but from the familiarity with the place, and from
knowing the first letter that starts the name.
(1) Why is Tshepo able to answer the questions posed by his father?
(2) How can the above episode be transposed into the classroom context?
(3) Can you explain emergent reading from the case study above?
6 Fe e dback
Emergent reading starts as early as the child notices that written words can
be read. The child emulates parents and older siblings as they read books and
magazines. S/he would hold a book sometimes upside down, and start to read
aloud his/her own interpretation as illustrated by pictures. Tshepo’s learning
is scaffolded by his father Tom by prodding him and encouraging him to talk
about the neighbourhood and significant landmarks. Without realising that he is
helping Tshepo to read, his father encourages him to read pictures and familiar
words in the streets.
Emergent reading cannot be confined only to the school, but parents too should
be encouraged to talk to their children and to encourage them to be aware of
written labels in the house and in the streets.
Watch the following video clip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jxw1pfeB60M
7 AC TIVIT Y
Summarise the video clip (1–2 pages). Address the following:
•• The role of parents in promoting early literacy
•• The types of books suitable for promoting emergent reading
•• Strategies used for enhancing emergent reading.
8 Fe e dback
Parents are the first primary educators of their children. They are the first contact
the child makes with the outside world and therefore they have to make sure
that the child is ready to enter the bigger outside world ready to participate
meaningfully. Parents have to be encouraged to read to their children and not
leave this for later when they go to school. Parents have to regularly speak to
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their children and support them to develop listening, speaking, reading and
writing skills.
3.4 SCHOOL EXPERIENCES

The environmental print can be recreated in your learning centre and/or
classroom. Label different areas in your learning centre such as the block
area and the fantasy corner. Pictures in the classroom should be labelled.
The furniture in the classroom should be labelled to make room for incidental
learning. It is not all words that you are going to teach. Some words are learned
incidentally by association and by referring to labels as part of your daily routine.
Use name tags and label important areas in your classroom that are of interest
to your learners such as; wash your hands after visiting the bathroom and say
thank you when you receive something from a person. Always refer to these
important labels so that children notice how they are written and allowing for
incidental learning to take place. Say the word like table loud and ask children
to say out the beginning sound of the word. Let them tell you which of their
names starts with the ‘T’ as in table. A game can ensue where labels in class
are read out aloud by the teacher and the first sound is identified. Thereafter
objects and names that start with the same sound are identified by children and
said out loud for everyone to hear. Play can be used for developing emergent
reading and for the enjoyment it offers. It is always said that play is work to
children and therefore, it is an important medium for learning (See Unit 3).
Morning messages are an important part of any preschool and formal classroom
communication with children. Days of the week can be written on the board
or at the teaching corner, illustrating with a picture the type of weather for the
day. Have two sentences written about the day. Look for words that are written
the same and the number of times they appear on the text. For example:
Today is Monday
Monday comes after Sunday
It is a sunny today
It is a day for painting
In the text above, Monday is written twice. Monday starts with M – the same
sound as in Mary and Mapula. This is a casual time in the morning so make
use of this opportunity for teachable moments. As children ask you questions,
use this opportunity to extend their knowledge and contribute towards their
emergent reading.
Developing sight vocabulary can be done in a playful manner. Familiar words

such as granny, mother and table can be written on opposite side of the cards
and the other side can be pictures denoting the word. The teacher tells a story
using the pictures and words, and thereafter she jumbles them up with the
words facing children. A child picks up a card and reads the word. If s/he can’t
read the word, s/he flips the card over to get the clue. This game is a powerful
technique for developing sight vocabulary.
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42
Going on outings
It is good for the teacher to take children out on an outing to their neighbourhood.
However, before this can be undertaken a lot of preparations need to go into
the planning. Think about the purpose of the outing. Is it about learning about
plants, rules of the road, or visiting a radio station to learn about how the
voices of the presenters are projected to the rest of the world? On coming
back, these trips may be documented with the help of the learners. In fact what
goes into the written text has to come from children. Children will be able to
see that their experiences can be written down and read at a later stage. Key
words denoting some important aspects of the outing can be written. Read
the following text written from a trip undertaken by children and their teacher:
We saw lots of frogs in the water. Some had tails and others were big. The
river was full of water. People were crossing in big cars and trucks. Our
teacher told us not to cross. She said it was very dangerous for us. There
were lots of sticks in the water and it was not clean.
Feedback
The experience acquired on the outing should be written with children.
Children should dictate to the teacher what they saw, and the teacher has to
put their words and ideas into paper. The teacher can ask children questions
about certain events that they might not have noticed but are important to
take note of, for instance, important words that are regularly used but are not
mentioned by children. These words can be written on flashcards for incidental
learning. The story can be read a number of times according to the demand
from children. Illustrations can be made to go with the story and the book
may be available to children during their independent reading.
3.5 CHARACTERISATION OF EMERGENT READING

Emergent literacy manifests itself in different ways. In this unit, emergent
literacy and emergent reading are going to be treated synonymously as there
is a fine line of distinction between them. Strickland, Galda & Cullinan (2004)
extrapolates five points which they say are important in the development of
early literacy. These points are important and foundational to the development
of reading. Listening to stories being read, mimicking reading, retelling the
story read, and all are indications that emergent reading is progressively being
developed. Identification of letters, ability to associate letters and words with
the ones seen earlier, are indicators that the basis is being laid for future reading
and writing.
Strickland et al. (2004) maintain that early literacy manifest itself in the following
manner:
•• Literacy learning begins early in life and is ongoing. Children always want
to make sense of the print that surrounds them. Support from parents
and teachers will increase that curiosity of wanting to read. As they are
surrounded by books and print in their environment, keenness to interpret
the written words sets in.
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•• Literacy develops concurrently with oral language. Eagerness to make

connection between something they heard or seen and being read to is a
good indication that emergent reading sets in. Seeing a name Mary, and
associating the first sound and letter to their own name such as Mapula is
an indication that understanding of relationship is setting in, and by using
association they are able to see connection in shapes and sounds.
•• Learning to read and write are both social and cognitive endeavours.
Children learn from parents, siblings, teachers and their peers. They copy
what they see from these knowledgeable others, and also make their own
sense of the written words. Allow children to scribble around and read to
you their scribbles.
•• Learning to read and write is a developmental process and it differs from
one child to the other. Interest in print may dawn at different stages in
children and there might be a spurt in development for some children who
might not have shown interest and suddenly their world opens up. Treat
children as individuals and do not expect them to be all on the same level
at the same time.
•• Story books, in particular, reading the family story book has a special
role in young children’s literacy development. Sharing story books with
children helps them to follow the story by interpreting pictures and asking
questions about repetitive words in the text. This is an opportunity for you
as a parent and teacher to introduce the sounds of the beginning of words
and the shapes of letters.
Literacy is deeply rooted in the cultural milieu and in the family communication
patterns. The more the family reads, the better the chances of the younger
ones emulating the older ones (Strickland 2004). These factors are significant
in promoting emergent literacy and are indicative of the importance of the
family and other human development milestones as essential ingredients in
achieving emergent reading.
3.6 LISTENING AND SPEAKING SKILLS

This picture below representing the Foundation Phase, shows how learners
listen carefully when seated on the mat and the teacher using puppets.
Listening and speaking are important skills because what we say, read and
write are based on things we hear (Sampson, Rasinski & Sampson, 2003).
The act of listening is often left to its own devices as the skill is often said to
develop automatically without any intervention from outside. This is partly
true, but not always so. To develop the vocabulary of children, teachers should
develop activities aimed at promoting listening and speaking through story
reading and storytelling.
In this section, we are going to explore the role listening and speaking play
in the development of reading. We are going to look at story reading and
storytelling, and how they can be used to develop emergent reading.
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44
Shutterstock (retrieved on the 18th October, 2017)
3.7 WHY READ TO CHILDREN?

Reading books aloud to children, is a pastime that most families engage in
without realising the benefits it has on their children. Reading aloud is said
to stimulate the imagination of children by expanding their understanding of
the world. It helps them develop language, listening skills and speaking skills,
and lays a foundation for them to understand the written word. Reading aloud
should not be an activity for young children but should continue throughout
children’s childhood. Research claims that children who are being read to
from early days and are supported by adults become successful readers in
their later years. Story reading is one of the most effective ways of engaging
children and making them attentive to what you are reading. It is through
reading that children are afforded an opportunity to establish connections
between speech and print. Adults normally act as models and resources to
children when they learn to read, the same way they do when children learn
to speak (Fields & Spangler, 2000). Children like imitating older siblings and
parents when reading. It is the availability of books in the home that will instil
an interest in reading in children.
3.7.1 Strategies for reading aloud

The Department of Basic Education (DBE) (2011) stipulates that teachers
should use enlarged texts such as Big Books to share reading with children.
Love for reading therefore, is a most important attribute you can develop in
children. Allow children to predict the story thus becoming active participants
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in reading. Children can be encouraged to predict the story by using pictures

as cues. Your support as a teacher, namely, giving them clues is helpful in
assuring them that they can read. Stop frequently to reflect on the sections
already read. Ask children questions, and allow children too to ask questions.
It is an inquisitive mind that learns.
Allow children to tell you a story as a group. Let them sequence the events
in the story. This can be done in a playful manner by sequencing pictures
according to the story. This activity can be done as a group and later in their
individual capacity.
Retelling the story is an important technique for developing oral and

comprehension skills. Oral and comprehension skills are said to predict later
reading proficiency. It is therefore important as a teacher to allow children to
retell the read stories.
Big Books can be introduced in the following manner:

•• Seat children on a large mat, so that they are not shoving but are comfortable.
•• When reading the second story, let those who were seated at the back
move to the front.
•• Sit on a low chair to enable you to make eye contact with children.
•• Show learners how to handle the book and how to page it.
•• Show children the front and the back.
•• Ask questions that enable them to make connections between their personal
background and the story. If a story is about domestic animals, ask children
about animals they like and reasons why they like them. If they have pets
at home let them talk about them.
•• Let children predict the contents of the book.
•• Point to each word as you read from the Big Book. This is meant to show
children that it is written words which are read and not necessarily pictures.
•• Show the direction in which reading is done, from left to right.
•• As you read the book, stop periodically and review what you have read.
This will also give you the opportunity to predict what will happen.
•• Refer to the pictures to unlock the meaning of the words. Let children predict
what will happen by using pictures.
•• Take advantage of teachable moments by discussing the meaning of words
and how they are written. Questions asked by children should be used to
extend their knowledge and comprehension.
•• The Big Book should be read several times in the classroom so that children
become familiar with the storyline.
NB: More information: Refer to the CURRICULUM AND ASSESSMENT POLICY

STATEMENT (CAPS), SOUTH AFRICA: Emergent reading Term 2: Home
Language on using the Big Book for emergent reading. Those residing
outside South Africa, look at the curriculum for Kindergarten, Reception
Year class or class before formal schooling and its provisions regarding
the use of the Big Book or story books.
NB: Please be aware that the strategies mentioned above are merely to

promote emergent reading, sometimes called reading readiness amongst
children and are not meant to teach reading. Teaching reading (module
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46
Home Languages) will deal with the strategies for formal reading. Reading
readiness however, is used for preparing children for formal reading. Some
literature discourages the use of reading readiness. It says that preparation
for reading starts early in the life of a child and cannot be ascribed to a
certain age such as kindergarten, reception year class or Grade R.
The following are the advantages of reading aloud:

•• Reading aloud is said to build a strong relationship between the reader and
the child. Reading aloud should be experienced as a joy filled experience
and not as a chore. When your children do not show any interest in reading
discontinue. The experience has to be fulfilling to both the reader and the
child.
•• Reading aloud has the potential to catch the imagination of the child. It is
the manner in which the story is read, changes in the voice modulation and
facial expressions that add towards the interest being shown in the story.
•• The more repetitive phrases the storybook has, the better chances that
children will enjoy it. Books that have repetitive phrases with a storyline
familiar to children will appeal to them more than a storybook with unfamiliar
storyline. Make sure that the books read to children are suitable for their
contexts. Reading a story about snowman to Limpopo children where the
possibility of snow ever falling in the region is far removed, can become
daunting to such children.
•• Repetitive phrases in story books make reading fun. Children learn through
play. When we present learning material in a form of play, children are
eager to participate. When reading storybooks with repetitive phrases,
allow children to join in and say the phrases with you and without you.
For example, a storybook about the three Billy goats. When they looked
the other side of the bridge, it looked green and lush, good enough food
for the three of them. To go to the other side, they had to cross the bridge,
and under this bridge, there lived a big troll who fed on goats. The Three
Billy Goats Gruff (Yates: 2011).
•• The small goat passed making sounds; “trap; trap, trip, trap” as he crossed
the bridge. The troll came out and in a big hoarse and gruffy voice said;
“who’s walking on a bridge” the little goat replied, “It’s me, the small billy
goat. Don’t eat me up. I have a big fat brother who can make a good meal
for you”. The troll allowed him to pass.
•• The second billy goat came: “trip, trap, trip, trap” over the bridge. The troll
came out and in a big hoarse and gruffy voice and said; “who’s walking
on a bridge” the little goat replied, “It’s me, the small billy goat. Don’t eat
me up. I have a big fat brother who can make a good meal for you”. The
troll allowed him to pass.
Allow children to join in when reading the repetitive phrases. Choose books
in your own language that have repetitive phrases. For instance, in Sotho
languages, the story of Masilo le Masilonyana, can be narrated or read to
children. Take advantage of the repetitive phrases. Important: At the end of
this book there is a list of books in English, African languages and Afrikaans
which can be used to promote reading.
•• Reading aloud and storytelling, enhances discipline and concentration. An
interesting storyline will hold the attention of children, thus elongating their
attention span. These are traits that will put children in good stead as they
prepare themselves for formal reading.
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•• Children learn to evaluate characters in a story. They evaluate their actions

and behaviours against each other and make their own conclusion on who
are the best and provide reasons for such a decision (Joubert, Bester, Meyer,
Evans & Phatudi, 2015).
•• Children’s frame of reference is enlarged. They link new story with others
that they have read before. They link the sounds of words with the other
sounds they have heard before, and even the written form they had seen
in books.
•• There is a correlation between being read to a lot and scholastic achievement.
Being read to, creates the need to know more, and thus makes children to
be more inquisitive, and this is a trait that is necessary for optimal learning.
Familiarise yourself with the following tips before you read or tell a story
(Joubert et al 2015).
•• Practise reading or telling a story in front of a mirror before doing it practically
with children.
•• You may start with your own child or niece/nephew before reading to a class.
•• Vary the pitch of your voice according to the characters in a story.
•• Your face should convey a message. Children read your face to understand
the feelings and moods of the characters.
•• Tell the story with enthusiasm. A tiresome look will not encourage children
to listen to the story.
•• Use media to enhance the children’s understanding. Use pictures as cues
for unlocking the meaning of words and storyline not clearly expressed.
•• The storyline should be interesting, thus appeal to children so that they are
captivated by the story.
3.7.2 Activity
Choose a storybook to read to a group of children. Choose any language your
children are familiar with.
Describe and assess the book according to the following criteria:
Is the content relevant to children in terms of?

•• The storyline: explain the story
•• Context
•• Diversity
NB: attach a picture of the outside cover of the book.
3.7.3 Reflection
•• How did you link the story to the context of learners?
•• How did you engage them in the story?
•• What type of activities did you give them to assess comprehension?
•• How was the reaction of your children?
•• What is your overall view of the process of storytelling? Were you satisfied?
Why? If not, Why?
•• What would you do different if given another opportunity to read the story.
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48
NB: The activity above will form part of the tasks you have to undertake as
part of your Teaching Practice assignment.
3.8 MEDIA USED FOR STORY READING AND STORY TELLING

There are various resources that can be used to promote and develop emergent
reading. In the previous section we discussed story books as a resource for
promoting emergent reading. However, the storyline can be made more
interesting by using media that will enhance the interest and attention of
children so that they enjoy the story.
3.8.1 Puppets in storytelling and story reading

Puppets can be used to tell a story to represent different characters. When
using puppets, make sure that you vary your voice according to the character.
A giant will have a hoarse voice while a princess will have a sweet high
pitched voice. A father will have a deeper voice than a mother. Puppets are
used to differentiate characters from one another and importantly, to capture
the attention of children.
Puppets can be used too by children to retell a story. It can be used for
dramatising a story told or read to them.
Puppet shows are also an effective way of promoting interest and attention,
especially to children, since the position of the narrator of the story is taken
by the puppets. See below how a puppet show can be constructed (Joubert
et al; 2015)
The picture of a puppet show
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3.8.2 Flannel board stories

Pictures can be used to narrate a story by placing them on flannel boards.
Curriculum Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS): Grade R states that children
should make their own story by reading pictures. Children too should be
encouraged to make their own stories by using pictures. Allow them to put
their pictures on a flannel board to tell stories to one another and to the whole
class. This will promote sequencing as the same story can be repeated a number
of times. Ask children questions to ensure that the storyline is not confused.
Picture of flannel board with pictures
3.9 TECHNIQUES FOR READING

Children love stories and never tire from hearing the same story read a number
of times. Story reading and storytelling are important media for developing
emergent reading. It is through listening to reading that the child makes sense of
the reading process and learns the skills of reading. Children can only acquire
these skills if they are involved in reading in different ways. They can participate
in different techniques of reading such as shared reading, independent reading,
guided reading and ‘playful exploration of print’ on regular basis (Fields &
Spangler, 2000). Let us now look at each of the techniques individually and
how they can be used in promoting emergent reading.
3.9.1 Shared Reading

Shared reading is when the teacher shares a book with a child or group of
children. As she reads, they observe the print and participate in the reading.
If it is a familiar book, they join in on choruses repeated in the book. As the
teacher reads, she engages children by asking questions to predict what will
happen next. Children will benefit from seeing printed words being read.
Fields and Spangler (2000) maintain that this kind of reading is important in
developing alphabetic awareness, phonemic awareness and increase their
sight vocabulary.
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Shared reading need not be confined to the school environment. Parents too
can be encouraged to read with their children by sharing the reader. The reader
models the correct manner of reading which may be emulated by children.
As you read along with children, they learn the concept of print such as the
directionality of print, the arrangement of print on a page and the manner in
which pages are turned over. Shared reading gives children an opportunity to
figure out the individual sounds/letter/sound relationship in words so that they
can match the sounds with other sounds in words known to them.
Shared reading can also be carried out on a large poster with a story written on
it. Children can practise to read the story even if the story read does not match
words on the poster. This gives children confidence that they can read. A follow
up activity of matching words with those on the poster can be carried out.
Big Books can be used for shared reading as they have big letters which are
visible to a group of children. The teacher can read by running her finger
underneath the words as they are being read. (Use DBE Videos showing Read
Aloud and Shared reading strategies).
Web link of DBE videos:
Picture of shared reading
3.9.2 Independent reading

Have a reading corner in your learning centre where children are able to take
out a book and read on their own. Familiar books read to children before,
must be made available to children so that they mimic the reading heard from
the teacher or parents at home.
Independent reading promotes pretend reading. Small children will tell a self-
made story from a storybook by using language they have command in. This
gives children an opportunity to recreate and think over things as happening
in the book so that they become meaningful to them. The written word hence
becomes meaningful as they represent their own views, however, incorrect
they may be.
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Independent reading may be shared with a friend. A parent may be invited

into the classroom to share reading with children. Independent reading may
be done with books with text or picture book. Attaching meaning to pictures
is an indication that the act of reading has dawned upon children. They are
aware that books contain stories that can be read and interpreted according
to own understanding.
Pictures of independent reading
NB: The role and place of context in reading
You are reminded that as you promote emergent reading, you must not lose
sight of the fact that your children might be coming to your learning centre
with different experiences in terms of exposure to reading. Make sure that all
children are accommodated and that reading activities and choice of books
suit all your children.
Some children come from homes where reading is not a pastime. These homes
do not have reading material suitable for children. There are no role models
of adults reading to themselves, therefore, the act of reading is far removed
from their world view.
When choosing reading material, make sure that it accommodates different

experiences children come from. Alternate the books according to interests
and experiences of children so that each one of the children in your class is
catered for.
3.10 APPROACHES OF PROMOTING EMERGENT READING

In this section, we are going to explore approaches relevant for developing
and promoting emergent reading. The use of these approaches will also be
explored so that they can be used in different contexts with success.
Approaches and methods are often used interchangeably in referring to the

how of teaching and promoting emergent reading. Techniques and strategies
are tools used to apply and reinforce a particular skill. Within an approach, a
technique or strategy, such as reading aloud or shared reading can be used
to teach a particular skill.
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3.10.1 Whole word approach or the look and say approach

This method or approach is based on the Gestalt theory that when perceiving,
we normally see the whole and not parts of the whole. There is, however,
contestation to this theory as some theorists believe that children see parts
of the whole before they can perceive a whole. This will, however, not be
discussed here.
When a child draws a person, he/she first start with the outside structure
without eyes and limbs. As they develop, it is only then that it dawns upon
the child that there is more to the outside structure.
Whole word approach acknowledges that words are being learned not only
from memory but also from their shapes. Word cards are cut up according to
the shape of the letters.
Example of words cut up according to shape:
Children’s names can also be written and cut up according to shape so that
they are able to see similarities in their names with other words written in the
classroom or at home. The more the child sees a word and can associate it
with another seen elsewhere, the better the readiness to learn how to read.
The whole word approach, without teaching the child formally how to read,
is key to incidental reading and is an approach that can be used for preparing
a child to learn how to read.
3.10.2 The language experience approach

This approach highlights the importance of children’s experiences being brought
forward in the classroom and being used as a resource for learning. Language
experience approach, like its name, maintains that children learn better when
they learn from their own experiences.
Stories dictated by children can be recorded, illustrated and used as reading

material. Experiences gained from outings can be retold in the classroom,
recorded and used by the class as reading material. Individual experiences of
children can be written down and be used as material for reading. Each child
can have his own reading book that he can illustrate. Remember that even if
children cannot recognise words, they use pictures to decode the meaning
of the written text.
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Gunning (2014) suggests the following steps that a teacher can take to
record an experience.
DAY 1
Step 1: Building an experiential background for the story
Share a story about an outing taken by children. Probe for responses from
them as you ask them questions. Write the answers in point form as children
dictate their experiences to you.
Step 2: Discussing the experience

Repeat step number 1. In step 2 try and organise their experiences by asking
them sequencing questions so that they relay the story in the sequence in
which it took place. The story can be on an activity they did in the classroom.
In this step the aim is to list the events in the order in which they take place.
Step 3: Dictating the story

The children dictate the story according to the order you arranged the facts
the previous day. You as a teacher become a scribe as you write down the
experiences. Write the story on a big piece of paper so that everyone can
see the written words. The teacher reads aloud the text so that children can
confirm or not if it represents their ideas.
Step 4: Reviewing the story.

The teacher reads aloud the story by sweeping her hand underneath the print
as she reads along with children. If they don’t agree with the story, they are
free to make changes.
Step 5: Reading of the story by the teacher and children

The teacher reads the story once more and children are allowed to read with
the teacher if they feel confident to do so.
Step 6: Reading of familiar parts by students

This step can be done with older children. If children are able to read on their
own, they are allowed to. If children in Grade R are able to recognise some
of the words, allow them to read them aloud.
DAY 2
Step 1: Rereading of story

The teacher reads the story again to children and thereafter invites children to
join in reading. The teacher points at each word as she/he reads. Those who
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volunteer to read alone are given a chance to do so, especially words they
are able to recognise.
Step 2: Matching of story parts

This step is suitable for Grade R and Grade 1 children. Other word cards can
be made of the story and cut up. Children are asked to match the word card/s
with the word/s on the story. The teacher can help give children clues to help
children identify the words. This step however, is suitable for children who
are able to recognise words according to shape.
Start first with short sentences before long ones can be introduced.
Language experience approach, acknowledges to children that their experiences

can be put on paper and be read. It encourages children to want to read as
they are being acknowledged and recognised as storywriters and storytellers.
Their self-image becomes enhanced (Joubert et al, 2015).
Besides the strengths of the approach, it also has its own disadvantages. It needs
a lot of planning so that the text written should be shared by all children. It
therefore, requires a well-organised and enthusiastic teacher who will make
it a success.
3.10.3 PHONETIC APPROACH

Phonics is an approach of teaching letter-sound relationship, and this is key to
decoding written words. Phonics instruction for children should be taught in
a fun and engaging manner. Phonics should not be taught in formal reading,
but informally where words are in the environment where children are.
It is always advisable to teach the beginning sounds or the ending sounds.

The sound and shape of letters can be learned in rhymes, songs, stories and
sight words (words that occur regularly in a sentence, e.g. is, are, and). Make
up a rhyme that has a repetition of the same beginning sound, for example:
Paul and Patrick pounced on the pink plums.
Paul and Patrick picked pink plums.
Ask children to stand up those with names that start with the sound “P”. Let
them identify things in the classroom that start with the sound ‘P”. As you read
emphasise the target sound and ask children to clap hands when the sound
is read. Write up the words with the key sound and let children identify them
before starting with a new lesson.
A rhyme with the same ending sound and spelling:
Rain, rain, go away
Come again another day
Little Johnny wants to play
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Let children listen carefully as they say the rhyme. Let them identify sounds that
rhyme the same. Ask them to give you words with the same rhyming sound.
Write the words on word cards. Underline the rhyming sounds and letters.
You can write down rhymes with learners with the same beginning sound and
spelling or same ending sound. It is easier for children to identify beginning
and ending sounds better than middle sounds. More rhymes with same family
words can be created by children together with the teacher. Children enjoy
the process of creating poems and rhymes and learn to appreciate the well-
chosen words that make up the poems and rhymes they create (Gunning 2014).
3.10.3.1 Reflection questions
9 AC TIVIT Y
QUESTION 1
Read the following article (Find it under Additional Resources on myUnisa):
Emergent reading comprehension: Social imagination and kindergarteners’
readings of a wordless picture book.
Read the following article and answer the questions below:

Lysaker, J.T, Shaw, K. and Arvelo-Alicia, Z. (2016) Emergent reading comprehension:
Social imagination and kindergarteners’ readings of a wordless picture book.
Australian Journal of language and literacy, vol. 39 (3): 245–255.
(1) What is your understanding of social imagination?
(2) Why do the authors say that children ‘put ideas’ into the heads of characters
in making meaning of the picture books?
(3) Do you agree with the authors about the power of social imagination as an
enabler to children to unlock the meaning contained in the text?
(4) Describe Amber and Scott’s reading capability in the article?. How can you
help them?
(5) Describe Hunter and James’ reading capability. What makes their
understanding of the text to be termed as high?
QUESTION 2
Give your children picture books or storybooks with pictures. Observe them as
they read. Choose two of them to perform the following tasks.
•• Let them retell you the story, observe techniques they use to decode
the story.
•• Note their ability of handling the book.
•• Note their ability of reading from left to right.
•• Note their ability to use punctuation marks – or to know their meaning?
•• Is the storyline they give to pictures/storybook plausible?
Write a narrative of the process of each of the two children took in decoding the
meaning of the stories (picture books or story books with pictures).
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3.11 CONCLUSION
This unit dealt with the importance of emergent reading as a cornerstone for
formal reading and literacy development. Different approaches and strategies
one can use to promote emergent reading are explained with examples.
Emergent reading is not confined to the classroom context, but happens even
outside the classroom. The family is regarded as the primary education milieu
the child is born into. Most of the basic skills such as reading and writing start
right in the home. It is therefore important for teachers to advise parents on
how to promote these essential skills that are imperative in promoting formal
reading and writing.
3.12 SELF-ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS

•• Define emergent reading in your own words?
•• Are you in a position to create the environment conducive for reading in
your class? Give two examples on how to create the conducive environment
for emergent reading.
•• Explain two approaches for promoting emergent reading. Use examples
from own context.
•• Explain three signals that indicates that the child’s emergent reading is
unfolding.
•• Share with a colleague three things that you think are important to tell
parents on how to promote emergent reading.
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4 STUDY UNIT 4
4 Emergent writing

The aim of this unit is to provide you with knowledge about the development
of writing for young children. As a student teacher, it is important that you
understand the process by which children learn to write and interpret their
mock writings so that you are able to guide them towards the mastery of
writing skills.
The following outcomes will enable you to demonstrate that you have gained
knowledge about the development of children’s writing and that you have
the skill to apply your knowledge with precision in your classroom teaching.
LEARNING OUTCOMES
•• Explain the meaning of emergent writing.
•• List conditions that are basic to children’s writing abilities.
•• Outline the different stages of writing that children go through.
•• Create an environment conducive to the development of children’s writing.
•• Design activities that will involve children in writing.
•• Design activities that will develop children’s writing skills.
4.1 INTRODUCTION
The previous Unit 3 provided you with detailed information about emergent
reading and how you can teach young children to read. This unit on emergent
writing builds on lessons learnt about reading, but focuses on the writing
process. Emergent writing is the process through which young children develop
conventional writing skills, is a key aspect of the curriculum of the language
subject. Although the focus is on the pre-schooler, the toddler who is under
the age of 5 years is also studied to enable you to see progression in the
development of writing skills.
You will realise as you read through this unit that emergent writing is closely
related to emergent reading and that they are learned simultaneously. You
will also realise that the mastery of one influences the mastery of the other in
the same way as listening influences speaking. The development of both the
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S T U DY U N I T 4: Em e r g e nt w r i t i n g
skills of reading and writing is age-related and the successful achievement of

one means the successful achievement of the other.
The case study below is intended to set the context and to make the meaning
of emergent writing more concrete. The definitions and explanations that follow
provide further clarification about emergent writing as a concept and how it
differs from conventional writing.
When you studied the strategies and techniques for the development of reading
skills in Unit 3, you learned that there were certain skills that children had
to acquire that served as prerequisites for the development of reading. There
should be for instance, evidence of phonological awareness, a representative
vocabulary and evidence that the children are aware of print.
In the case of emergent writing too, certain competences must be displayed

prior to the development of writing in the same manner as in emergent reading.
A child cannot write what is spoken if he or she does not hear what is said
(phonology), or does not have a variety of words to express himself or herself
on paper (vocabulary) or does not know that writing is a representation of
speaking (print awareness).
Emergent writing is a process that unfolds gradually and each stage has its
characteristics. These will be discussed followed by stages in the learning of
spelling since writing is all about spelling too. The role of the teacher in guiding
children through the developmental stages of writing is discussed last and is
very important.
Please read the following case study to see emergent writing in context:
CASE STUDY 1
Tommy’s mother, Mrs Smith, is writing a list to buy groceries and Tommy asks for
pen and paper from his mother’s writing pad to write his. After “compiling” the “list”,
the three year old Tommy holds up the paper with scribbles for his mother to read:
(see Figure 1 below).
Mother: Oh good Tommy! You’ve written your shopping list, please read it to me
while I finish writing my grocery list.
Tommy: No, you read it!
Mother: I prefer that you read it.
Tommy: (getting irritated) I want you to read it!
Mother: This is your list; I may miss out some of the items you want if I read it.
Tommy: (grabs the paper from his mother with a loud sigh). Ok! It says “Bring
chocolate from the shop”.
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Tommy’s grocery list
The picture below illustrates the scribbles made by children in early years:
Meaning of the scribbles: “Bring chocolate from the shop”.
In order for you to understand case study 1, the ‘conversation’ between Tommy
and his mother, you need to know the meaning of “emergent writing” and the
stages in the development of writing.
4.2 DEFINITION OF EMERGENT WRITING

The following definitions will help you grasp the meaning of emergent writing
and enable you to discuss its manifestation with more clarity.
•• Emergent writing is an indication that young children begin to understand
that writing is a form of communication and that their marks on paper
convey a message (Lonigan, P & Kim 2011)
•• Emergent writing refers to a broad set of skills and attitudes that serve as
foundational skills for acquiring success in later reading and writing (Puranik
and Lonigan 2007)
Having read the two definitions above, it can be said that emergent writing
refers to a developmental writing process in which children randomly scribble
and draw and then assign “meaning” to the scribbles and drawings. To them
there is no difference between writing and drawing. Tommy’s example in
case study 1 is associated with children under the age of five years. These
children believe that their ‘writing’ is understood by adults in the same way
they understand what they have ‘written’. They are able to ‘read’ their ‘message’
closely the same way more than once.
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By the time children reach the age of 5 years, they are able to write some
letters of the alphabet, especially those that form part of their names. There
are, however, certain prerequisites that children must have before they reach
the stage of writing some alphabets.
4.3 PREREQUISITES FOR THE ACQUISITION OF WRITING SKILLS

In the development of conventional writing, certain requirements are necessary
if children have to produce well-written texts. The writer must first think about
what to write about the given topic. This is referred to as ‘the pre-writing stage’.
In the next stage, ‘the writing stage’, the writer considers how to arrange the
conceived ideas in a coherent form. The following stage referred to as ‘the
revision stage’ is about revision of the written text. Finally, the written work is
checked for possible errors or omissions. This is called ‘the editing stage’. In the
case of young children however, this process is completely different because
the skill of writing is not yet existent. Prerequisites for emergent writing involve
the children’s physical development, their language or cognitive development
and the children’s artistic development.
4.3.1 Physical development and writing skills

Physical development, also known as motor development, refers to the child’s
gross motor and fine motor development. Eye-hand coordination also forms
part of physical development since it involves movement. All these skills
affect other areas of development including the development of writing skills.
Basic motor skills like different body movements including learning to walk
develop from birth and by the age of 5 or 6 years, most of the motor growth
is accomplished.
Large muscle development or gross motor development occurs first and is

refined before small muscle development or fine motor development can
develop. Eye-hand coordination is achieved last as the young child develops
physically. Children’s ability to climb trees and to crawl under tyres shows
evidence of their spatial awareness and body control referred to as dexterity.
A dexterous child is one who can control his or her body effectively.
Fine motor development is achieved when children are able to control their
small muscles such as the movement of fingers. The ability to control the thumb
and fingers simultaneously is referred to as prehension. Examples of the child’s
ability to look at a picture and colour within the lines of the drawing and the
child’s ability to throw a ball into a basket means that eye-hand coordination
is developed.
Teachers of young children teach specific activities to facilitate the development

of gross motor, fine motor development, and eye-hand coordination because
these skills are used in the process of writing.
4.3.1.1 Activities for motor development

The development of gross motor skills is promoted through activities that
involve movement of the entire body or of large parts of the body. Typical
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activities for very young children include rolling, creeping and crawling as
examples. The activities assist young children to be aware of and manipulate
their bodies. In the process of manipulating their bodies, children gain spatial
awareness. Children between the ages of 3 and 5 years, enjoy climbing trees,
hopping, and throwing a ball to another child. These activities provide children
with the opportunities to figure out how to act in given spaces, and how to
avoid possibilities of hurting themselves.
Implication for emergent writing: Some aspects of gross motor development

have implications for emergent writing. For instance, spatial awareness will help
children to position themselves correctly at the desk in order write properly.
Throwing a ball will improve their eye-hand coordination which is required
when they colour in pictures or making scribbles.
In order to develop fine motor skills, children need to be exposed to activities

such as cutting with scissors, tying shoe laces, or threading beads. Small muscles
of the body such as those in hands, fingers and toes need to be developed to
increase the child’s dexterity. Grasping, holding, and turning, are also important
skills that need development. Fine motor skills, also allow children to button
their clothes and to pull their zippers.
Implications for emergent writing: The development of fine motor skills is

closely linked to writing ability. For a child to hold a pencil for writing correctly
requires developed fingers and thumb so that a pen can be clutched. Children
will also acquire writing skills easier if they have mastered activities such as
turning the lid of a bottle. This is particularly the case with drawing.
4.3.1.2 Eye-hand coordination

Eye-hand coordination, also known as perceptual motor, begins in infancy
when a baby manipulates an object. In the process, the baby’s thumb and fore
finger are trained to grab or clutch the object. In preschool settings, the block
area, the easel and painting brushes, including inserting pegs into a peg board,
are activities intended to train the child’s eye-hand coordination.
Implications for emergent writing: In order for children to make a mark with
a writing implement, they need to have the thumb and finger strength to hold
the implement, the ability to direct the writing object where they want to and
the strength of the hand to allow for the movement. This calls for eye-hand
coordination which must be continuously developed throughout childhood.
4.4 COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT AND EMERGENT WRITING

Language is an important aspect of cognitive development and is acquired
from infancy in a linear process. You will remember that at the beginning
of this unit, I indicated that writing is closely related to reading and that the
mastery of these two skills is mutually influential. Sometimes it is difficult to
talk about the one without referring to the other.
Cognitive processes such as phonological awareness, print awareness and

growth of vocabulary that are discussed in Unit 1 and in more detail in Unit 3
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(Emergent reading) are for instance, applicable in writing but will be discussed
from a different angle. Children must go through these processes in order to
speak, read and to write.
4.4.1 Conceptual knowledge and emergent writing

Before children can write, they need to know writing as a concept. This means
they must know what writing means and understand how printed language
works. Firstly, they must know the purpose of print. In other words they
must understand that print carries meaning, that is, it relates or reports about
something. They must also understand that communication is not only verbal; it
can be represented in print. In the writing process (in reading as well), nursery
and preschool teachers show young children that writing begins from left to
write and from the top of the page to the bottom.
Implications for emergent writing: Generally nursery and preschool children

should not be taught to read and write. However, they must be made aware
of the process of reading and writing. There are, of course, exceptions where
a child shows ability and interest to try reading and writing and this must be
supported. Teachers must point to the writing at the bottom of a picture as
they read to children to show them that there is a relationship between the
picture and the writing. Children’s attention must be drawn to the letters in
the emblem or billboard when they ‘read’ incidentally.
4.4.2 Procedural knowledge

There are a number of steps or procedures followed in the process of writing that
children must be put through before they can learn to write in the conventional
way. Firstly, they must be exposed to print as it happens in storytelling. They
must understand the purpose of writing as explained before. The second step
is to introduce them to the letters as symbols used for writing. In other words
they must know letters of the alphabet especially those first letters of their
names. This is a good strategy to help children identify the letters and gives
them training to write the letters. The next step is to help them learn the sounds
of the alphabet letters. Children’s ability to identify letters has been shown to
be a good predictor of conventional writing skills.
4.4.3 Implications for emergent writing

Children’s knowledge of the alphabet, that is knowledge of the alphabet letters
and knowledge of the forms that represent alphabets, is an important emergent
writing skill. Furthermore, knowing the sounds of the different letters of the
alphabet is an indication that the skill of writing is at its beginning. You will
realise that preschool teachers follow this procedure in order to teach children
how to write. Children first note the relationship between the pictures in the
book and the writing at the bottom, then they learn to sing the ‘ABC’ of the
alphabet; then they know the alphabet forms and finally learn to associate
the sounds with the letters (Graham et al., 1997; Puranik & Al Otaiba, 2012)
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4.5 GENERATIVE KNOWLEDGE

Although children may understand alphabet letters and their sounds, it is
difficult for young children at the preschool level to put the letters together
and form a word. Words and later phrases are skills learned much later in the
primary grades and will not be part of this module.
4.6 ARTISTIC DEVELOPMENT AND EMERGENT WRITING

It may seem farfetched to consider children’s art work a part of writing. The
reason that it is associated with writing is because it can serve as medium for
communication. In fact, historically, some nations drew sketches that carried
meanings. With regard to young children, art is seen as part of writing and
children do not see how it differs from writing. Children’s spontaneous tendency
to make markings that include drawings is regarded as the beginning of writing.
4.6.1 Implications for emergent writing

Researchers who specialise in children’s language development believe that a
child who does not show interest in drawing or who struggles to put any images
on paper may also experience difficulty in writing. The reason that art is part
of the curriculum of the nursery and preschool shows how important art is for
the development of literacy. In addition, art activities help in the development
of children’s fine motor skills which in turn are a prerequisite for writing.
4.7 STAGES OF EMERGENT WRITING

Writing is a linear process that takes place gradually. When children are given
the chance to interact with books and other written materials, they tend to
notice that the written text is related to the stories that were read to them and
to communication with others. As they develop, they begin to experiment
with writing implements such as pencils, crayons, painting, brushes and even
use sticks to ‘write’ on the sand. The process of writing does not occur in the
same way to all children. Some children can show evidence of being at two
developmental stages at the same time, while others can be strictly at one stage.
It is important to point out that the process of learning to write like other aspects
of development, proceeds from general to specific. You will remember earlier
in this unit (4.4.1) that we indicated that the development of the gross motor
(broad development) happens before that of fine motor (specific development).
In the case of writing the developmental process is the same, development

is a linear process. Children first see the whole pattern (lines across a page)
and only later can they identify separate words and finally letters. They are at
the “emergent stage” in learning to write. This development occurs from the
child’s own observations, and not from being taught. Children seem to figure
out that the writing system is arranged in rows across a page, that it consists
of different patterns of markings and connected lines, repeated over and over.
This explains why children fill pages of scribbled lines repeatedly from top to
bottom as if they are practicing to accomplish a writing task.
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The writing stages may be represented differently by different researchers, but

all the stages show some form of logical progression. First, the scribbles are big
and without form but gradually as the child grows the ‘writing’ also changes to
become more legible and meaningful. The drawings are general sketches of a
person with a big head and arms and legs drawn from the chest as in Figure 3.
Commonly there are four stages of writing development that children go

through from 18 months to three years. Please note that the stages are an
approximation and that some children may master these skills faster or slower
and still be within the correct stage of development.
The developmental stages of writing that follows is based on the work of the
organisation “Zero to three–early connections last a lifetime” taken from the
internet. https://www.zerotothree.org/

Stage 2: Controlled scribbling
Stage 3: Pictures of objects and people interspersed with writing marks.
Stage 4: Letter and word practice

Children’s attempt at writing starts with scribbles that do not resemble adult
writing in any way. As soon as children can hold a pencil (pencil held like
forming a fist) and realised that it can be used, they begin making marks
everywhere – on paper, on the floor, on the walls or any surface that can
make visible marks. Scribbling looks like random types of marks on a child’s
paper. They may be large, different shapes and resemble drawings more than
writing. The markings have no specific shape or obvious meaning and do not
resemble conventional writing. Although the marks do not resemble print, they
are significant because the young child uses them to show ideas. Children think
adults can read the scribbles since they have realised that adults can read.
According to researchers, children in the scribbling stage (both uncontrolled and

controlled) are around 18 months to four years. Children derive pleasure from
making these markings on surfaces especially when encouraged by parents.
This initial stage of writing is referred to as uncontrolled scribbling. Most adults
do not realise that this is the beginning of children’s writing and reprimand
children harshly for making marks everywhere. It is said that all children in
the world go through the same process of learning to write. Initially when they
scribble, they use their arm muscles and the scribbles are clumsy and big.
Stage 2: Controlled scribbling (2 to 3½ years)

As children’s fine motor development increases, their scribbles take a different
form and they move to the next stage. They are able to adopt a more mature grip
of the pencil or crayon using the thumb, the index finger and the middle fingers.
Their scribbles take on a different form referred to as controlled scribbling.
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Children tend to concentrate on a specific form they have mastered. Some

children like scribbles that look like circles, while others like ovals or crosses
or rectangular scribbling often made one on top of the other. This is not a
futile exercise it is the child’s practice to master structures that are close to
the alphabet.
Look at Figure 4.1 as an example of this stage
FIGURE 4.1: Melo’s message
The scribbles mean: “I love my mummy”.
With more practice children soon understand that writing is made of lines,
patterns and curves. They try to imitate by producing markings and patterns
that may resemble letters of the alphabet but they are not. They also realise that
they are able to control their hands when writing and attempt drawing. The
pictures they draw usually are about themselves or close family members. The
human structures they draw are represented by a large circular form with lines
extending from the chest outward. With time, children’s fine motor muscles
develop and they are able to hold the crayon or pencil between their thumb
and pointer finger.
Stage 3: Pictures of objects or people

Before children can view pictures in the same way as adults, they cannot
differentiate between drawings and written text. At this stage they become
aware that pictures are different from writings and make drawings of people,
animals and objects. They then attempt to write the names of objects below
their pictures which of course are not conventional alphabets.
Their drawings later contain more detail and are coloured with the child’s
favourite colour. You may notice the drawing of the yellow sun shown by a
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skew circle with straight lines representing the sun rays. The picture of a human,
becomes more recognisable and may eventually evolve into something like
an oval headed ‘person’ with eyes and mouth, lines of hair sticking up from
the top of the oval shape, arm lines sticking out from either side, and two leg
lines sticking down from the bottom of the oval. Balls at the ends of the lines
represent hands and feet.
The drawings are accompanied by strings of letters that indicate that children
are beginning to realise that the pictures in their storybooks have something to
tell. Most of the letters are written in capitals and do not have spacing. There
is evidence that children have become aware of letter sounds. See Figure 3.
FIGURE 4.2: The family
The string scribble means: “I love my mummy and my daddy”. In this picture
4 year old Lerato shows herself, her mother, and her father. The drawing on
the bottom left is a car.
Stage 4: Letter and word practice (4 to 5 years)

By this stage children have gathered experience with the use of paper and
crayons or pencils and are ready to begin writing in the formal way. The letters
they practice are usually those of their names and some names of family
members since they see them all the time and are familiar with them. They
may also create own ‘letters’ and pretend to be reading them. They expect
adults to read and understand the letters in the same way they do.
During this time, children also begin to understand that words are made of
symbols and may try to sound the letters. As a result, their scribbles may
change to ‘self-created words’ and ‘self-created spelling’. While these ‘letters’
and ‘words’ are probably not correct, it does not matter. This exciting milestone
means that your child is beginning to understand that text and print have
meaning and that one can communicate via writing or can just make drawings
about things they like. This stage is closely related to next writing phase which
traces the development of spelling.
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FIGURE 4.3: Molefe’s mother
In the picture above is Molefe who is 6 years old and her mother, Ellen
At the top in a yellow colour is an illustration of the sun. There is also a

picture of a house and a dog. The colouring in the picture is remarkable and
appropriate. This drawing is an indication that the child can separate drawings
from writing.
FIGURE 4.4: A letter to Santa

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Figure 4.4 is 6 year old Lesey’s letter to Santa requesting Christmas presents
Top right is Santa. The child has mastered capitals letters, spacing between
words, the concept of writing a letter (addressed to Santa and bottom: from
Lesey) and number of correctly spelled words with some still in the phonetic
stage. The items in the letter include:
Dear Santa:
Lego jungle; Hot wheels; Lego Ninjago Master of time; Lego Batman;
1st sentence: Lego car it is going to be black car vs the Red car.
2nd sentence: Lego Wolverine vs Magnito with the cars.
From Lesey
4.8 THE DEVELOPMENT OF SPELLING

When children are at the fourth stage of writing, they still do not have the
complete knowledge about writing and spelling. Although they have mastered
directionality in writing, their concept of a word is still fuzzy and they still use
pictures to substitute letters. They are still learning how letters are put together
to form a word. They may still mix the order of letters in their names or write
some letters in reverse or upside down. Later they begin to note that there
are rules that govern the writing of words, in other words, there are rules for
spelling words. This realisation was achieved through a process.
4.8.1 Phases in the development of spelling

It is important for you as a student teacher, to be reminded that writing and
reading are two sides of the same coin in the same way that listening and
speaking are related. Factors that promote the acquisition of reading skills are
the same as for acquiring ability to spell. These include phonological awareness,
print awareness, and alphabet knowledge.
Mastering spelling, like acquiring writing skills, comes about as the result of a
process that unfolds systematically. The phases are discernible beginning with
the basic forms and culminating in conventional forms.
Phase 1: Pre-communicative phase

Children in the pre-communicative or pre-phonemic phase become aware
that speech can be captured on paper. They know that, for instance, they can
write a letter to someone but do not have a good understanding of sounding
letters in order to spell them. They then resort to representing part of their
messages with pictures and other symbols. Their drawings later develop into
lines and letter like symbols. The children can pretend to ‘write’ a letter using
non-existent spelling that is interspersed with numbers. This is the beginning
of their attempt at spelling.
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Phase 2: The phonemic phase

In this phase, children use their phonological knowledge to decide which
alphabet to use in spelling a word. Some can sound out the different parts of
a word fairly well although they may not spell the word correctly. For instance
‘ant’ may be spelled as ‘ent’ because the ‘a’ of apple sounds the same ‘e’ of
elephant. This developmental spelling is referred to as ‘invented spelling’.
Other examples include the following:
•• Tig (dig). The ‘t’ and the ‘d’ sound almost similar.
•• Amty (empty). The ‘a’ and ‘e’ sound same and the ‘p’ is silent.
•• Um (arm). The beginning sounds ‘u’ and ‘ar’ sound the same.
In the given examples children figured out that the word starts with a vowel
and decided which vowel to use.
Sometimes the spelling consists of alphabets only as in the following examples:

•• Brd (bread). The sound of the consonants is louder than that of the
vowels
•• Trn (train). The same reasoning as above pertains.
•• Wnt (want). The ‘w’ sounds as if it has a vowel.
In the examples that follow children spell words based on the sounds of the
letters they hear and omitting those that are not very audible. Examples include:
•• Lik (like). The ‘e’ at the end is not audible.
•• Comi (coming). The nasal sound is omitted.
•• Puk (park). The ‘u’ and ‘ar’ sound the same.
•• Jum (jump). The ‘p’ in the word is not very audible.
Examining both the given examples, it could be said that learning to spell is
determined by children’s ability to articulate well and to clearly hear segments
of a word.
Phase 3: The transitional phase

Children’s spelling in this phase is readable and approaches conventional
spelling. The children’s messages include consonants and vowels and most
words are spelled correctly. In their attempt to write a message, some of the
bigger words used may reflect the phonemic phase. A word such as ‘people’
may be spelled ’pipl’. The ‘e’ is mistaken for ‘i’ as in ‘ink’ and the last ‘e’ is
not audible.
One important development during this phase is that children become aware
that in a sentence, words are separated. Some children mark the space by using
the thumb of the other hand while others estimate an appropriate distance
from the last word which may result in large unequal spaces between letters.
Figure 5: A letter to Santa above is a good example.
Some of the children who reach this phase are six years of age and ready for
the first Grade 1. Please remember not to force children to reach this phase in
the preschool unless they show mastery of spelling from training elsewhere.
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4.9 CHARACTERISTICS OF CHILDREN WITH EMERGENT WRITING

SKILLS
The behaviour of nursery and preschool children in the learning environment
can indicate whether they are in the emergent writing phase or not. In the
first place their interest in making marks on paper is a sign of the beginning of
writing. Emergent writing is characterized by playful markings to communicate
something which signals the children’s knowledge of the uses of written
language before formal learning starts. Children also show the following
characteristics:
•• Demonstrates understanding that written language carries meaning by
‘reading’ their scribbles and expecting adults to respond to them the same
way as they do.
•• Realize that writing is always connected to reading by performing the
activities together.
•• Realize what letters are, even if they cannot differentiate between all 26.
•• Recognises some letters in the environment such as “Wimpy” or “Coca Cola”.
•• Turns pages of their book as if to ‘read’ on the next page.
•• Scribbles across a page in a linear fashion.
•• Scribbles in straight vertical lines that are closer to some conventional
alphabet letters.
•• Make letter-like scribbles along with pictures.
•• Starts scribbling from top of the page and from left to right.
•• Can identify some letters especially those in their names.
•• Prints some letters usually those of their names some of the letters reversed.
•• Use picture as major emphasis.
•• Spelling reflects semi-phonetic and may have simple short words correctly
spelled.
•• May write their names.
•• Produces writing that may be difficult to read.
•• Enjoy reading their writing.
4.10 THE ROLE OF THE TEACHER

The success of learning depends on the expertise of a teacher. A knowledgeable
teacher with skills to impart knowledge is the key to promoting emergent writing.
4.10.1 The teacher’s knowledge

The first and most important thing about teachers’ role is their knowledge of
the content that is offered to children. In the case of emergent literacy, the
need to have a broad and deep understanding of emergent speech, emergent
reading and of emergent writing is basic to all teaching. A lack of content
knowledge will limit the teacher’s ability to guide children to progress from
the emerging phase to full literacy.
When teachers are unfamiliar with current knowledge about the natural
development of literacy in young children, they expect and force children
to learn in a formal way and to achieve tasks that are beyond their mental
capacity. For example, they may compel four to five year olds to read and write
in the conventional way. Such action may be stressful to these children and
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may destroy their natural creativity in learning to read and write. It is therefore
imperative that teachers master the content before they can play their role as
leaders in the teaching of literacy.
4.10.2 The teacher as a leader

Parents, the community and departments of education entrust the development
of their children’s literacy in the capable hands of a teacher who has the
ability to lead their children to successful learning. The question is, ‘What do
teachers with leadership skills do to guide children through to their acquisition
of reading and writing skills?’
Teachers’ focus on the process of acquisition: Teachers should focus on the

children’s efforts of writing and not on the result: Instead of paying attention to
what children do not know about writing, teachers with leadership skills must
pay more attention to the stage where children are at in terms of their writing.
They must be able to lead the children and urge them to develop in their
own natural way. This means the teachers should note the child’s personality
(shy children may not catch up with other children because they are wary of
failure) and approach the child in an appropriate manner.
Firstly, the teacher can praise what the child has drawn or scribbled by saying:
‘What a lovely drawing! What is it?’ In order to urge the child further the teacher
may say: ’Please draw another picture’. A teacher with leadership skills will
not admonish the child for painting the grass purple and insist that it has to be
painted green because he or she knows that with time the child will self-correct.
In the case of scribble, the teacher may say: ‘I see you have written a lot! What
does it say here?” (pointing to some of the scribbles). The child may ‘read’ what
he or she has written briefly but the teacher can point to more scribbling and
say: ‘What about this writing here?’ In this way children are coaxed to write
more and learn more.
Good leadership allows for children’s creativity: It is important to allow children

to experiment and explore and not dictate to them all the time. Creativity gives
children the power to express themselves in their own way. Toddlers need the
opportunity to grow, to feel confident, competent, and clever. By encouraging,
observing, and taking pleasure in the creation of your toddler class, you are
providing all the guidance they need.
The ability to lead encourages children to create their own knowledge about
writing by extracting the information from the writing they see around them.
The teachers know that they should not teach formal writing to young preschool
children. They should observe children’s attempts and support them by providing
a lot of opportunities for their writing such as writing grocery lists, writing to
Santa, writing a story and so on. Usually such teachers also display good traits
such as the ability to reflect on what successes or failures they have made.
4.10.3 The reflective teacher

A reflective teacher is one who is thoughtful, insightful and serious about
achieving the goals he or she has set. In the event that children are not keen to
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write or draw, reflective teachers use a variety of strategies to build children’s

love for writing. Some of the strategies include the following:
The use of play: Play is a good strategy to make children do what they are
not interested in doing when it is part of the language learning slot. Play is
spontaneous and part of the natural way of children’s learning. Good reflective
teachers make play a regular part of learning. One way of doing this is to create
a game that involves a competition of running to different stations and ultimately
reaching the last and winning. The title of the stations and the ‘allocation of
points ’should be ’written’ by children. The teacher could provide paper and
thick crayons for the children to use. The teachers could be the referee and
ensure that all the children can get the chance to write and record.
The use of art: Some children are not keen to draw. Art can be used to
encourage writing and drawing because young children do not differentiate
between the two. Good teachers are careful not to dictate to children about
what they must do. They select age appropriate materials and activities. For
instance, teachers can provide very thick crayons and paintbrushes and paper
to very young children whose fine motors muscles are not weak and use
adhesive to stick the paper on the table. Five-year olds for instance, could be
given thinner crayons because they may be more agile. They may be asked
to work at the easel or on paper. Those children that the teacher realised are
not willing to draw, could be asked to draw something that makes them laugh
to make the whole exercise fun.
Display children’s art and writing: Reflective teachers know that some children
have a low self-esteem and will always say ‘I can’t’ when asked to draw or
write. One way of showing such children that their work is appreciated is to
display what they have drawn or written. A string could be attached to two
opposite wall and the art work of children displayed there. In this way children
get to note that their work is appreciated and recognised. The teacher could
further talk to the mother or adult who has come to fetch the child about ‘the
good work’ that the child has done in the presence of the child.
4.11 CONCLUSION
This unit introduced you to the development of children’s writing skills and
focused on emergent writing skills. It is important for you to understand the
meaning of ‘emergent writing’ and be able to put it in your own words. As a
student teacher of the Foundation Phase, you need to know how to promote the
development of writing skills in an appropriate manner and also understand the
different stages that children go through so that you can guide them successfully.

•• Explain the meaning of emergent writing.
•• List conditions that are basic to children’s writing abilities.
•• Outline the different stages of writing that children go through.
•• Create an environment conducive to the development of children’s writing.
•• Design activities that will involve and develop children’s writing skills.
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Please answer the following questions:

1 What do you understand by the concept ‘emergent writing’?
2 Discuss conditions or prerequisites for the development of emergent
writing.
3 List the stages of the development of writing skills and discuss any one
in detail.
4 How can you create a conducive environment for the development of
writing skills?
5 Explain two strategies that a teacher with good leadership skills can do to
assist children who are unwilling to learn to write and draw.
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5 STUDY UNIT 5
5 Assessment of preschool children

In this unit we aim to teach you to understand what assessment is and how to
assess young children. In order for you to have a clear understanding of the
concept, we differentiate it from ‘evaluation’ since the two are often confused.
It is important for you as a teacher of young children to know how to measure
children’s growth and progress in learning, without jeopardising their interest
and ability to learn further. This can be done by setting feasible and achievable
objectives.
LEARNING OUTCOMES
At the end of this unit you should be able to:
•• Define in your own words the meaning of assessment.
•• Differentiate between assessment and evaluation.
•• Explain why preschool children need to be assessed.
•• Describe different tools for assessing preschool children.
•• Discuss challenges associated with preschool assessment.
5.1 INTRODUCTION
In the previous units we discussed how children acquired basic skills for
learning. The focus was on establishing how listening and speaking skills
emerged and how children pass through the different stages of the development.
We also learned how aspects of speech such as phonology and morphemes
were related to emergent reading and how both are intertwined with emergent
writing. As an aspirant Foundation Phase teacher, you are expected to know
that your expertise, your leadership skills and your ability to reflect on the
successes and challenges of your teaching, are crucial to children’s ability to
acquire listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills.
This unit is about the nature of assessment in early learning and how to assess
or measure children’s listening, speaking, reading and writing skills. These four
aspects of language are referred to as the “language arts” or simply ‘language
forms”. In the previous four units discussions included young children under
the age of 5 years as well. In this unit attention is mainly on Grade R children
because they are on the verge of entering formal learning.
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It is important for Grade R teachers to know to what extent children have

acquired the four competencies referred to above so as to support them.
Assessment results should be used to inform the teacher at the next level about
the strengths and weaknesses of individual children. In order to assess children
effectively, you need to understand what assessment means, why you need
to assess children, which age appropriate strategies to use and how to apply
those strategies effectively.
An example of a Foundation Phase teacher assessing her learners
https://www.shutterstock.com/es/image-photo/teacher-pupils-using-wooden -shapes-
montessori-641754352?src=9N8RhboKTHEt4LPaqjJ-fA-1-12: Accessed 13 November,
2017
5.2 WHAT IS ASSESSMENT?

There are various ways of defining or explaining what assessment is. For our
purpose, we refer to educational assessment. The following are some examples:
•• Educational assessment is the systematic process of recording learners’
observed activities with regard to their knowledge, skills, and attitudes
in order to promote their learning (Zapmeta kipedia.org/wiki/Educational
assessment: Accessed 17.10.2017).
•• Assessment is the process of observing, describing, collecting, recording,
scoring, and interpreting information about children’s development and
learning.
•• It is also the process of defining, selecting, designing, analysing, interpreting,
and using information to increase children’s development.
•• Assessment is an authentic process that reflects the actual learning and
instructional activities of the classroom and nursery (Morrow 2012).
There is a close relationship between assessment and evaluation although some

people use the concepts interchangeably. Knowing the difference will help you
choose the appropriate measure for the specific activity you are dealing with.
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S T U DY U N I T 5: A ss e ssm e nt o f p r e s c h o o l c h i l d r e n
5.3 WHAT IS EVALUATION?
https://www.shutterstock.com/image-vector/business-hand-give-five-star-positive-
535774312?src=HXTcQhtzFCD4-yG0M9CKcQ-1-88: Accessed: 23 October, 2017
Assessment is closely related to evaluation since both are about measurement

either in a learning environment or outside the classroom. They both happen
as a process but are slightly different.
•• Evaluation is a judgement by teachers, children, parents, administrators,
and the community as to whether instructional goals have been met. It
is a process that students can follow to get control of their own learning
(Gunning 2005).
•• According to Gordon and Browne (1993) evaluation is a process that judges
whether certain standards have been met.
•• Evaluation determines the degree to which expectations are met. Classroom
organisation may be evaluated by mapping the size of the classroom, the
daily schedule, and available materials for learning.
Briefly stated, assessment is usually directed at measuring what learners know,

that is their knowledge, or whether they have acquired certain learning skills.
Evaluation on the other hand involves establishing, for instance, whether a
set standard of learning has been achieved. For instance, the set standard of a
reading programme could be that children will read fluently with understanding
and observe punctuation marks correctly within the first quarter of the school
calendar.
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After the first quarter, the evaluation of the reading programme will check:
whether the majority of children read fluently, whether they pause at a full
stop, and whether they understand what they are reading. If the children do
not show evidence of mastering the set standard, the reading programme
could be discontinued.
Please read the following two case studies to see whether you understood the
difference between assessment and evaluation.
5.3.1 Difference between assessment and evaluation

CASE STUDY 1
Mrs Smith is a teacher at a school-based preschool. She is standing next to the

creative area of the class with a notebook in hand and is listening to a conversation
between two little girls, Mpho and Nazima playing ‘house’. Both the 5 year old girls
are ‘mothers’ who are complaining about their babies’ (dolls) poor appetite:
Mpho: Nazima, my baby is not eating well
Nazima: Mine too
Mpho: He prefers mashed fruit but will not eat his cereal
Nazima: Mine too
Mpho: Which cereal does your baby like?
Nazima: What is cereal?
CASE STUDY 2
Mrs Molefe, a Grade 1 teacher is holding a meeting with her Head of Department
(HOD), Mr Grootboom about her class performance:
Mr Grootboom: How does your present group of children compare with those of
last year?
Mrs Molefe: It is only the beginning of the year but I am really impressed with their
knowledge of phonetics. Many of them can identify different alphabets, know how
to sound out a word and they can spell many words correctly.
Mr Grootboom: How is their mathematics?
Mrs Molefe: Equally good. They can count up to 20 and can tell which number is
bigger than the other.
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Mr Grootboom: I think you will say the same about their general knowledge. Which
preschool were they at, and what curriculum did they follow?
Mrs Molefe: They come from “Sunshine Preschool” which follows the “Headstart”
curriculum.
Mr Grootboom: I’m going to advise my sister to take her children there.
Case studies 1 and 2 are practical examples of assessment and evaluation

aimed at clarifying the difference between the two concepts.
Can you answer the following two questions based on the two case studies?
•• After reading case study 1 can you indicate which measurement process
the teacher used when observing the two 5 year olds?
Please substantiate your answer.
•• In case study 2 what measurement process was the teacher and the HoD
engaged in when talking about the performance of the class?
Please substantiate your answer.
Assessment is vital because it influences decisions about planning activities,

selecting relevant materials or adopting an approach for teaching the activity.
It can also be used by educational psychologists to determine children’s school
readiness, identify children’s traits such as intelligence, emotional state or any
form of disability. For our purpose we focus on assessment in the classroom
and in the nursery.
5.4 ASSESSMENT IN THE CLASSROOM

In Unit 1, we indicated that part of the purpose of the Emergent Literacy
module is to teach you how to assess learners’ knowledge about what they
learned and to evaluate whether the lesson you taught achieved the aim you
envisioned. In this unit we elaborate on that point and outline the purpose of
assessment in more detail.
Assessment is closely related to classroom instruction and in some instances is

intertwined with instruction. For instance, a teacher can plan to ask questions
at the end of an activity, for example, after listening to a story. The teacher
can also pause in the middle of instruction such as painting to check if all the
children understand what they are expected to do. The purpose of assessment
in the classroom or nursery is to assist the teacher and practitioner to:
•• Determine how well the children are learning so as to improve teaching.
•• Establish which aspects of a child’s development seem to lag behind so as
to focus more on them.
•• Identify children who do not perform well because of a disability or some
condition such as hearing and to plan intervention strategy.
•• Identify children’s weaknesses and establish who may need remedial help
or additional support to learn successfully.
•• Continuously measure children’s performances using appropriate forms of
assessment to establish if performance is aligned to theoretical frameworks
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related to learning such as language theories, cognitive theories or social

development theories.
•• Establish if the set national standards like those in the ‘Curriculum and
Assessment Policy Statement’ (CAPS) of South Africa are reached and plan
lessons accordingly.
•• Analyse and interpret how well children respond to intervention measures
aimed at improving learning and adjusting teaching for specific children.
Teachers need to take an active role in making decisions about the data or
information gathered from assessment. Fulfilling this role is possible if certain
conditions about assessing children are met.
5.4.1 Conditions for undertaking assessment in the classroom

Before assessment is carried out, teachers need to consider the following
conditions:
•• What to assess and why: Teachers must know what to assess and how it
will be done. If the teacher wants to assess for instance, a pre-schooler’s
fine motor function, she could watch children painting.
•• How many times to assess: Assessment results are more reliable if the same
outcome is reached every time the assessment is carried out.
•• The objectives for undertaking the assessment must be well stated and
achievable.
•• What tools to use for capturing the outcomes of specific aspects assessed.
Assessment data becomes meaningful when captured in specific ways. A
variety of tools are discussed later in this section.
•• What the assessment will be used for so as to adopt the appropriate approach
for assessing. The results can be used for decision-making, for instance,
about planning the lesson. They can also be used as data for an investigation
in research.
•• Very important, what plans you make with the collected data. It could be
for learner support, programme development, or information to parents.
There are different forms of assessment for measuring different competencies.
5.5 FORMS OF ASSESSMENT

Knowledge about the purpose of assessment is vital to both teachers and
children, as discussed earlier. It is, however, most important for teachers to
apply the relevant form of assessment for the achievement of specific learning
tasks. There are two forms of assessment that can be used to attain the outlined
purposes, namely, summative assessment and formative assessment.
5.5.1 Summative assessment

When teachers want to measure how much children know after instruction,
they use summative assessments. This form of assessment is given at the end
of an instructional unit or end of a course in order to determine whether the
set learning goals have been met. This type of assessment usually is in the
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form of a test and it reflects learner scores accumulated over a period of time
after instruction was given and measure learner growth.
Written tests and examinations do not apply to preschool children since they
cannot read or write. However, a standardised test can be used for Grade R
children to determine if they are ready for formal schooling. Read more about
standardised test in the following discussion:
Standardised tests:
•• Require all children to answer the same questions, or a selection of questions
from a common bank of questions in the same way
•• The tests are usually written on a large scale which could be provincial,
national or continental
•• The tests are marked and scored in a specific consistent manner to enable
the authority behind the test to compare the outcomes of individual children
or groups of children
•• The tests are grade specific, in our case it can be school readiness tests
School readiness tests provide information about a child’s development that

will determine whether the child can start formal schooling or not. The school
readiness tests are designed to measure those developmental traits that are
basic to learning in a formal way. They consist of measurement scales that
could include language skills which are needed for classroom interaction
with the teacher and for reading preparedness, physical development, both
gross and fine motor skills which support the child’s body movements in
class and enables writing respectively. The school readiness tests may also
have a scale to measure emotional development to determine if the child is
matured enough to handle the demands of learning. They are not paper and
pencil or written tests because they are designed for preschool children. In
South Africa, the ‘school readiness evaluation for trained testers’ (SETT) is an
example. It is however not compulsory for all children in the country since it
is not standardised for all nationalities.
Summative tests are not recommended for young children even those in the
Foundation Phase because of their shortcomings. Formative assessment is
regarded as a more reliable means of determining children’s performance in
the classroom for a number of reasons.
5.5.2 Formative assessment

The acceptance of formative assessment as a more effective way of measuring
learner performance may have been promoted by the shortcoming identified
in the nature and use of summative assessment. A discussion of formative
assessment explains how. Firstly, we must understand what formative assessment
is.
What is formative assessment?

Formative assessment:
•• Refers to the on-going process children and teachers engage in when they
teach and learn. Unlike summative assessment, which is designed to provide
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immediate feedback about particular learning, formative assessment is a

long term process that goes on between the teacher and learners.
•• Refers to a range of formal and informal teaching activities that teachers
engage in during the learning process in order to improve learners’
achievement.
•• Elicits and interprets performances of the learners in order to make decisions
about what is to be done to promote and support learning. Formative
assessment dictates what action to take in the event of poor learning
outcomes.
•• Consists of a wide range of methods that teachers use to measure learner
performance.
•• Continuously measure learners’ mastery of learning activities and skills and
pursues actions that will lead to the attainment of learning goals.
•• Frequently evaluates children’s behaviour, their development and their
learning over time in order to immediately improve service to children.
Some educationists break formative assessment into two – These refer to

quantitative formative assessment and qualitative formative assessment.
Quantitative formative assessments produce numerical data that teachers and

other professionals can analyse and use the result for learner improvement.
Developmental checklists are examples of such assessments. For instance,
teachers may observe children’s behaviour on the basis of developmental
milestones according to a predetermined coding system. The behaviour could
be associated with language development, physical development or social
development.
Qualitative formative assessment is regarded more useful to teachers because

it is easier to perform and its descriptive nature is more informative to teachers.
In this type of assessment, children are observed and rated within the classroom
setting on each item on the checklist. Teachers would establish if the child
could perform each of the items listed in the checklist independently.
To sum up the difference between summative and formative assessment, look

at the brief description in the table below:
TABLE 5.1: The difference between summative and formative assessment

Form of Summative Formative
assessment
Description Learner tests that are Narrative, based on
usually standardised and interaction with learners
conducted provincially or
nationally
When does it take At the end of learning During learning activity and
place (end of term or end of frequently
year)
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82
Form of Summative Formative

assessment
How is it Strictly same questions Discussion with learner and
conducted by national authorities, notes taken. Teacher-made
conducted and scored in questions will differ from
the same way school to school
Outcome Scores for grading Written reports. Numbers
learners into categories may be used to capture
or classes performance but not for
grading learners
Goal To make a decision based To help learners to improve
on the test scores their learning during the year
Table 1 above shows the difference between summative and formative

assessment. The first column refers to the forms of the assessments, the
timeframes for conducting them, how they are conducted, the expected results
and purpose of the assessments. The differences between the assessments are
discussed in second and third columns.
10 AC TIVIT Y
As an activity for you, please add to the list other differences that you may have
noted between formative and summative assessments.
Formative assessment is regarded as most appropriate for young children because

of its repetitive, interactive and instant implementation of support to children. A
similar approach that is recommended for use with pre-schoolers is curriculum-
based assessment.
5.5.3 Curriculum-based assessment

Curriculum-based assessment could be seen as another form of formative
assessment because it is repetitive, interactive, and provides instant support
to children to help them improve their learning. A further advantage of this
assessment is that teachers make it even simpler than the ordinary formative
assessment, they use it more frequently (weekly), perform it faster per child so
as to cover all the children every week, and use it more intensely to improve
instruction.
Although formative assessment is recommended for young children, it is not

an exclusively preschool assessment form. It is important therefore to focus
on the assessment types that are uniquely for pre-schoolers.
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83 E M L1501/1

5.6 FOCUS ON PRESCHOOL CHILDREN’S ASSESSMENT

Preschool assessment is broader than assessment in the higher grades because
it is highly informal and takes into account the child in totality. The assessment
does not only refer to the child, it includes the assessment of the programme,
the classroom features and the teacher herself, since these have a bearing on
the development of the child in totality.
Preschool assessment, like assessment in the Foundation Phase, is a process

of gathering information about a child and analysing the information for
intended purposes. The assessment results are then used to plan for appropriate
educational activities that are age-appropriate and can be understood by the
child.
5.6.1 What is preschool assessment?

Preschool assessment is a process of gathering information about a child,
reviewing the information, and then using the information to plan educational
activities that are at a level the child can understand and is able to learn from.
Preschool assessment is used to collect and provide teachers, parents, and
families with critical information about their children’s development and growth.
When teachers assess children, they observe the children to get information
about what they know and what they can do. Assessment is a critical part of
a high-quality, early childhood programme.
5.6.2 Why is preschool assessment important?

Preschool assessment provides educators, parents, and families with critical
information about a child’s development and growth. Assessment can:
•• Provide a record of growth in all developmental areas: cognitive, physical/
motor, language, social-emotional, and approaches to learning.
•• Identify children who may need additional support and determine if there
is a need for intervention or support services.
•• Help educators plan individualised instruction for a child or for a group of
children that are at the same stage of development.
•• Identify the strengths and weaknesses within a programme and information
on how well the programme meets the goals and needs of the children.
•• Provide a common ground between teachers and parents or families to use
in collaborating on a strategy to support their child.
•• Help the teacher to document a child’s learning progress over the course
of a semester or year.
•• Provide teachers with information that will enable them to plan appropriate
curriculum and effective individualised instruction for each child.
•• Inform parents about their child’s learning so they can follow their child’s
progress at school, understand their child’s strengths and challenges, and
plan how they can help extend the learning into their homes.
Although the emphasis of this module is on the ages of 5 to 6 years old, it is

important to briefly refer to the younger children so that you can see continuity
in their development. Various types of checklists are used for the different
aspects of child development. Some of the checklists include ‘entry-level
...........
84
checklists’, ‘developmental milestones’, language skills checklists, and ‘reading

checklists’. The following are examples:
For preschool children and under-five, assessment is about their language

development which is part of cognitive, physical, perceptual, social and
emotional development. For this module, language development is central
and we focus on those components that are part of language acquisition such
as phonology, semantics and vocabulary.
TABLE 5.2: Entry-level assessment for children younger than 5 years of age
1. Details about child:
Child’s name ……………………….. Teacher ……………………….
Age …………….. Gender ……………… Home language ….....…
Fluency …………………. Number of siblings …………………
Parents and other adults …………………..
2. Separation from parent (or responsible adult):
Smooth …...........……. a little anxiety ……....….. mild difficulty ………..
Unable to separate …….................................…. Parent’s anxiety from
separation ……………………………………………………………
3. Physical state:
General health look ...... .. Body control ….....…. Runs smoothly ……….
Climbs easily ……… Uses scissors ……… Hand preference ……… Uses
pens and brushes
4. Self-care:
Dresses self: ………… Needs assistance ………………………
Toilet training: By self ………………. Needs help ……………..
5. Child’s interests:
Indoors: ……… Books ……… puzzles, ………….. art, ………….
blocks …………….. Outdoors: Swings …………. climbers ………..
sandpit ………. wheel plays …………….
6. Social-emotional development
Plays alone …… Initiates activities ………. Seems tense …… Adapts easily
…….. Plays with age old friends ……… special friends ………………….
7. Cognitive development:
Uses language to communicate …. Clear pronunciation … Holds
conversation ……. Curiosity …… Follows instructions ……
Memory ............ Uses phrases/individual words …… …
Adapted from Gordon & Brown (1996) .
The Entry assessment shown as an example in Table 5.2 lists seven areas that
can be used as baseline information by teachers or practitioners at nursery
schools for children younger than 5 years of age. It provides the teacher with
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85 E M L1501/1

details that show where the child is at in terms of competencies expected in

the nursery school. The purpose is to make it possible for the teacher to plan
appropriate interventions for individual children. This assessment is different
from the mastery of developmental milestones as can be seen from the following
Table 5.2 and Table 5.3.
Assessment in the preschool is graded according to children’s ages because

development is age-related as demonstrated in Piaget’s theory discussed in
Unit 2. For children younger than 5 years of age, the assessment is usually
about their developmental rates and not literacy development. Table 5.3 is
an example.
TABLE 5.3: Assessment for children under the age of 5 years

Assessment What is How it is Purpose
type measured administered
Developmental Cognitive, Based on child Identifying delays
inventory social, motor interviews and in development
and language observations
development
Vocabulary Understanding of Children asked Determining
scale oral language to name pictures language
shown to them development
Emotional Emotional Interviews with Identifying social
disturbances and social parents or family and emotional
development members difficulties
Cognitive Intellectual ability Individual tests Determining
ability cognitive and
academic abilities
including delays
Developmental Mastery of Observation to Evaluate child’s
checklists developmental check if milestones progress in
milestones are reached development
Anecdotal Any behaviour Teacher writes Assess overall
or ability teacher detailed notes on learning and
wishes to measure everything the development.
child does or says
Adapted from Trawick-Smith (2013)
For ages 5 to 6 years, or for Grade R children, the assessment becomes more
specific. Children in this age group are on the verge of school entry and
therefore their development is aimed at establishing whether they will be able
to learn in the formal school.
Questions that may have crossed your mind as you were reading why pre-
schoolers must be assessed could be:
•• How are preschool children assessed because they cannot read or write?
•• What are they assessed on?
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86
•• What is the role of preschool teachers with regard to the children’s

development?
5.6.3 Guidelines on preschool assessment

Young children in preschools should not be subjected to summative assessments.
Their assessment should be in line with the goals of the specific programme
that is followed in the nursery or school. In South Africa, preschool children
between the ages of 5 and 6 years are housed in schools and are identified as
school-based Grade R classes. Some early learning centres also have Grade
R classes.
Below are general guidelines that could be used for implementing assessment
in Grade R classes.
How to conduct the assessment: Before assessment can be conducted, it is
important for the Grade R teacher to first determine how the assessment will
be conducted. It is recommended that the assessment should be:
•• Conducted by an adult who knows the children.
•• Appropriate for the child’s growth area that is measured.
•• Aligned with instructional goals and approaches of the Grade R programme.
•• Authentic and conducted in a familiar place where children will be comfortable.
•• Comprehensive and on-going to include a number of activities.
•• Continuous and use various collecting tools.
•• Conducted for the purpose for which it was designed.
The nature of formative assessment indicates how it is applied in the Grade

R class. It assumes a circular pattern that can be illustrated in the following
manner:
Teach skill – observe the child – record and reflect on your notes – analyse
the collected data – plan lessons – teach the skill – (follow the sequence again)
FIGURE 5.1: Formative assessment cycle
The next step is to decide what should be measured; and decide on the
appropriate form of assessment.
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87 E M L1501/1

What children are assessed on?

The value of a good assessment lies in its ability to identify possible learning
problems that children may have and gaps that may exist in the early learning
programme. The assessment must not be too narrow and only measure what
is taught at the expense of children’s holistic development.
5.7 ASSESSMENT TOOLS FOR PRESCHOOLERS

In Unit 3, you learned about competencies that children must have before they
can acquire reading skills. The competencies referred to are book awareness,
print awareness, alphabet knowledge, phonemic awareness, and vocabulary.
Checklists are used as tools that can measure the extent of readiness.
5.7.1 Checklists as tools for measuring reading readiness

In this unit on assessment, we refer to the same competencies from a different
perspective as what must be measured for assessing reading readiness. These
competencies are used as key areas that must be measured to ensure that
children do not experience reading problems when they start school. The
process that outlines literacy development is referred to ‘emergent reading’. The
competencies are broken into small units that can explain children’s level of
reading readiness. Checklists are used as assessment tools as shown in Figure 2.
TABLE 5.4: A Grade R checklist for the development of literacy skills

Name of teacher/practitioner: ………………………………….
Name of child …………………………. Age …………….… Date ………………
1. Book awareness: The understanding that books contain information
and pictures that must be used in a particular way. The child is able to:
•• Orientate the book and can turn pages …………………….
•• Identify the front and back covers of a book ……………….
•• Differentiate pictures from words …………………………….
•• Know that books are for reading and looking at pictures
2. Size of vocabulary: The number of words that the child understands
and can use. The child:
•• Understands the meaning of a large number of words in a
storybook ………………..
•• Uses the words correctly in a sentence ……………………….
•• Can retell a story using own words ………………………………
3. Alphabet awareness: The recognition of different alphabets in a book
or board. The child:
•• Knows the names of the alphabet ……………………………….
•• Points to the correct alphabet when asked to ……………………
•• Points to alphabets in a word ……………………………
•• Knows that capital letters are used to write his name. …………………….
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88
4. Print awareness: The awareness that print carries meaning and that it
must be read from left to right and top to bottom. The child:
•• Understands that a word is read from left to right …………………………..
•• Can relate to words in a story …………………………………………………
•• Associates the written word with speech …………………………………….
•• Understands that print under a picture says something about the
picture. ……………
5. Knowledge of phonics: The ability to associate letters with their sounds.
The child:
•• Matches letters of the alphabet to their different sounds …………………
•• Recognises the sound of the first letters of his or her name ……………….
•• Recognises the sound of the last letter of own name ……………………….
•• Identifies different words that rhyme. ………………………………………..
Table 5.4 above shows how literacy development can be assessed. A teacher can
allocate a point or score per literacy item indicated under each competency. The
total number of scores attained can then be grouped into grades. For instance,
a grading can be from 1 to 5, where 1 is very poor and 5, is excellent. The
teacher would decide which category of children need what type of remediation
or which group needs to be praised and encouraged to grow further.
5.7.1.1 Checklist for the assessment of writing skills

Children as young as 18 months show interest in writing by making markings
on paper and everywhere even on the walls in the house. Their writing skills
develop in a linear pattern that is fixed according to ages. By the end of the
preschool years, there is evidence of some conventional letters that the child
knows. The process that shows this development is termed ‘emergent writing’.
In Unit 4, we discussed the development of writing skills in detail starting from
the age of 2 years up to 5 and 6 years. Examples of children’s writing progress
were shown and sequenced. (Please go back to unit 4 to refresh your memory).
In this unit, the steps in the development of writing skills are discussed in more
detail to indicate how the steps can be used as items for assessing progress in
the development of writing.
TABLE: 5.5. A checklist for development of early forms of writing.

Forms of writing Approximate ages Date observed
1. Makes scribbles with almost From the age of 2 Teacher’s date
a circular shape to 3 years indicated
Scribbles that look like straight From the age of 3 Teacher’s date
2.
lines to 3½ years indicated
Drawings are used as writing From the age of 3½ Teacher’s date
3.
alongside linear scribbles to 4 years indicated
and scribbles that resemble
cursive writing
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89 E M L1501/1

Forms of writing Approximate ages Date observed

Drawings and recognisable From the age of 4 Teacher’s date
4.
letters randomly placed on a to 4½ years indicated
page. Some children can write
their names correctly.
Some words with conventional From the age of 4½ Teacher’s date
5.
spelling and others with self- to 5 and 6 years indicated
created spelling.
Adapted from Christie et al. (2014)
The forms of early writing are listed in first column and the accompanying ages
in the second column. Very important: The sequence of the writings and the
associated ages are not limited to the age of 5 indicated in Table 5.5. There
are variations from different authors.
In order to establish if a child is developing writing skills or not, the teacher can
compare the forms of writing in the first column with the ages in the second
column. For instance, if a 4 year old child still makes circular scribbles (1st
form), instead of making drawings with recognisable letters (4th form), there
might be a problem with the development of the child. If the dates on which
the teacher observed the child indicate that the child was observed several
times and there is no improvement after remediating, then the existence of
the problem is confirmed.
5.7.1.2 Developmental checklists

For preschool children and under the age of 5, assessment is about their
language development which is part of cognitive, physical, perceptual, social
and emotional development. For this module, language development is central
and we focus on those components that are part of language acquisition such
as phonology, print awareness and vocabulary.
Developmental milestones determine the child’s holistic development in order

to establish if there are delays or not. For the pre-schooler, the milestones are
associated with those aspects of development that bear significance to learning
in the classroom. Read the example in Table 5.6.
TABLE 5.6: Developmental milestones for 5 year old children

Area of development Nature of development
Language
Physical-motor
Social and emotional
Intellectual
Adapted from Gordon & Browne (1996)
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90
TABLE 5.7: Developmental milestones for 6 year old children

Area of development Nature of development
Language
Physical-motor
Social and emotional
Intellectual
Adapted from Gordon & Browne (1996)
TABLE 5.8. Language skill checklist for 5 year old children

Language skill Teacher ratings
Ability to describe objects (big; small, green) 3
Intelligible speech that is easily understood (maybe with 2
mispronunciations here and there)
Ability to understand and carry out three instructions 1
Knowledge of objects and their use (broom, spoon, jersey) 3
Production of grammatically correct speech 2
Verdict: Child needs support to improve his language
development
Adapted from Christie et al (2014)
TABLE 5.9: Language skill checklist for 6 year old children

Language skill Teacher rating
Fully intelligible and socially acceptable language 4
Ability to tell a meaningful story from a picture 5
Recollection of stories or videos that are favourites 4
Ability to repeat longer sentences with ease (nine to ten 4
words)
Description of events or friends, done with ease 5
Verdict: Child’s language development is on track
Adapted from Christie et al (2014)
Table scale for Tables 5.7, 5.8 and 5.9 above:

1 Very weak
2 Experiences a few challenges
3 Average
4 Good
5 Very good
...........
91 E M L1501/1

Tables 5.7, 5.8 and 5.9 itemised units of language that can be assessed to get
an idea of a child’s language development. The language bits in first column
are typically produced by 5 year and 6 year old children. The analysis shows
that the 5 year old child needs more language input from parents and the
teacher. The analysis is guided by the scale that explains the meanings on the
numbers shown in second column. The 6 year old child needs to be praised
for her language ability so as to reinforce what he or she has acquired and
to urge her to develop further. Teachers can record further observations as
anecdotal notes.
5.7.2 Anecdotal observation forms

As teachers observe their children working on activities or playing in the
creative corner, they make notes about what children are doing or how
they are behaving. These notes include what the child did, how the teacher
interpreted it, and what the teacher plans to do to correct the noted mistakes
or to urge the child forward. The notes can be in essay form or represented
in a structured format.
TABLE 5.10: Annecdotal notes
ANNECDOTAL NOTES
Name of teacher ……......…… Class: .......... Grade R ……..…. Date: ……………
Name of child …………...… Age ….......... Five years ………………………..
Area of observation: ………..…. (Example: The blocks area)
Observed behaviour: ……….... (Example: Thato prefers to play with big
blocks rather than with small Legos for 5 year olds).
Interpretation: ……………......… (Example: Thato’s fine motor development
may be lagging behind).
Plan for remediation: (Example: Observe Thato building puzzles to confirm
interpretation. Expose him more to activities that will train his fine muscles).
Adapted from
5.7.3 Daily tasks form

Teachers can collect some of the work that children are involved with on a
daily basis and keep the work as record to confirm some of their observations.
The works could include pictures the child coloured or something that a child
made. Example: A smiling face made on a hard paper.
5.7.4 Videos and audio recordings

Sometimes it is advisable to assess children without them noticing. A video or
DVD is best as an assessment tool. A shy or withdrawn child can be observed
or listened to without intimidating him or her and thus capture authentic results.
...........
92
5.8 THE ROLE OF THE PRESCHOOL TEACHER
(Retrieved on the 23 October 2017)
Teachers refer to the results of the captured assessment of the pre-schoolers’

in different ways: They may name it progress reports, developmental progress
forms, quarterly progress forms or they may name the form according to what
was measured, for instance reading readiness forms.
A knowledgeable teacher:
•• Gathers baseline information about individual children by establishing
where the children are at before conducting assessment. This helps the
teacher to conduct a relevant assessment, to select appropriate tools, and
to plan for remedial action.
•• Uses a number of different assessments to increase the reliability of the
outcome of the assessment.
•• Studies developmental milestones to place children in the correct category.
•• Makes a list of the categories so as to follow children’s progress throughout
the year.
•• Plans activities based on children’s need and abilities.
•• Arranges meetings with children’s parents to share their children’s progress
in literacy.
•• Assesses his or her classroom layout to provide the correct arrangement
that will support children’s development.
•• Develops a literacy rich environment that will promote language learning.
•• Aligns his or her classroom arrangement and materials with the objectives of
the early learning programme. In the case of school-based Grade R classes
in South Africa, the teacher ensures that the teaching and assessment are
CAPS compliant.
After assessing and remediating a teacher must reflect on what she taught,
how she prepared the classroom for the activity and which materials s/he
...........
93 E M L1501/1

used for the activities. S/he must follow the sequence indicated under 5.6.3
on how to conduct an assessment.
5.9 CONCLUSION
In conclusion, I advise you to remember that this module, Emergent Literacy,
about pre-schoolers in Grade R who have not begun reading or writing in
the formal way but are being prepared to register for Grade 1. We however,
included information about children younger than 5 years old so as to give
you a sense of where they are at when you start teaching them. Teaching at
this level should remain informal and the children must learn through play.
5.10 QUESTIONS ON THE UNIT
QUESTION 1
(a) Explain the difference between assessment and evaluation. 5
(b) Differentiate between summative and formative assessments and use
suitable examples 10
(c) How is preschool assessment conducted? Refer to 5 guidelines and
discuss. 10
QUESTION 2
(d) Discuss the importance of preschool assessment. Refer to five points and
provide examples. 10
(e) Which checklists are best suited to measure reading readiness? Elaborate
and provide examples. 15
Discussion points
•• What is pre-school assessment?
•• Why is pre-school assessment important?
•• Discuss table 2: Assessment for children under the age of 5
...........
94
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2.3 THE NATURE VERSUS NURTURE THEORETICAL VIEWPOINTS 24

4.9 CHARACTERISTICS OF CHILDREN WITH EMERGENT WRITING SKILLS 71

Emergent literacy is a module whose purpose is to equip you as a student

The module that specifically aims at promoting emergent literacy is Children’s

An introductory orientation to the study

THE AIM OF THE UNIT

We start by presenting case studies to capture the different contexts in which

A brief reference is made to theories that explain how language is acquired.

1.2 LANGUAGE AS A CONCEPT

According to Gordon and Browne (1996), language is an inborn characteristic

Language is central to literacy and should therefore be integral to emergent

Please read the following explanations of what ‘emergent literacy’ is before

1.3 WHAT IS EMERGENT LITERACY?

1.3.1 Explanations of emergent literacy

Although language is not learned as four separate skills, it is convenient to

1.4 EMERGENT SPEAKING

1.5 LISTENING SKILLS

A listening environment: Children focus on what is read by filtering out other

The ability to listen to stories, also referred to as phonological awareness, is

1.5.1 Phonological awareness

Phonological awareness and phonemic awareness on Shutterstock YouTube

Children also learn to recognise rhyming words and syllables in children’s

1.5.3 Narrative skills

to tell a story or describe a sequence of events. Parents and teachers can

1.6 EMERGENT WRITING

Commonly, there are four stages of writing development that children go

1.6.1 Requirements for the development of writing skills

1.6.1.1 Activities for motor development

In order to develop fine motor skills, children should be exposed to activities

1.6.1.2 Eye-hand coordination

1.7 EMERGENT READING

1.7.1 Alphabet Knowledge

To support young learners’ knowledge of letters, adults need to provide children

1.7.2 Print awareness

Print awareness and alphabet knowledge are invaluable to a child’s literacy

rich environment and are allowed to manipulate books. Emergent reading is

1.8 THEORIES OF LANGUAGE ACQUISITION

The following schools of thought will be discussed below, namely, behaviourists,

1.8.1 The behaviourist approach to language learning

In return, the infant responds by producing more ‘utterings’. This is how

1.8.2 The nativist approach to language learning

parental instruction. Therefore, for language learning to take place, children

1.8.3 The cognitive and social approach to language learning

Vygotsky’s social relationships approach to language development explains that

1.9 STAGES OF LANGUAGE ACQUISITION

1.9.1 The pre-linguistic stage

The holophrase or one-word sentence: Babies between the age of 10 months

Multiple-word sentences: This stage is reached between the ages of 2 and

More complex grammatical structures: By the age of 2½ to 3 years, children

The environment in which children grow influences their language skills in a

1.10 THE INFLUENCE OF THE ENVIRONMENT

1.10.1 The home environment

Parents can do a lot to encourage literacy development by doing the following:

1.11 THE ROLE OF TEACHERS AND OTHER ADULTS

The success of teaching emergent literacy depends on the teachers’ knowledge

1.11.1 The reflective teacher

challenging moments in teaching and learning. This calibre of teacher is one

1.11.2 The teacher as the pedagogical leader

In this study guide, the meaning of pedagogical leadership subscribes to

Planned reading: Planning to read a particular story before reading it to children

2.3 THE NATURE VERSUS NURTURE THEORETICAL VIEWPOINTS 24

4.9 CHARACTERISTICS OF CHILDREN WITH EMERGENT WRITING SKILLS 71