WHAT IS LITERATURE?

"learning, a writing, grammar,"

literatura/litteratura originally "writing formed with letters,"

LITERATURE
litera/littera
"letter"
WHAT IS LITERATURE?

Literature is any piece of

writing that is valued as a work
of art.
WHAT IS LITERATURE?

Literature is a body of work, either

written, oral, or visual, containing
imaginative language that realistically
portrays thoughts, emotions and
experiences of the human condition.

ECE 214 | Children’s Literature

WHAT IS LITERATURE?

 Poems Folktales
 Novels  Fables
 Short stories Parables
 Plays  Songs and
Rhymes

ECE 214 | Children’s Literature

 QUESTION:

What is the place of

literature in a child’s
life?

ECE 214 | Children’s Literature

 QUESTION:

Why is it a need to have a

separate literature for
children?

ECE 214 | Children’s Literature

 STATUS QUO
1. Children are not exposed to a wealth of reading
materials for their own pleasure.
2. Dearth of reading materials at home, and sometimes
even at school

ECE 214 | Children’s Literature

 TASK 1:
List down at least 2 advantages of exposing a
child to literature.

ECE 214 | Children’s Literature

WHY CHILDREN SHOULD BE
EXPOSED TO LITERATURE?

1. Reading and literature is therapeutic.

2. It promotes “reading for pleasure.”
3. It enriches their own knowledge and vocabulary.
4. It greatly contribute towards a child’s creative
development. (art- music, drawings, dance, etc.)
5. It can develop a sensitivity to sights, sounds, words, life’s
problems and people.
6. It can address children’s basic needs- emotional, spiritual,
etc.
ECE 214 | Children’s Literature
WHAT WENT WRONG?
1. Children are heavily laden with homework and
projects.
2. Overemphasis on academic learning and training
3. Overdependence to textbooks leading to
impoverished literary diet
4. Lack of guidance and support from adults

ECE 214 | Children’s Literature

 WAYS FORWARD

“Be an advocate of reading

and children’s literature”

ECE 214 | Children’s Literature

 WAYS FORWARD
“Guiding and helping children to
appreciate literature and develop love for
reading is a shared responsibility.”

ECE 214 | Children’s Literature