Use of Multiple Stretegies to Teach Literacy

Literacy is the term used when talking about the ability to read and write. It leads to success in K-12 school, post-secondary school, the ability to compete in the job market, and participation in democratic process (Wei, Blackorby, & Schiller, 2011). Teaching young children how to read and write however is a very complex process that requires a teacher to employ a myriad of strategies to help students. When a teacher takes into consideration all the different abilities in a classroom having multiple strategies that help all students become proficient in speaking and listening, reading, and writing, is essential.

Speaking and Listening

One of the most often over looked yet essential part of literacy development is developing a child’s speaking and listening skills. If a child has a very limited vocabulary it will be harder for him or her to express what happened in a story. Being able to hear the play on words in rhyming a book, or noticing the subtle differences in word choice can change how a book is enjoyed.

One strategy teachers can use to help students develop their speaking and listening skills is to teach the students simple rhymes. Reading simple nursery rhymes or short poems help increase a child phonological awareness. “Children who have been involved in early rhyming activities such as nursery rhymes are often more successful in reading later on” (Beaty, 2009, p. 23).

Reading the rhymes once however is not enough. For students to understand rhyming multiple exposures is necessary, allowing the student to know the poem by heart. Reading poems as a daily part of instruction, and using the rhymes to help students remember simple procedures, like lining up, gives students multiple exposures to not only hearing rhymes...

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...ge most of the students most of the time should be the goal. These three strategies focus on different skills, speaking and listening, reading, and writing, that are needed to become literate. By changing the teaching strategies used a teacher are able to differentiate instruction so all students are learning at his or her perceived ability.

Works Cited

Beaty, J. J. (2009). 50 Early Childhood Literacy Strategies. Columbus: Merill.

Kirk, E. W., & Clark, P. (2005). Beginning with names: Using children’s names to facilitate early literacy. Childhood Education, 81(3), 139.

LaRocque, M., & Darling, S. M. (2008). Blended Curriculum in the Inclusive K-3 Classroom: Teaching ALL Young Children. Allyn and Bacon.

Wei, X., Blackorby, J., & Schiller, E. (2011). Growth in reading achievement of students with disabilities ages 7 to 17. Exceptional Children, 78(1), 89-106.