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The Pre-K Language Arts program uses resources from the McGraw-hill/Bank Street Reading Program. Pre-K is a critical time for helping young children develop early literacy skills. The components that are at the forefront of our guidance include phonemic awareness, print awareness, alphabet recognition and early phonics, comprehension, pre-writing skills, book knowledge, and listening/speaking skills.

Phonemic awareness refers to the ability to hear and manipulate the sounds in our language. Without this knowledge, it becomes difficult to learn to read. We include lessons in rhyming, syllable splitting, segmenting sounds in a word, and manipulating sounds in a word. Fundamentally, phonemic awareness is the understanding that sounds make words.

Print awareness refers to a child’s understanding that print has a purpose. We help children distinguish between letters and words and to follow print from left to right and top to bottom on a page. Printed labels in the environment are used to help children make the connection between print and spoken words.

“Letter of the Week” activities help to teach alphabet recognition.. Each week students learn about and explore a letter in many different ways. We discuss the initial sound of the letter and connect it to books and items in their school environment, as well as items brought from home that begin with the letter. We do artwork and cook using the letter as a theme. At the end of the year, children celebrate the completion of the alphabet study with an ABC party.

A wide selection of literature helps to teach comprehension skills. Big books, poetry, classic literature, and predictable text inspire children to gain a lifelong interest in good literature. In whole class and small groups, we discuss main events, characters, sequence and retell stories. We talk about directionality and different genres, including concept books, fiction, non-fiction and poetry.

Pre-writing begins with the development of fine motor skills. Activities such as cutting with a scissos, painting, hole punching, lacing, and beading strengthen these skills. Children have the opportunity to use a variety of writing tools at different times throughout the year. Additional activities to strengthen fine motor skills include following a path, creating a drawing with straight and wiggly lines and using stencils.

When the class gathers on the rug for a meeting, children practice listening and speaking skills as they take turns speaking and listening to others. Children share an item each week related to the letter of the week for show and tell. We emphasize hand raising and patience as well as thinking of a good question to ask the speaker.