Early Reading

An enjoyment of reading, sharing picture books, songs, rhymes and stories and being read to out loud is one of the most important experiences children should have in their early childhood. At Rowland Hill Nursery School and Children’s Centre we want to ensure that children’s early language and literacy skills are nurtures through wonderful learning opportunities and experiences. Communication and language is a “prime” area of learning in the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) and our approach to teaching follow the programmes of study. At Rowland Hill Nursery School we acknowledge that Literacy (reading and writing), depends on good early communication and language skills.

Teaching children to read is extremely complex. Research shows that early communication and early reading and writing are highly intertwined and many different approaches are needed so that children can become successful. They require slightly different sets of skills, but as the skills of reading develop and strengthen, so do the skills of writing. So staff will think of them together when planning for children’s learning.

The process of making sense of those black marks on the page, and beginning to make your own marks on paper that other people can read starts early. It starts with talk. It is talk that helps literacy skills develop and provides the raw material for written communication.