A Step by Step Process in Language Development (10.8)

The biggest challenge in teaching the alphabet is holding the attention of a 2-year-old.

Decide which of the following is the benefit of doing a Treasure Hunt with letters:

When working with phonetic blending for the first time, it’s best to start with 4-5 letter words.

Over-emphasizing on memorizing sight words does not allow children to learn why certain letters make certain sounds.

Memorization is needed at certain points in English language acquisition.

The earlier a child is exposed to the alphabet, the easier it will be to improve as a reader once they are in grade school.

Case Study: Mr. James has been leading his group of 4 year olds in identifying the days of the week and months of the year. He has used some successful strategies, such as singing the ‘Months of the Year’ song along with another song for the days of the week. The children really enjoy his sessions and have done well in each of these songs. However, when Mr. James mixes up the days of the week and asks the children to put them in order, there are a group of children that struggle with this exercise. Monday, Wednesday and Friday are easy to spot, but the remaining days are a challenge. The months are challenging as well. What has Mr. James done well? What improvements could be made? Why do you think these challenges are present? What strategies could Mr. James use to enhance the learning experience?