Playing with literacy in preschool classrooms

Childhood Education, Spring 2001 by Klenk, Laura

Cheryl: In order to investigate the effects of my acting as a facilitator during play, I wanted to set up at least two sociodramatic play centers. Schrader's (1989) report was especially helpful because it diagrammed and described very simple settings. I decided to enhance the housekeeping center by adding note pads and pencils, Post-it notes, and play money. I also decided to set up a very basic veterinary hospital for the 4-yearolds. Using the piano bench (pulled out perpendicular to the piano) and the closed piano cover, I set out a variety of medical supplies. These included two small surgical shirts (scrubs), adhesive and gauze, toy medical implements, note pads and pencils, and empty prescription medicine containers.

Cynthia: I knew that I wanted the children's story reenactments to be spontaneous and creative rather than teacher-directed, so I decided to create a new library and listening center for this project. This "literacy center" was quite different from the library in the loft. I selected a variety of multicultural books, many of which came with an audiotape or record. I added a tape recorder and a record player that the children could operate independently as they followed along with the books. I also gathered brightly colored dressup clothes, a variety of cloth and stick puppets, a flannel board with story pieces, and a box of musical instruments. To accommodate and encourage the participation of more children, I moved the rocking boat into an open space in front of the new center. Finally, in keeping with the multicultural theme, I added posters of children and adults from a variety of ethnic backgrounds.

Implementation

Cheryl and Cynthia were ready to introduce their young students to these new play-based literacy activities. The children responded enthusiastically in both classes, incorporating their own particular background experiences into new play routines. As they describe the children's engagement in these new play areas-- some of whom had been reluctant players up to this point-Cheryl and Cynthia also note the changes in their own participation.

Cheryl: On the first day of my intervention with the 3-year-olds, I entered the housekeeping area armed with notepads, pencils, and a grocery store ad. I sat at the table, opened the ad, and asked, "I need to make a grocery list. What do I need to buy today?" I pointed to words and pictures in the ad, began to name them aloud, and wrote them down. Within seconds, several children had gathered around to watch. As soon as I put down my pencil, they began to make their own lists. I asked the children to read their lists back to me. After I looked in a cookbook for a recipe, Rebecca wrote directions for the chicken noodle soup she was cooking. I used the play telephone to order a pizza, and later Melissa wrote a phone message. All of the writing produced by the children resembled scribble-like forms, but it was all done very seriously and most of the children participated at least briefly.