Developing a Literacy Resource Kit for Early Children

This article discusses the development of a literacy resource kit for early children aged 0 to 5 years. The kit comprises of resources to cover teaching methods such as oral language, writing skills, digital technology, and story-telling. The article outlines the specific concepts, learning outcomes, preparation required, and literacy and developmental skills that the children would be exposed to. The article is in compliance with the ECA code of ethics, EYLF, and the Australian professional teaching standards.

Running head: EDUCATION ASSIGNMENT
EDUCATION ASSIGNMENT
Name of the Student:
Name of University:
Author Note:

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Introduction:
A literacy kit typically comprises of a story box loaded with interesting and attractive
props that are related to the story and depict the central characters of the story. The props and
academic accessories that are used are based upon the consideration of the developmental stage
of the child so as to ensure appropriate motivation and a positive learning environment (Bloch et
al., 2014). This assignment would develop a literary kit for early children aged 0 to 5 years. The
kit would essentially comprise of resources so as to cover the methods of teaching that include,
imparting oral language, imparting writing skills, utilizing digital technology and story-telling.
The Literacy Resource Kit:
One (1) x Oral language teaching resource of 0-2 age group:
Outline and Rational: It has been stated by Pedagogical philosophers that the initial
phase of literacy begins when children learn the art of communicating their feelings with others.
It is important to understand here that children aged 0-2 years do not possess the ability to
construct grammatically correct meaningful sentences (Moss et al., 2013). This accounts for the
major reason why the teaching technique has to be based upon questioning so as to provide
ample opportunity to the children to engage in a conversation.
Specific concepts and Learning Outcomes: The concept that would be used while imparting
oral language training to the beginners would be based upon Blank’s level of questioning
(Gordon & Browne, 2013). The teaching strategy would broadly be based upon level one and
would aim at paying close improving the conversing ability of the children.

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A prop such as an artificial apple would be kept on the table by the teacher and the following
questions would be asked by the educator:
What do you see on the table children?
What color is the apple?
Can you find one like this in your play box?
Is it a fruit? ( collect yes/no response)
Is it sweet? ( collect yes/ no response)
The central idea is to engage children in conversation and develop the four vital
components of language namely the phonetic component, semantic component, pragmatic
component and syntactic component. The learning outcomes would involve, improving the
vocabulary, pronunciation and conversing ability of the child.
Identification of preparation required: The preparation required would encompass of creating
an enjoyable learning environment with a bright class room full of colorful posters about
interesting things such as fruits, vegetables, animals and birds. Prior to the class the teacher
would have to create a set of questions and keep a prop ready so as to commence the class.
Identification of literacy and developmental skills that the children would be exposed to:
The children would be exposed to level one literacy development and would enhance the
language usage skills of the child by correcting the diction, pronunciation and communication
ability of the child.

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Two (2) x Writing teaching resources for 3-5 age group and 5-6 age group:
Outline and Rational: Writing forms the expression of emotions on paper and is not
merely restricted to vocal expression of the feelings. However, it should be noted here that the
process of getting children use to the practice of writing is exceedingly complex and proceeds
over a series of steps with specific consideration of the developmental framework (Singer, 2013).
The teaching strategies that would be discussed here would comprise of discussing two
techniques in relation to the age group of (3-5) year children and (5-6) year old children. The two
age groups mentioned widely comprise of considering four critical aspects of writing that
include, learning the alphabets, learning words, using the words in a grammatically correct
manner and making sentences
Specific concepts and Learning Outcomes: While teaching children belonging to the age group
of (3-5) years, educators focus more on developing a gripping ability of the children. The
primary focus is to strengthen and stimulate the gross motor-neuron functions of the children.
The central teaching principle for this age group is to channelize children’s attention on the print
media and help them relate the alphabets with the sounds. The primary teaching resource for this
age group would involve activities such as connect the dots and color the shapes. For children
belonging to the age group of (3-5) years, the teaching strategies would be based on two
segments. The initial segment would incorporate imparting skills to draw standing line, sleeping
line and curved line. Once this segment is mastered which would take 10 weeks, the alphabets
would be taught. At first by connecting the dots and with the progressing weeks the children
could write the alphabets would be capable of writing the alphabets independently.
For children belonging to the age group of (5-6) years, it is expected that the children
now have an idea about writing the alphabets both in upper case as well as lower case. The

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teaching resource used for this age group would comprise of introducing two and three letter
words and spellings so as to improve the ability of the children to connect with the phonetic and
write the words independently. The teaching method implied for this age group would comprise
of inclusion of pictures in worksheet and exercises such as, “what do you see”, rhyming words
and picture composition (fill in the blanks). At this stage, it is expected that the students are
proficient in writing numbers and hence exercises such as “count and write” can also
substantially improve the writing skills.
The learning outcomes associated with the age group of (3-5) years would include
developing fine gripping, knowledge of writing alphabets in both upper case and lower case and
accurate gross motor skills (Tayler et al., 2013). The learning outcome for the age group of (5-6)
years would include relating words to phonetic sound and knowledge about the words and
constructing small sentences.
Identification of preparation required: The preparation required would include
preparing worksheets for children aged (3-5) years. The worksheet would encompass a figure of
a fruit that would be filled up by the children with a crayon and tracing a letter with a crayon to
develop an idea about an alphabet. Worksheets to join the dotted impression and write a proper
alphabet would also help children in mastering the skills of writing. In addition to this,
interesting learning resources such as magic slate, chalk and using both lined and unlined paper
would be used to create the worksheets. For children aged (5-6) years, the educator would
include worksheets that would comprise of a playground scene and then fill in the blanks based
on “what do you see” can help in improving the writing ability of the children along with a
strong sense of vocabulary.

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Identification of literacy and developmental skills that the children would be exposed to:
Children aged (3-5) years would master the gripping strength and assume a control over the
motor neuron functions which would serve as a pre-requisite to learn more complex words.
Children aged (5-6) years would master the skills of writing short words and also develop a sense
of stronger vocabulary.
One (1) x Digital technology teaching resource for 3-5 age group:
Outline and Rational: Using digital technology in teaching has been reported to be
extremely effective as proper utilization of the digital media enhances the perception and
learning ability of the children. The rationale behind the incorporation of this teaching technique
is to expose the children to an enhanced learning environment where both their auditory
perception and vision is being strengthened (Buckingham, 2013).
Specific concepts and Learning Outcomes: The learning technique would essentially comprise
of critical aspects of teaching that include, multiliteracies, code breaker, functional user, meaning
maker, critical analyzer and transformer. The children aged (3-5) years would be imparted
learning through visual texts couple with audio and video effects. The strategy used for this age
group would comprise of showing visual graphics and then based on that testing the observation
power of the children by conducting quizzes. Also the children would be taught the use of
information technology in four steps, the first being the switching on of a computer device,
identification of icons and painting using paint software tools.
The central idea is to get the children used to the concept of digital technology and use it
effectively to express an idea. The learning outcomes would involve learning how to switch on
and switch off a device, identify the icons, web searching and using the information for

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something constructive. In addition it would also involve gaining an expertise on using paint
software and playing games.
Identification of preparation required: The preparation required must be segregated into
smaller aspects so as to impart skills to attain proficiency in each level. The preparation involved
would require teaching the use of basic MS paint software. Also, learning about an interesting
bird can be coupled with conducting an informative session where the class would engage in
conducting a search and finding more information about the bird. Group activities can be
organized where each group would mention two important characteristics about the bird. This
would help in developing the perception ability of the children and at the same time also help in
mastering the skills the children in handling digital devices.
Identification of literacy and developmental skills that the children would be exposed to:
The literacy and the developmental skills that the children would be exposed to would comprise
of mastering the skills to effectively operate a device and at the same time relate better using the
enhanced perception ability.
One (1) x Story telling teaching resource for 2-3 age group:
Outline and Rational: Story telling has been defined as a technique that helps in
developing the creative ability as well as the concentration power of a child. The rationale of
including this method is to ensure a holistic development of the child where the child would be
able to freely communicate his thoughts and essence of creativity (Toki & Pange, 2014).
Specific concepts and Learning Outcomes: The specific concepts would be broadly based
upon the conceptual frameworks of Text decoder, text participant, text user and text analyst. For

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children aged (2-3) years, it should be noted that the text decoder technique helps in
understanding concepts and effectively enhancing the vocabulary knowledge. At this age
children possess the ability to process short sentences and decode the meaning on the basis of
punctuation and character setting. Using a technique such as a sequence of pictures and asking
the children to narrate a story can bring out the creativity in them.
The learning outcome would comprise of improving the analytical skills, creativity and
vocabulary usage in the children (Van Hoorn et al., 2014).
Identification of preparation required: The preparation would require creating a series of
pictures based on a popular tale such as that of the ‘hare and the tortoise’ and providing an
opportunity to the children to narrate their own version of the story.
Identification of literacy and developmental skills that the children would be exposed to:
The children would be exposed to a creative environment where they would be able to
communicate their expressions in an effective manner with a stronger vocabulary
Conclusion:
Hence to conclude, it can be said that the learning kit provides an effective platform of
including teaching strategies that could facilitate an accelerated development in the beginners. It
should also be mentioned here that the methods discussed are in stringent compliance with the
ECA code of ethics, EYLF and the Australian professional teaching standards so as to promote
an interactive learning environment.

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References:
Bloch, M. N., Swadener, B. B., & Cannella, G. S. (2014). Reconceptualizing Early Childhood
Care and Education. A Reader. New York: Peter Lang.pp.60
Buckingham, D. (2013). Media education: Literacy, learning and contemporary culture. John
Wiley & Sons.pp.34
Gordon, A. M., & Browne, K. W. (2013). Beginnings & beyond: Foundations in early childhood
education. Cengage learning.pp.91-94
Moss, P., Dahlberg, G., & Pence, A. (2013). Beyond quality in early childhood education and
care: Languages of evaluation. Routledge.pp.87
Sharples, M., de Roock, R., Ferguson, R., Gaved, M., Herodotou, C., Koh, E., ... & Weller, M.
(2016). Innovating pedagogy 2016: Open University innovation report 5.
Singer, E. (2013). Play and playfulness, basic features of early childhood education. European
Early Childhood Education Research Journal, 21(2), 172-184.
Tayler, C., Ishimine, K., Cloney, D., Cleveland, G., & Thorpe, K. (2013). The quality of early
childhood education and care services in Australia. Australasian Journal of Early
Childhood, 38(2), 13.
Toki, E. I., & Pange, J. (2014). ICT use in early childhood education: Storytelling. Tiltai, 66(1),
183-192.
Van Hoorn, J. L., Monighan-Nourot, P., Scales, B., & Alward, K. R. (2014). Play at the center
of the curriculum. Pearson.