The Key Skill (Really) Among the Big Six!

The Nov. 2008 issue of SLJ (pg. 33) contains an article, by Renea Arnold and Nell Coburn, on the six early literacy skills that all of us are a-buzz about. The authors describe a presentation by college professor, Christyn Dundorf, which illustrated how the EL skills lead to success in reading. What jumped out at me, as I read the article, was that Dundorf singled out print motivation as the key EL skill. Duh! This affirmed what I have always believed, and even expressed to parents (as a professional opinion, of course) in my programs. Make books and reading fun, and the other skills will follow. Engage them and they'll come back for more. And the more thay come back for, the easier it will be for them to leap into independent reading. And a lifelong appreciation for the power of the printed word. This is big stuff we do with the little ones!