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Joyful Reading and Writing with Young Children

REL West
Author(s):
The Regional Educational Laboratory (REL) Program
Publication date:
July 2021

These resources share practical strategies for teachers to promote joyful reading experiences and support language and literacy development for multilingual learners ages 3-8, with a particular emphasis on dual language learners and English learner students. The resources are based on the What Works Clearinghouse practice guide, "Improving Reading Comprehension in Kindergarten through 3rd Grade," the National Clearinghouse for English Language Acquisition teaching practice brief, "Integrating Language Into Early Childhood Education," and other research-based guidance.

 

Improving Reading Comprehension in Kindergarten Through 3rd Grade (5.14 MB)
Integrating Language Into Early Childhood Education (831.29 KB)
Professional Learning Videos
Joyful Reading and Creative Expression with Young Children: Planning Tips and Tools


In this video, Dr. Pamela Spycher shares tips, tools, and resources for planning joyful reading and creative expression activities with young children in preschool through the early elementary grades. An accompanying 

Joyful Reading and Creative Expression with Young Children: Planning Tips and Tools (5.5 MB)

contains tips, templates, and resources to help educators plan joyful read alouds and creative expression activities with young children.

Video Transcript: Joyful Reading and Creative Expression With Young Children: Planning Tips and Tools (180.72 KB)
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Professional Learning Videos
Scaffolding Emergent Reading, Oral Language, and Writing for Dual Language Learners/English Learners in PreK–1st Grade

Learn about practical ideas for engaging young children with complex texts and supporting them to talk and write about the texts.

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Professional Learning Videos
Language & Literacy Development in PreK–1st Grade: Words and More

Explore how teachers can build language-rich classrooms to cultivate young children's language development.

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Professional Learning Videos
Joyful Reading at School and at Home: A storybook reading routine

Delve into a routine for interactive read alouds using culturally affirming storybooks, which can be used by teachers, families, and caregivers.

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Professional Learning Videos
Joyful Reading at School and at Home: Creative expression activities

Learn how to expand on the joyful reading routine with creative expression activities and how to implement them in partnership with parents and families.

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Educator Resources

The resources below provide ideas for engaging young multilingual learners in joyful reading and supporting their language and literacy development. The reading activity guides can be shared with parents, families, and caregivers to strengthen school-home literacy partnerships.

Ideas for enjoying the book at home
Ideas for enjoying the book at home
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I Am Every Good Thing
I Am Every Good Thing
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Esther the Wonder Pig
Esther the Wonder Pig
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Drawn Together
Drawn Together
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Last Stop on Market Street
Last Stop on Market Street
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Mango, Abuela, and Me
Mango, Abuela, and Me
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Joyful Reading and Creative Expression Activity Guide Template: I Like Myself
Joyful Reading and Creative Expression Activity Guide Template: I Like Myself
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Instructional Videos
A Teaching Routine for Academic Vocabulary in Grades PreK–1

This video walks viewers through a 3-step routine for teaching new vocabulary to young children that includes lots of opportunities to practice using the new word in different ways.
 

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Instructional Videos
Interactive Read Alouds: Learning from books together

This video shares tips for asking effective questions for both on-the-surface and deeper-dive discussions of books, models the read aloud process, and introduces a writing task and a read aloud planning template. Download the related lesson planning template, which includes step-by-step instructions for planning your own interactive read alouds.

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Instructional Videos
Interactive writing instruction online with young children

This video demonstrates how to facilitate an interactive writing lesson with kindergarteners and first graders in a distance learning environment. Watch Professor Nell K. Duke from the University of Michigan as she teaches children how to collaboratively write a letter using an online interactive whiteboard.

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Other Resource
REL West

Joyful Reading and Writing with Young Children

By: The Regional Educational Laboratory (REL) Program
Download and view this document Scaffolding Emergent Reading, Oral Language, and Writing for Dual Language Learners/English Learners in PreK-1st Grade Agenda Scaffolding Emergent Reading, Oral Language, and Writing for Dual Language Learners/English Learners in PreK-1st Grade Slide Deck Scaffolding Emergent Reading, Oral Language, and Writing for Dual Language Learners/English Learners in PreK-1st Grade Transcript Language & Literacy Development in PreK-1st Grade: Words and More Agenda
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Language & Literacy Development in PreK-1st Grade: Words and More Agenda Slide Deck Language & Literacy Development in PreK-1st Grade: Words and More Transcript Joyful Reading at School and at Home: A storybook reading routine Agenda Joyful Reading at School and at Home: A storybook reading routine Slide Deck Joyful Reading at School and at Home: A storybook reading routine Transcipt Joyful Reading at School and at Home: Creative expression activities Agenda Joyful Reading at School and at Home: Creative expression activities Slide Deck Joyful Reading at School and at Home: Creative expression activities Transcipt Reading Activity Guide: Planning Template English Reading Activity Guide: Planning Template Spanish Reading Activity Guide: I Am Every Good Thing by Derrick Barns English Reading Activity Guide: I Am Every Good Thing by Derrick Barns Spanish Reading Activity Guide: Esther the Wonder Pig by Steve Jenkins, Derek Walter, & Caprice Crane English Reading Activity Guide: Esther the Wonder Pig by Steve Jenkins, Derek Walter, & Caprice Crane Spanish Reading Activity Guide: Drawn Together English Reading Activity Guide: Drawn Together Spanish Reading Activity Guide: The Last Stop on Market Street English Reading Activity Guide: The Last Stop on Market Street Spanish Reading Activity Guide: Mango, Abuela and Me Spanish Reading Activity Guide: Mango, Abuela and Me English Reading Activity Guide: I Like Myself English Reading Activity Guide: I Like Myself Spanish A Teaching Routine for Academic Vocabulary in Grades PreK-1 Transcript Interactive Read alouds: Learning from books together Transcript Planning for an Interactive Readaloud with Children in Pre-K, Kindergarten, or 1st Grade Interactive writing instruction online with young children Transcript

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Tags

English Learners (EL), K-12 Education, Reading

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