California Preschool Learning Foundations - ECEZero2Three ...

LANGUAGE AND LITERACY
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characteristics of the real writing (e.g.,
longer words are represented by longer
strings of letter-like symbols). In the
next stage children start using actual
letters to write, even when there is no
connection between the true spelling
of what they want to write and what
they produce (i.e., producing nonphonetic
strings of letters) (Ferreiro and
Teberosky 1982; Sulzby 1986, 1987).
This stage is followed by a period
when children produce phonetic spelling,
also called “invented spelling.”
Children use letter-like symbols to
represent the parts of words that they
hear and attempt to match letters to
sounds or syllables, usually based on
sound rather than on what is written
(Ferreiro and Teberosky 1982). For
example, children may recognize that
to write something requires more than
one or two symbols, and they may also
realize that the same symbols may
recur in different words and in different
places in the word (Ferreiro and
Teberosky 1982; Temple and others
1993), but they have not yet mastered
the alphabetic principle. Nonetheless,
several studies have shown that
invented spelling is an effective vehicle
through which many children begin to
understand the alphabetic principle
(Clarke 1988; Ehri 1988; Torgesen and
Davis 1996).
Throughout this early stage of
learning to write, children begin to
realize that writing carries meaning;
people should be able to read what
you write (Clay 1977; Harste, Woodward,
and Burke 1984; Kress 1994).
They also learn that people write
for different purposes (Ferreiro and
Teberosky 1982; Heath 1983; Schieffelin
and Cochran-Smith 1984; Taylor
and Dorsey-Gaines 1988; Teale 1987).
While research shows that children
from different cultural and socioeconomic
backgrounds have different
experiences with written language,
it also shows that all children have
experienced written language and its
purposes (McGee and Richgels 1990).
Finally, children have the physical
experience of actually writing
and drawing, in which they begin to
develop effective (or not so effective)
ways of handling writing implements.
While many children handle writing
implements efficiently, some children
need support in learning to do so.
Children who are still using scribbles
and have difficulty with the basic
shapes (circle, square, triangle) would
benefit from informal instruction in
learning to make these shapes, since
they ease the transition to learning
letters (Lesiak 1997).
Preschool Learning Foundations, Volume 1 • California Department of Education