Birth to three matters - Communities and Local Government

oute that reflects the particularcircumstances of his own individualhistory and experience’ (Halliday 1978:21).As children ex pe ri m e nt, t a ke risks and makem a rks that ‘stand for things in the wo rl d’( Kress 2000: 6 ), within a lite ra cy ri c he nv i ro n m e nt, including news p a pe r s, ce re a lp a c ke t s, s i g n s, n o t i ce s, a dve rt i s e m e nt s,p ri nted tee shirts as well as screen lite ra cy,with adults who ca re and inte ra ct in as u p po rting and challenging manner, t h e nt h ey will emerge as lite ra cy userst h e m s e lve s. Howeve r, this is not a tidyp rocess – such as underw riting or co py i n gm ay seem to be – and it is nece s s a ry to ‘l i vewith the litter of lite ra cy’ ( Ha r s te et al 1984 :140) as those who have doc u m e nted theirown and other childre n’s lite ra cyd eve l o p m e nt will co n f i rm (eg Bi s s ex 1980 ,Pahl 1999) with signs, n o t i ce s, s c raps ofp a per establishing ident i ty, re l ationships ando f fe ring pe r s u a s i o n ,as well as maps,co n s t ru ctions and arte f a cts appe a ring atw i l l . Howeve r, the lasting effe cts of thiste m po ra ry state are that young childre nd evelop as makers and users of the symbo l i ccode in meaningful ways, l e a rning of thepower and influence that co m m u n i cat i o na cts invo lving writing can wield.LINKS WITH THE FRAMEWORKThe Development Matters points forthis Aspect, A Competent Learner, inthe Framework Birth to Three Matters areas follows:-Making ConnectionsYoung babies use movement andsensory exploration to connect withtheir immediate environment.As they become more mobile, babiesconnect with toys, objects and a widergroup of people.Young children learn through repeatingpatterns of play (sometimes calledSCHEMA).(CD-ROM).Children begin to connect objects andideas: a pair of socks, a big teddy,armbands for swimming.Being ImaginativeYoung babies enjoy and learn byimitating their key person.As they become mobile, babies usetheir whole bodies to recreate anexperience.Young children re-enact familiar sceneswith the help of people, props andresources.Children engage in concentrated playin which they extend their languageand try out ideas, feelings, relationshipsand movements.100 EDUCATIONAND SKILLS B I RT H T O T H R E E M AT T E R S