The children, teachers, aides, and parents in this Head Start classroom have a new partner.
The librarian and staff from the local public, or perhaps the school library.
It's all part of the Library Head Start Partnership Project, designed to help integrate books and library programs into the experiences of Head Start children and their families.
The overall goal of this wonderful undertaking is to give Head Start children exposure to lots of imagination-stirring, thought-provoking books as motivation for further learning.
Just as you individualize the Head Start curriculum, the librarian selects and organizes books and other materials for the varied needs of children.
A librarian uses recommendations, reviews, and hands-on examination to select and order books, and to keep up to date on the best of children's books and supporting media.
The librarian also has access to many other print and electronic resources.
Hi, it's good to meet you finally.
Your collaboration with the local library begins with a visit and a discussion about your group of children.
We have some single-parent homes and a lot of two parents working.
They're all four-year-olds, but they...
You'll discuss class size, age range, and other general characteristics that guide your approach to a daily learning plan for each individual.
More than half of the class is Spanish-speaking.
However, the focus of your discussions will be on the special needs of the children.
Several of the children have just in the last few months had a baby in the home, and there are a couple who are expecting.
And in the classroom, we can see that things are different at home.
We have some real...
You'll discuss the learning styles of your children.
Do some learn best when they have both visual and listening experiences, and others when they have something in their hands?
You'll profile the variety of developmental levels within your classes.
Are some performing below or above their age levels?
What do they understand, laugh at, and respond to?
Are there children whose emotional health is a factor in your teaching?
Do some have attention deficit or are withdrawn or are disabled physically?
Are many children from single-parent homes with a parent working?
Do some come without breakfast?
What are the cultures and languages represented in your group?
Ethnic background. We have children from so many different cultures.
There are some kids that I haven't been able to get much material on.
With help from the library, you can identify books and materials that will reinforce the curriculum and help tailor it to individuals.
I'm certain that I have some books that relate to some of those things you mentioned, the new baby.
Eleanor, as you can see, a lot of the books...
You'll want to visit with a librarian at the library to see all the possibilities.
There's some oversized books. They're great with larger audiences.
Write the pictures of soon-to-be children.
Though many of the book-related activities will be conducted in groups,
you'll find a variety of materials to better suit the individual needs and interests of your children.
Children would love this book. They love babies.
But babies aren't always quite as cute to the older sibling in a family.
We pulled one, which addresses that issue.
Julius, the baby of the world. It speaks to the issue of sibling rivalry.
This book might be a little difficult for the non-English speakers in my classroom.
Do you have anything that's simpler?
I think we pulled one of those earlier.
However, the library has more than books.
Enhancement materials fully integrated into the story experience can support a variety of learning styles.
This is your standard type puppet. I'm sure you recognize it.
It's Frederick.
Yes. Looking at something that's participatory, you could share a Nancy on the moss-covered rock, and then make stick puppets.
And how do you use them in the classroom then?
Helping assemble the materials is an ideal way to get parents involved.
The librarian is prepared to assist you in making library materials come alive in the classroom.
This type of puppet would be completely new to my children. They'd really enjoy this. I'd like it if you'd bring these.
Okay, then I'll make sure that this is one of the items that I bring with me when I come.
Okay, great.
Music
Most of your library partnership activities will take place in your own classroom.
But there can be events and occasions planned for children and their parents to visit the library.
The librarian can also help locate people outside the library to participate in programs.
I need some books for next week, my class.
Once your relationship is underway, you'll be familiar with the resources available and how to access them, including long-term loans.
So you could pull those for me? All right, and then I'll come in next week to get them.
As your partnership matures, you'll learn techniques to more effectively reach children with books and story materials.
The partnership will encourage lifelong learning and reading habits,
leaking library resources to all Head Start components, social services, health, education, and parent and family involvement.
Music
I'm going to eat you for my dinner.
I'm going to eat you up. And what do you think the medium-sized Billy Goat Gruff says?
When children enjoy stories, think about and identify with ideas, they're building self-esteem.
It is this self-esteem, this confidence, that will lead to literacy and, eventually, to full participation in life as an adult.
One of their first steps along this life path will be the one they take into a print-rich Head Start classroom.
In such an environment, pre-readers quickly become familiar with the words that identify objects and actions.
Their artwork and clothes hooks are labeled with their names.
Learning centers of the room are identified with words.
There are books displayed face-out as well as in baskets.
There are pictures, posters, and globes, all with words that give them added meaning.
There are manipulatives waiting to be enjoyed, such as blocks and large wooden puzzles to strengthen eye-hand coordination and other pre-reading skills.
Reading and related activities should take place all over the classroom.
A pretend doctor's office can have medical charts, get-well cards, and even magazines.
The guidance and additional resources to help you create a print-rich environment is one of the benefits of your partnership with the library staff.
A librarian can also assist you in preparing a special reading corner, organizing it to be more inviting, more interesting with comfortable pillows to sit on, and an easy chair for an adult reader or storyteller.
The reading corner can include a writing center with pencil and paper, crayons, rubber stands, stencils, envelopes and scissors, magnetic letter boards, and blocks and cut-out letters.
The library can also help you identify other materials to place in your reading corner to support the development of pre-reading skills.
In addition to a continuing flow of books, these can include puppets, toys, and story dolls created from book characters.
Whenever I tell a story to my children, I always have one or two children saying, I can't see, I can't see.
I think I'm holding the book correctly, but maybe I'm missing something.
It's nice to hold it open like this and read, and you also want to float it.
One of the most valuable benefits of your collaboration with a librarian will be help in acquiring skills for reading books with children.
As far as participating in a story is having one where the repetition is constant, and that's exactly what this book does.
The bed creaks, the floor squeaks, and it goes on, and we hear this throughout the entire tale, and you'll hear these tiny little voices chiming in, repeating the lines for you.
Begin by selecting a book that you like and are comfortable with.
Read it to yourself several times to identify ways to make it come alive.
Focusing rituals help children settle and prepare them to participate.
Head and mouth, eyes on the teacher, mouth closed, ear listening.
Very good. The story we're going to read today is called Too Much Noise.
When you're reading to a group, use books that are large enough so that everyone can see the illustrations.
The pictures should be bold and well defined and relate to the words you're reading.
Peter went to see the wise man of the village. There's the wise man of the village. The wise man is reading a book. Do you see that?
Whispered it to Grandma.
Don't be too eager to get on with the story.
Move the book around slowly to be sure everyone has a chance to see and think about the pictures.
Children like it when you change your voice to create different characters and personalities.
And Gemma said, eat up Gemma. She said it herself.
Key to the reading experience is that the children have the opportunity to participate.
How many of you have seen a real cow? Raise your hand if you've seen a real cow.
I saw a donkey.
You've seen a donkey too? You've seen a donkey.
Books with repetition, a rhyme or a chant offer the chance for them to join in.
The leaves fell on the roof. The teakettle whistles. And what's Peter going to say?
Too much noise.
Let children enter into the story and relate the story to themselves and their own experience.
Peter was angry. What made you angry as angry as Peter is now?
I was sleeping when my dad woke me up I'm angry.
Where are cows supposed to live?
In the farm.
In the farm. Do they live in a house?
Ask questions as you go along. But be sure they're open-ended questions that elicit more than simple yes, no answers.
What's the name of their cow's house? What would you call that?
A barn.
Let them guess what they think happens next before you read on.
What do you think's going to happen?
Gemma's going to eat it.
You think Gemma's going to come eat him? What do you think?
Yes.
Yes, you do?
Yeah.
Okay. Once upon a time there were four little rabbits.
When sharing a book with an individual or just a couple of children, sit close or hold a child if it's appropriate.
Warmth can also be conveyed by the tone of your voice.
What's he doing, Jose?
In an intimate setting, you can use smaller books since you'll be sitting close.
Many children like to examine tiny details in the pictures.
This is an ideal opportunity to relate aspects of the story to each child as an individual.
Allow plenty of time for personal responses and questions.
Does he look like he has a stomach ache?
Does your mommy give you parsley or acorn when you have a stomach ache?
No.
What does she give you?
Like medicine.
That's a good choice. What about you, Jose?
Good boy. You don't have some good answers.
Okay, let's move along.
Storytelling is as old as history and a tradition in many cultures.
Anybody remember what Grandma Tony was?
Como te llamas?
You can make this tradition your own.
Effective storytellers choose stories they like since the stories will have to be learned and told with drama and enthusiasm.
Storytellers find stories in books or use their own remembered experiences.
Hi, Mrs. Jameson.
Hi there. Oh, I'm happy to see you. Does anyone know what this is?
Some storytellers like to provide a focusing point, like a story hat, that signals that magic is about to happen.
You have? Now does this look like his hat?
Shorter stories are usually appropriate for young children.
Add or subtract elements for different audiences and situations.
For breakfast, he'd only have cheese. All different types.
Cream cheese, American cheese, Swiss cheese, Dutch cheese, but just cheese for breakfast.
For lunch, he would only have, can you guess?
Peas. Right, peas!
Be prepared for participation, especially if the story contains chants, challenges by characters, or repetitions.
Cheese, peas, and chocolate pudding.
Huppets are excellent enhancements and can help children participate in the story.
Which explains why dogs hate cats.
The use of story extender materials can enhance a child's experience with books and stories.
My hand!
Huppets and story dolls can also be used by the child who has trouble expressing emotion.
Huppets can be an alter ego, making it possible to communicate feelings.
There are a wide variety of puppet types. Stick, string, hand, finger.
The librarian can suggest which stories work well with puppets and other dramatic play.
Simple stages can be built from cartons and colored paper.
Figures that stick to a flannel board are another popular enhancement.
Children can assist the storyteller in illustrating the story.
The library is also a good source for music to accompany stories.
Audio tapes are easy to use.
There are a lot of books that are accompanied by related media, such as videos and film strips.
These can help you develop a story theme built around an animal, holidays, or even a color.
The activities that are already part of your Head Start program can also relate to books,
such as children and volunteer parents together creating artwork from stories.
Dramatic play and acting out scenes from books are effective enhancements, as are finger plays and games.
Songs related to your theme can be used to close a story time or give children a chance to stretch between stories.
A surprising number of stories have food as a major element,
which ties in nicely with the importance of nutrition and meal preparation in Head Start.
Remember the story where you read Peter's chair? How Peter got angry?
However, the best enhancement you can provide may be simply talking about the stories,
showing children that books continue to have meaning for them long after the stories have ended.
He's praying with his chair.
The number of children's books published grows each year.
But which are the outstanding ones that children will make their own?
A librarian reads and compares lots of children's books and uses tools to help her evaluate them.
She can share with you some of the things she knows about what makes a good book good.
Among the basic selection tools are bibliographies and book lists.
Bibliographic listings are a guide to the best of a huge number of children's books
and are available to help you select books from a multitude of topics.
There are book lists for children with special interests and needs, books about places or kinds of people.
Reviews provide additional guidance to the content and quality of children's books.
Reviews appear in professional journals, library journals, those for the early childhood community,
and periodicals for teachers and others.
They also appear in newspapers and consumer magazines.
Do you have any books that show a grandmother or grandfather in a primary caretaker role?
You will use some of these bibliographies and reviews yourself,
and your librarian can prepare special lists for you based on what you think your children will like.
A wide variety of people from different ethnic backgrounds so that the children can recognize themselves in the book.
Absolutely. You'll find that it's very multicultural. It's located in an inner city.
As a head start teacher, you know an individual child's needs are not just based on age and stage of development.
Among the books you choose should be those that reflect the culture, family lifestyle,
and racial and ethnic background of children in the classroom.
Also considered should be the child's emotional life and physical abilities.
But children must also be exposed to people and cultures beyond their own experience.
It is not enough to avoid stereotypes and tokenism.
The books you select should open the child's mind to the differences and similarities of people.
There are a number of things to look for in selecting a good storybook for reading to children.
When daddy picks me up from the daycare center and takes me to the grocery store, he says,
Children like stories to be grounded in a definite location and time.
Some stories can reflect everyday experiences.
Daddy makes the best spaghetti. He lets me push the cart, and I remind him not to forget the hamburger.
In the great green room, there was a telephone.
Children enjoy stories set in imaginary places as well.
The cow jumping over the moon, and there were three little bears sitting on chairs.
She combed out the water. She combed out the fishes.
But stories should also stretch children's thinking by introducing them to new worlds and cultures.
The people were overjoyed to have their river again.
They poured water over themselves and over their animals.
They jumped into the river, and they laughed and cried with happiness.
They shouted, Po Po, Po Po, come in.
At the moment he entered the door, the wolf blew out the candle.
Many stories are told by an all-knowing narrator who describes the action and what the characters are feeling.
The wolf did not answer. Tau and Pousy rushed to their Po Po and wished to be hugged.
The old wolf held Tau. Good child, you are so plump.
It's getting a little dark out. I don't want to read anymore.
When will we get to Lulu's house? Baltimore, Baltimore.
However, stories told by the main character have a special immediacy and appeal.
Babs, wake up. I take our suitcase and my book.
Babs takes her teddy bear. The conductor slides our trunk down for us.
He saw his crib and muttered, my crib, it's painted pink too.
Not far away stood his old chair.
The characters, whether people or animals, should be dynamic, developing and changing as real people do.
Let's run away, Willie, he said. Peter filled a shopping bag with cookies and dog biscuits.
We'll take my blue chair, my toy crocodile, and the picture of me when I was a baby.
There used to be a nightmare in my closet.
Before going to sleep, I was close to my door.
I was even afraid to turn around and look.
Select stories that show characters in a range of roles, genders, ages, races, and cultures.
One Sunday morning, the warm sun came up and pop, out of the egg came a tiny bear.
Children like to know where a story is going and even be able to anticipate the next event.
On Monday, he ate through one apple, but he was still hungry.
On Tuesday, he ate through two pears, but he was still hungry.
Knowing what is coming next gives children the feeling they're reading by themselves.
That chicken must be as fat as a balloon by now, he thought. Let's see.
Humor, suspense, and surprise all delight children.
Suddenly, and the chicken screeched, oh, so it was you, Mr. Wolf.
Children, children, look, the pancakes and the donuts and the scrumptious cake, they weren't from Santa Claus.
All those presents were from Uncle Wolf.
It was Joy and Simon with their four cousins.
Come in, Sid Ma, you can share the cookies. That's one each, said Sam and Victoria.
Good stories have underlying themes. Children should get the main idea.
For example, the importance of sharing.
No one makes cookies like Grandma, said Ma, as the doorbell rang.
Oh dear, said Ma, as the children stared at the cookies on their plates.
Perhaps you'd better eat them before we open the door.
We'll wait, said Sam.
What's a mosquito compared to a yam, snapped the iguana grumpily.
I'd rather be deaf than listen to such nonsense.
Then he stuck two sticks in his ears and went off.
A book should contain words that expand vocabulary.
The iguana is still grumbling to himself when he happened to pass the python.
The big snake raised his head and said, Good morning, iguana.
The iguana did not answer but lumbered on.
Second structure and length should be appropriate for the age group.
Now why won't he speak to me, said the python to himself.
Iguana must be angry about something.
And he lifted the dust speck and carried it over and placed it down on his face.
These are juicy words that tickle the imagination and are fun to say.
Humph, humphed a voice.
It was a sour kangaroo.
And the young kangaroo in her pouch said, Humph!
Two.
One.
Six seconds.
And all was the head of a pin.
A person on that?
Why, there never has been.
Max said, Be still and tamed them with the magic trick of staring into all their yellow eyes without blinking once.
The style and mood of a book's illustrations should complement the text and help children follow the story's sequence.
King of all the wild things.
And now cried Max, let the wild rumpus start.
Pictures can extend the story by saying things the words don't say.
Just by themselves, good illustrations can help children understand the story's basic concepts.
A well illustrated book delights children and allows them to discover more in the pictures each time they pick it up.
The book itself can play a major role in introducing children to reading skills.
They should have the opportunity to see individual words and letters.
Large type size and clear words are important for pre-readers.
The printing of the illustrations should be of high quality.
Good printing enhances children's sense of what a quality book is.
The open book should allow everything to be seen.
Words should not run into the margins.
I'm as tough as a rhino.
Good jacket artwork definitely attracts readers.
Laminated or plastic covers help protect books from stains or fingerprints.
The binding should be strong and the pages sewn in, not glued, to stand up to heavy use in the classroom setting.
In your pre-reading program, stimulate and follow up interest in the story with non-book materials.
A story can often be told in a non-print format.
To help you select the best of these materials, there are published lists, reviews, and other guidelines the librarian can help you locate.
Here's something I think you'll find useful.
If you're using library-owned materials, you can be confident that the materials in your library's collection have been selected using established guidelines.
Pick this particular one.
Because it was a starred review in School Library Journal.
However you obtain these materials, never use them with children unless you are familiar with them yourself.
It was hot.
Eleanor, I thought about it and I think I have the exact book that you're going to need.
Papa, please get the moon boy.
Does it have surprises in it?
Yes.
Choosing among the vast array of books may at first seem a daunting task,
but with the help of the librarian, you'll find that using books that are right for your children is a reward in itself.
Parents are the first and most important influence on a child's desire to learn.
To help their children get ready to read, Head Start parents need to know how to reinforce what the children are learning.
As a Head Start teacher, there are some things you can do to help them.
Begin with inviting parents to observe your reading and story activities in the classroom.
Then encourage parents to participate in class story time.
With parents, their child's pre-reading activities and the possibility of workshops that will help them practice these activities at home.
Have a parent meeting and talk about ways to introduce books to children and get children interested in books.
The librarian can help design workshops that involve parents in their child's development as a reader.
And he's a bit excited about the dinosaur.
He found a topic that he enjoyed, dinosaurs, and he came to the adult because we're expected to be able to explain these things to them.
And with the help of books, it can be done.
Workshops can include a variety of topics, such as helping their child identify objects and develop concepts, and how to read aloud.
Things that tend to work best are those that are predictable and those that have a lot of repetition.
Sometimes if we go away for somewhere, my son will be asking me, trying to remind me what did they see and see his grandma and where did they go.
One focus will be encouraging parents to recognize learning opportunities they see in everyday home life.
The gentleman over here was talking about how they make the trips and everything and come back and talk about them.
A photograph would work just for the cover of this particular book. My house.
Tell parents it's important to talk to their child about everyday family matters.
This is the sort of thing with the use of those old photographs you can allow the child to make their own little book.
You see?
Parents need to know that they too can create a print-rich environment.
The library can provide them with resources such as picture cookbooks that they will enjoy using with their children.
Even the simplest things can enhance children's pre-reading skills such as magnetic letters on the refrigerator and shopping lists, or newspapers, magazines, and word games.
Seeing parents reading to themselves can be a great motivator.
Parents should also know they can harness the power of TV as a learning tool.
Adults can select programs that they and their children can watch together.
Libraries sometimes receive advanced information about TV programming.
Parents can talk about and follow up programs with books and related materials from the library.
If you are a home visitor in the home-based option, you will need to emphasize to parents their added responsibility in using books.
Provide them with a variety of carefully selected materials.
Okay, what do you do with these parts of your body, your eyes?
Getting Head Start parents involved in their child's pre-reading introduces them to their own use of the library.
An orientation to the library itself can be linked to events you urge families to attend, including those Head Start and the library jointly sponsor for special occasions.
Or their introduction can be through library programs you promote, such as parent-child story times.
Once familiar with the library, parents will find many services that can help them.
The library is a center for meetings and community activities.
Library cards are available for the loan of books and other materials.
Typewriters, copiers, and computers including databases also may be available for use.
Libraries provide employment information which may include a state job bank.
They will have listings of accredited vocational and technical training programs, licensing requirements for occupations such as drivers and beauticians,
guidance on GED high school equivalency, and requirements for entrance into higher education programs.
The library can identify and refer adults to community-based services, including housing information, where to find counseling for children,
the availability of literacy volunteers, and health-related programs.
The library itself may sponsor classes in areas such as parenting skills, English language training, and family literacy.
The children's librarian and library resources can also help you do better what you're already doing.
Requesting special workshops is an excellent way to increase the skills of your staff and classroom volunteers.
We all read stories to kids, but what do you do after you've read the story?
And as a sample, I thought we might look at more spaghetti, I say.
Library workshops can help you identify learning experiences in your curriculum using library books and other materials.
One way you can expand the story is through graphing and have the students name their favorite food.
Maybe give them a limited choice of four foods to pick their favorite.
The bars show how many students like each one. You're introducing math concepts. You're doing food. You're making decision making.
So graphing is one follow-up to our spaghetti story.
Another way of doing a follow-up is to use a Venn diagram format.
Here you're asking the students to think about how spaghetti changes when it's cooked.
A way to do this, in addition to just a chart, is to use hula hoops. And you can make your Venn diagram three-dimensional.
We took a nature walk in the fall and the children collected the leaves and then we took the yellow leaves and we took the red leaves.
We put one in one hula hoop and one in the other, overlapping the hula hoops, and then they decided on leaves that were red and yellow to go in the center of the Venn.
We're going to talk now about some things you can do with books that focus on a single concept.
In this case, we're going to start with the idea of whose shoe is it?
It shows you a picture of a particular shoe and it allows you to ask the children, what shoe is that? Who would wear it?
Another library workshop focus can be the use of books and the development of creative thinking.
Some things that you can do as follow-up activities. One of the things that came to mind was using a tic-tac-toe format.
And in this case, you're asking the students to discover something that is a shared concept that makes three in a row.
In this case, we have all-tie shoes or all-men's shoes.
Evaluation is something we're all very involved with and one of the things I wanted to have us look at were some possible objectives.
What came to my mind as a major objective in Head Start is obviously language development.
Application of thinking skills is another one because little kids can do an awful lot if we structure it for them.
Things like experiences with comparing and contrasting.
Based on goals and objectives you establish, workshops can help identify ways of evaluating the success of what you're doing with library materials.
The thing you're evaluating is has this child taken a smattering of objects and put them in groups for a defendable reason.
And these kinds of thinking skills get these youngsters really ready to move ahead as they hit the upper grade and start using information in more detail.
The library can also help you expand activities that help children focus on the enjoyment of books and reading.
Okay, you finished and Mrs. Gonzalez will tie it at the end.
I'm looking for a book called Mary Had a Little Lamb. It's a new book.
A Little African American Girl with Glasses?
Yes, and it has photographs. It doesn't have painting.
And when you decide to add to your permanent book collection, coordinating book selection, ordering and purchasing with your library partner may provide you a broader selection and price benefits.
Have them in time for your next book basket.
That'd be great. I really would like to have that book in the classroom.
Okay.
What children gain from living with books is a desire to explore a world much larger than their own, a sense of identity and confidence, and a sense of who they can become.
Acquiring a love for literature is the most powerful incentive for children to become lifelong readers and writers.
Okay.