Early+Learning+Standards

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**Early Learning Standards ** **Language Development and Communication ** A rich language environment has an essential impact on the rapid development of a child’s brain, that occurs during the first years of life. When adults speak with children in a timely, responsive manner, children understand the construction of speech, learn new words and become capable conversationalists. It is important that young children have many opportunities to learn language and practice communication skills in order to obtain information and express themselves in a variety of ways and settings. Children increase their language and communication skills by engaging in meaningful experiences that require them to effectively express their ideas and feelings, listen and understand others. Teachers must plan for the many ways that children communicate both verbally and non-verbally. Educators must respect and incorporate the rich diversity of families’ languages and dialects into the educational environment as children make progress in speaking and understanding English.  Children engage in play as a means to develop their listening and expressive language skills. || * Develop and experiment with conversation during daily activities and interactions.  Children develop skills in listening and in understanding language. || * Listen and understand stories, songs and poems.  Children will use verbal and non-verbal language to express and communicate information.  Listening and Understanding  • Add storytelling props to the library area for acting out original and  familiar stories1  • Model good listening such as maintaining eye contact and expressing  interest in the speaker.2  • Play listening games with children. For example, place items in a mystery  box for children to identify from clues, and play matching sounds, lotto, <span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> and treasure hunt games where children must listen to and follow a series <span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> of directions. Games such as “Simon Says” offer opportunities for children <span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> to learn specific concepts.3 <span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> • Build children’s auditory discrimination skills by playing games where the <span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> same/different sounds of words are highlighted.4 <span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> • Provide new and different experiences that expand receptive vocabulary <span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> like field trips, visitors, and objects to explore. Afterward, have children <span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> describe their experiences in their own words to see what they understand <span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> and what new words they’ve learned. || * <span style="color: black; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: 7.5pt; line-height: 9.75pt;">Communicate needs or thoughts through non-verbal gestures, actions, expressions and words.
 * **<span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: 8.5pt;">Learning Goals and Definitions ** || **<span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: 8.5pt;">Expectations ** ||
 * **<span style="color: black; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: 7.5pt;">1. Play **
 * <span style="color: black; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: 7.5pt; line-height: 9.75pt;">Represent stories and experiences through play.
 * <span style="color: black; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: 7.5pt; line-height: 9.75pt;">Think and talk about play experiences. ||
 * **<span style="color: black; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: 7.5pt;">2. Listening and Understanding **
 * <span style="color: black; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: 7.5pt; line-height: 9.75pt;">Listen and increasingly understand conversations and questions.
 * <span style="color: black; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: 7.5pt; line-height: 9.75pt;">Follow directions that involve multiple steps.
 * <span style="color: black; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: 7.5pt; line-height: 9.75pt;">Learn to wait and take turns during conversations.
 * <span style="color: black; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: 7.5pt; line-height: 9.75pt;">Demonstrate progress in listening and understanding English while maintaining home language. ||
 * **<span style="color: black; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: 7.5pt;">3. Speaking and Communicating **
 * <span style="color: black; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: 7.5pt; line-height: 9.75pt;">Participate in communication around a topic.
 * <span style="color: black; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: 7.5pt; line-height: 9.75pt;">Use more complex and longer sentences.
 * <span style="color: black; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: 7.5pt; line-height: 9.75pt;">Communicate clearly enough to be understood by unfamiliar listeners.
 * <span style="color: black; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: 7.5pt; line-height: 9.75pt;">Begin a conversation with other children and adults.
 * <span style="color: black; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: 7.5pt; line-height: 9.75pt;">Understand an increasingly complex and varied vocabulary. ||