These guidelines help assess a child’s literacy development. Keep in mind that the grade levels associated with each phase described are only approximate. In each grade there are likely to be children in all phases of literacy acquisition. Also, remember that within each phase there may be a range of learners who are developing in different ways.

Phases of Early Literacy: Beginning Reading and Writing

I. Emergent Readers and Writers (pre-kindergarten through first grade):

• understand that written language conveys messages
• pretend read and write: they turn pages of books, invent the story using pictures and their memory of a story
• begin to match spoken words with print
• may know some letter names and some letter sound associations
• may recognize some words and letters in their environment or in texts; but not again in a different context; they may still be unsure of the concept of “word” or “letter”
• can write some letters, usually those in their own names
• in writing may reverse some letters, and may use mostly upper case letters
• may make scribbles or strings of random letters with no spaces; one letter may represent a whole word
• may “read” or attribute meaning to their marks; may not be able to “re-read” these marks at a later time

Children in this phase benefit from:

• seeing reading and writing modeled through listening to good stories and seeing others write meaningful messages
• supported practice while reading engaging, predictable books with pictures that clearly relate to and illustrate the story line
• encouragement to experiment with writing
• experience with sorting words and pictures to build letter and sound recognition
  
• experience with rhyming and other word play
• activities that engage students in using oral and written language

II. Early Readers (first grade through second grade):

• know that reading needs to make sense
• are more attentive to print and know more print conventions
• understand that books have exact and unchanging messages carried by print as well as pictures
• can identify most letters by name, and can use some letter/sound knowledge (i.e., the sound of the first letter) to help figure out words
• know the meaning of some punctuation (capitals and periods), but may not use them consistently in writing and reading
• can recognize, by sight, a small but growing store of words in different contexts
• use pictures, story patterns, context and memory of some words as well as some phonics to make sense of print

Early Writers:

• use spaces between words, but not consistently
• include more sound/letter associations in spelling, especially initial or final consonants; may write some whole words or word parts (like “ing”) from memory
• can usually re-read their own writing
• have variable handwriting: may use more lower case letters, but still could be mixed with caps, may reverse some letters (writing b instead of d)

Children in this phase benefit from:

• continued exposure to shared and guided reading of pattern stories and other predictable books, with clear print and pictures
• modeling and explicit teaching of and practice with using, three cuing systems and strategies to figure out words and make sense of print
• games, activities to consolidate voice/print match and build sight word recognition
• games and activities to build phonemic awareness
• encouragement to write using invented spelling
• language experience activities
• hearing, discussing, retelling a variety of stories read aloud
  

III. Early Fluent / Fluent Readers (second through third grade):

• recognize many words in and out of context
• can apply phonics and other word analysis skills to figure out and confirm new words
• monitor their own reading for meaning and self-correct as needed
• read with increased fluency, accuracy, and expression

Early Fluent / Fluent Writers

• are more comfortable with drafting, revising, and editing
• show influence of the texts they have read
• express their ideas more elaborately
• use spelling that is closer to conventional spelling
• increase their use of punctuation

Children in this phase benefit from:

• continued opportunities to read and discuss a variety of increasingly challenging and personally meaningful texts
• continued practice reading for meaning using various strategies: integrating cuing systems, self monitoring and self-correcting
• exposure to, and practice with more aspects of word analysis
• practice building accuracy, fluency, expression
• practice reading silently
• guidance and practice with specific comprehension strategies
• encouragement to continue writing with increasing support for revision and editing
• hearing and discussing a variety of literature read aloud