How young children learn to read and write: Underlying principles
Learning to read and write begins at birth and builds on children’s basic need to communicate. Reading and writing take place within a broader context of language development. In an active learning environment, children want to use language—indeed they eagerly choose to read, write, and converse with others—because they have meaningful things to communicate about and caring people to communicate with. Teachers and caregivers, in partnership with parents at home, promote this process by supporting and extending children’s emerging interests and by providing varied and stimulating materials and experiences.