III. LITERACY IN EARLY CHILDHOOD The six years of primary school are crucial to the educational development of the child. This is when the child learns to read independently. It is also the time when he is likely to establish reading habits that will prevail through secondary school and adult life. A good primary school reading syllabus should provide for both the development of reading skills and the encouragement of reading for pleasure. Ideally, literacy in this early stage cuts across the entire course of study. There is need to take note of introducing literacy/literature to children since it involves the development of appreciation and taste. Many Nigerian children now have more contacts and interests than their counterparts some decades ago. This is because, the television and other electronic devices have brought the World to their living rooms, and they watch and listen to various literacy programmes meant for their age and those of adults too. It is necessary to point out here that the home has a great contribution to make not only to the child‟s personality but also to his cognitive development, through child stimulation. Child stimulation starts as early as the child is born. The mother must not delay talking to the infant, thinking he/she is too small to understand. As soon as the senses begin to function, learning starts. That is why the care giver must start right from birth to appeal to all the senses through talking, singing, patting, decorating the baby‟s cot, etc. As the baby grows, other adults and children should be encouraged to play with the child. Through this socialization process, children learn to manifest such characteristics as confidence, competency cooperation and friendship. Yarrow, Rubinstein and Pederson (1995) in their study of “Childhood Education” added that toys and a variety of play materials significantly affect infant development in such areas as reading and grasping, and exploratory behaviour. Thus, the earlier the opportunities are provided for exploration of varied objects, spaces and places and, the stronger the development of curiosity, the better the inquisitiveness and questioning. The role of the teacher of young children is to co-operate with nature in helping each child develop his/her potentials. The teacher, whether the indirect (parents/other adults) or the direct (the certified teacher) needs an understanding of some of the principles of child development as they are applied in traditional and modern education. Unoh (1983) argued in favour of this ascertion and says that education is the art of teaching and training the child to enhance his physical, intellectual, moral and spiritual development. A generally acknowledgement need in Nigeria today is for skilled manpower, and the crucial question is how that supply can best be achieved (Adams 2008). Academically-oriented curricular provide the base for the development of this skilled manpower. This is done in various stages of development of the child, from nursery to the higher education and from childhood to adulthood. The primary intentions are to introduce concepts and techniques that develop abilities, attitudes, skills and understanding that make youths and adults occupationally competent participants in the changing economic life of the nation, regardless of the level at which a person learns in school (Yusuf, 2010)
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IV. EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION Early childhood education is the organized practice of educating those who are in early childhood which is one, one of the most vulnerable stages in life. According to the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), it spans the human life from birth to eight years. Early childhood, according to Bear and Johnston (2008), often focuses on children learning through play. According to UNESCO‟s Early Childhood Care and Education Unit (ECCE), early childhood is defined as the period from birth to about eight years old which is a time of remarkable brain development. These years lay the foundation for subsequent learning. Templeton (2004) opined that researchers in the field and early childhood educators both view the parents as Early Childhood Education takes many forms depending on the beliefs of the education or parents. Much of the first two years of life are spent in the creation of a child‟s first “sense of self” or the building of a first identify. This is a crucial part of children‟s make-up how they first see themselves, how they think they should function, how they expect others to function in relation to them. For this reason, early care must ensure that in addition to employing carefully selected and trained caretakers, programmes policy must emphasize links with family, home culture, and home language; meaning that caregiver must uniquely care for each child using developmentally appropriate practice care to support families rather than a substitute for them. Yusuf (2010) added that if a young child doesn‟t receive sufficient nurturing, nutrition, parental/caregiver interaction, and stimulus during this crucial period, the child may be left with a developmental deficit that hampers his or her success in preschool, kindergarten/nursery, and beyond. Therefore, children must receive attention and affection needed to develop in a healthier manner. A. Developmental Domains There are five different developmental domains of children which all relate to one another and they are easily refered to as the SPICE of life: • Social – refers mostly to the ability to form attachment, play with others, co-operation and sharing, and being able to create lasting relationship with others. • Physical – Development of five and Gross motor skills • Intellectual – The process of making sense of the World around them. • Creative – The development of special abilities creating talents. Music, Art, Writing, Reading, and singing are all ways for creative development to take place. • Emotional – Development of self-awareness, self-confidence, and coping with feelings as well as understanding them. B. Objectives of Early Childhood Education The objective of early childhood education according to the National Policy on Education (2007) is to • effect a smooth transition from home to the school • prepare the child for the primary level of education • provide adequate care and supervision for the children while their parents are at work, farms or market, etc. • inculcate social norms in them. • inculcate in the child the spirit of inquiry and creativity through the exploration of native, and the local environment, playing with toys, artistic and musical activities, etc • teach co-operation and team spirit • teach the rudiments of numbers, letters, shapes and colours, through play. • Teach good habits, especially good health habits According to Yusuf (2010), these objectives are laudable, but a lot has to be done to achieve them. For example, secondary school children in Nigeria are in critical stage of their development. She therefore stressed that they should be engaged in formulating a self-concept, establishing an identity, developing occupational skills and awareness, and encountering challenges in the world of education achievement. Educators must provide the right and timely assistance to enable the child develop the occupational competence that will make him/her viable in the society (P.47-49).
V. SCOPE OF CHILDREN LITERACY The scope of children‟s literacy includes stories of real people of today and yesterday, realistic fiction tales, stories of animals, machines, and interventions, stories dealing with the world of nature, stories depicting everyday experience of children, folklore and books of poetry. Literacy materials necessary for this age group are examined below: Folktale/Story Telling The folktale is the most important and popular form of oral literature in Africa through which traditional customs such as those related to inheritance are recalled. The tales involve ethical teaching through which the child learns the values and norms of his/her society, and he/she thus grows up to fit properly into it. To understand more of African culture, one must know the folktale of his/her area because it illustrates, the people‟s perception of the world and their
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environment (Okunade, 2005). It is therefore important to incorporate story telling into primary school curriculum because of its immense advantages. Knowledge and wisdom are derived by the child from stories by the child. Picture Books and Picture Story Books According to Okunade (2005), these visual art forms provide children with their first experiences in art and literature. Books in this category cover a wide range of topics, both factual and otherwise and these include books made of fabric, cardboard, picture books. In the story is told through illustration. The first time through an adult, possibly a teacher, and the children look at the book together, discovering the story and telling it to each other. Later, the children can read it to other children. It is essential to say here that, such books contribute to oral language development, serve as stimulus for creative story telling and develop a sense of story long before a child can read. Poetry, Rhymes, Songs Young children respond early and naturally to the language of poetry for it usually is a shared experience with the competent teacher. Poetry itself appeals to both young and old because of its elements like imagery, rhythm, metre, form and other aesthetic elements. Rhymes are an indispensable part of a child‟s introduction to literature. Humorous incidents and characters are presented in verses with pleasurable rhythm and rhyme to delight the ear. Children love to clap, tap, hop and to imitate objects and animals where rhythms lend themselves to