Literacy-Building Play in Preschool
Whether they’re putting on a puppet show, acting out a fairy tale, or running an imaginary restaurant, preschoolers love to play. In fact, they thrive on it. In this full-color, photo-packed book, Bennett-Armistead shows how to harness play’s power so children not only have fun, but also learn essential reading, writing, listening, and speaking skills that prepare them for conventional literacy instruction. She covers traditional tools, such as puppets and flannel boards, and more innovative ones such as literacy kits, prop boxes, and theme trunks. You’ll learn how to assemble, store, and use these tools to infuse joy into the day and meet curricular goals.
A prop box is a collection of materials that enhance children’s dramatic play. Typically stored in a large box or plastic tub, the materials are organized by theme such as “restaurant,” “airplane,” and “castle,” and fall into two categories:
- theme-related props from the real world to enrich the play and make it more authentic, such as play food, tableware, pans, cash register, aprons, centerpiece, and placemats.
- print-rich materials to enrich children’s interactions with text, such as a chart with the evening’s specials, menus, a cookbook, recipe cards, an order pad, and a dessert list.
Play is dynamic, active and constructive behavior that is essential for all children. Find out about the many benefits of dramatic play.
Prop boxes have been shown to enhance children's literacy skills, and deciding what to include in them is usually pretty straightforward.