Phonological Awareness: This involves recognising and manipulating the sounds of language. Early phonological awareness skills include rhyming, recognising the beginning and ending sounds of words, blending sounds together to form words, and segmenting words into individual sounds (phonemes).

Take a look at Letters and Sounds: Principles and Practice of High-Quality Phonics. This is a free publication where you will find further information on this topic. If you are unfamiliar with phonic teaching this is an informative read.

Phonemic Awareness: A more advanced skill, phonemic awareness, involves recognising and manipulating individual phonemes (the smallest units of sound in a language) within words. This skill is closely linked to later reading and spelling abilities.

Emergent Writing: Early attempts at writing, which may involve scribbles, drawings, and attempts to replicate letters or words.

Vocabulary Development: Early literacy involves building a rich vocabulary, which is essential for reading comprehension and effective communication.

Print Awareness: This is an understanding of the basic conventions of print, such as recognising that books have covers, understanding that text is read from left to right and top to bottom, recognising letters, and distinguishing between letters and words.

Alphabet Knowledge: Early literacy includes familiarity with the letters of the alphabet, both in terms of letter names and letter sounds.

Narrative Skills: These involve the ability to understand and retell stories, including sequencing events, making predictions, and understanding story structure.

Oral Language Skills: Developing strong oral language skills, including listening and speaking, is foundational for later reading and writing.

Book Awareness and a Love of Reading: Encouraging a love of books and reading from a young age is a critical part of early literacy. It involves introducing children to a wide variety of books and reading aloud to them.

The following publishers offer a set of beginner readers: Click the Image to find out more. Most of these can be found on Amazon in digital format.

Early literacy refers to the development of foundational reading and writing skills in young children. It encompasses a range of skills and experiences that set the stage for later reading and writing success. Early literacy is crucial for a child's overall cognitive development and their ability to engage with the world through written language. Here are several key components of early literacy: