LIBR 529: SERVICES FOR FAMILIES AND EARLY LITERACY IN THE PRESCHOOL YEARS -- COURSE SYLLABUS
Program: Master of Library and Information Studies
Year : Winter Session Term 2 2008/2009
Location : Irving K. Barber Learning Centre 461 / Main Library 6:00 – 8:50 p.m.
Instructor : Allison Taylor McBryde
Office location : Adjunct Office SLAIS
Office phone : Cell: 778-772-4970 or Adjunct office phone.
Office hours : Mondays afternoons 2 – 4pm by appointment
E-mail address : taylormc@interchange.ubc.ca
Course Goal:
This course will provide an introduction to library services for infants, toddlers, preschoolers and their families. We will draw on research from a variety of fields to inform our planning and evaluation of developmentally appropriate services in libraries. We will look at research from linguistics, developmental psychology, early literacy, and early childhood regarding the development of the child from birth to five, focusing on language acquisition and emergent literacy skills. We will examine the role of the family, care-givers and librarians in developing pre-reading skills and knowledge. This research can inform library program planning and evaluation, selection of library materials, outreach and services to infants, toddlers, preschoolers and their parents, educators and care-givers.
Course Objectives:
Upon completion of this course students will:
- demonstrate an awareness of the stages of child development from birth to school age and an understanding of current research on the intellectual, emotional, linguistic and social growth of babies, toddlers and children to age five
- demonstrate knowledge of resources and current trends in early literacy or emergent literacy research
- demonstrate knowledge of resources about children’s materials for parents, teachers, librarians and other adults in child-serving agencies
- be familiar with a wide variety of reference books, websites, resources and programmes for professionals
- be knowledgeable of a variety of appropriate resources for babies, toddlers, and pre-schoolers and of reference materials for parents, care-givers and other adults in child-serving agencies
- be able to discuss the critical importance and role of the parent and care-givers in early learning
- be able to plan, implement and evaluate a variety of programs and services for children (babies, toddlers and preschoolers) and adults (parents, care-givers, daycare leaders and teachers) that public libraries provide to enhance early literacy
- be familiar with the importance of outreach to the community, community demographics and other social, linguistic and economic influences on literacy
Course Topics:
- Early learning
- Language acquisition
- Emergent (Early) Literacy research
- Family literacy
- Role of the family
- Role of caregivers and the community
- Role of the library
- Library resources
- Library programs
- Parent education
- Outreach
Prerequisites : LIBR 500, 501, 503
Format of the course: Lectures, presentations, guest speakers
Recommended Reading:
Many books will be recommended throughout the term. None are required; many will be utilized for reading and discussion assignments and lectures.
Recommended:
- Davis, Robin Works (1998). Toddle On Over: Developing infant & toddler literature programs . Fort Atkinson, WI: Alleyside Press.
- Dickinson, D. K. & Tabors, P. O. (2001) Beginning literacy with language: young children learning at home and school. Baltimore: Paul H. Brookes Pub.
- Dickinson , D.K. & Neuman, S.B. (2002) Handbook of early literacy research. Volume 1. New York: Guilford Research
- Dickinson, D.K. & Neuman, S.B. (2006) Handbook of early literacy research: Volume 2 New York: Guilford Research
- Ezell, H.K. & Justice, L.M. (2005). Shared storybook reading: Building young children’s language and emergent literacy skills. Baltimore: Paul H. Brookes.
- Golinkoff, R. M. and Hirsh-Pasek, K. (1999) How babies talk: the magic and mystery of language in the first three years. New York: Dutton.
- Gurian, M. and Stevens, K. (2005) The minds of boys: Saving our sons from falling behind in school and life. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
- Healy, J. M. (2004). Your child’s growing mind: Brain development and learning from birth to adolescence. Third edition. New York:Broadway.
- Lilly, E. & Green, C. (2004). Developing partnerships with families through children’s literature. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merrilll/Prentice Hall.
- Marino, Jane (2003). Babies in the Library! Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press.
- Mayes, Linda C. and Cohen, D. J. (2002). The Yale child study center guide to understanding your child. Boston: Little Brown.
- McGee, Lea. M. & Richgels, D.J. (2003) Designing early literacy programs: strategies for at-risk preschool and kindergarten children. New York: Guilford.
- McGuinness, D. (2004). Growing a reader from birth: your child’s path from language to literacy. New York: W.W. Norton.
- McGuinness, D. (2005) Language development and learning to read: the Scientific study of how language development affects reading skill. Cambridge: MIT Press.
- Neuman, S. B. and Roskos, K. A. (1998). Children achieving: best practices in early literacy. Newark, NJ: International Reading Association.
- Neuman, Susan B., Celano, D.C., Greco, A.N. & Shue, P. (2001). Access for all: closing the book gap for children in early education. Newark: International Reading Association
- Roskos, K.A., Tabors, P.O. & Lenhart. L.A. (2004). Oral language and early literacy in preschool: Talking, reading, writing. Newark: DE: International Reading Association.
- Shonkoff, J.P. and Phillips, D. (2000) From neurons to neighborhoods: the science of early child development. Washington: National Academy Press.
- Snowling, M.J. and Hulme, C. (2007 ed) The Science of reading: a handbook. Malden, MA: Blackwell.
- Tabors, P. O. (1997). One child, two languages: A Guide for Preschool educators of children learning English as a Second Language. Baltimore: Paul H. Brookes.
- Trott. K., Dobbinson, S. and Griffiths, P. (2004) The Child Language Reader. London: Routledge
- Wasik, B. H. (2004). Handbook of Family Literacy. Mahwah, N.J.:Lawrence Erlbaum.
- Willms, J. D. (2002). Vulnerable children: Findings from Canada’s National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth. Edmonton: University of Alberta press.
- York, S. (2003) Roots and wings: affirming culture in early childhood programs. Revised ed. St Paul, MN.: Redleaf
- Zigler, E. F., Finn-Stevenson, M. & Hall, N. W. (2002). The first three years and beyond: brain development and social policy. New Haven , CT: Yale University.
Course Assignments, Due dates and Weight in relation to final course mark :
Assignment |
Due Date |
Weight |
Weekly reading log |
Weekly professional reading requirements assigned throughout the term; Reading log due on Feb 2 and March 9 |
20% |
Program presentation for toddlers, babies, or preschoolers and their parents or caregivers with handout |
Week 6 through 8 |
20% |
Outreach program presentation for parents, caregivers or teachers on emergent literacy with handout |
Week 9 through 11 |
20% |
Research paper on an aspect of family or emergent literacy and services to preschoolers and their families with a fifteen minute overview presentation for the class. |
Week 12 – 13 |
40% |
Course Schedule:
Date |
Topic |
Assignment |
Week 1 |
Introductory class; Resources Jan 5/09 |
Weekly Reading |
Week 2 |
Research on infant brain development and language acquisition |
Weekly Reading |
Week 3 |
Programs, services and resources for babies, parents, caregivers
|
Weekly Reading |
Week 4 |
Further research on child development from one to age three; research on language acquisition
|
Weekly Reading |
Week 5 |
Programs, services and resources for toddlers and parents/caregivers
|
Weekly Reading Reading log Part 1 Due February 2nd |
Week 6 |
Programs, services and resources for pre-schoolers and parents/caregiver |
Presentation of programs for children Weekly Reading |
Week 7 |
Cooperation with child-care agencies in the community. Committees and associations.
|
Presentation of programs for children Observation |
Week 8 |
Research on early literacy and family literacy; research on the cultural and linguistic growth of children |
Presentation of programs for children Weekly Reading |
Week 9 |
Role of the library and of the family; Outreach programs to parents and caregivers |
Presentation of programs for adults
Reading Log Part II – March 9th |
Week 10 |
Working with day cares, preschools and kindergartens |
Presentation of programs for adults |
Week 11 |
Emergent readers and reading acquisition and the transition to school
|
Presentation of programs for adults |
Week 12 |
Socio-economic, linguistic, demographic and governmental policies and issues in relation to early literacy |
Presentation of final paper research and findings |
Week 13 |
Wrap-up class
|
Presentation of final paper research and findings Research paper due: April 6th |
Written & Spoken English Requirement : Written and spoken work may receive a lower mark if it is, in the opinion of the instructor, deficient in English.
Disability Accommodation : The University accommodates students with disabilities who have registered with the Disability Resource Centre [ http://www.students.ubc.ca/access/drc.cfm ]. You must register with the Disability Resource Centre to be granted special accommodations for any on-going conditions.
Religious Accommodation: The University accommodates students whose religious obligations conflict with attendance, submitting assignments, or completing scheduled tests and examinations. Please let your instructor know in advance, preferably in the first week of class, if you will require any accommodation on these grounds. Students who plan to be absent for varsity athletics, family obligations, or other similar commitments, cannot assume they will be accommodated, and should discuss their commitments with the instructor before the course drop date. UBC policy on Religious Holidays: http://www.universitycounsel.ubc.ca/policies/policy65.pdf
Academic Dishonesty : Please review the UBC Calendar Academic regulations for the University policy on cheating, plagiarism, and other forms of academic dishonesty: http://www.students.ubc.ca/calendar/index.cfm?tree=3,54,111,959 . Also visit and review the contents of these two resources: Plagiarism Resource Centre: For Students: http://www.library.ubc.ca/home/plagiarism/welcome.html and Plagiarism Avoided: Taking Responsibility For Your Work: http://www.arts.ubc.ca/Plagiarism_Avoided.373.0.html for useful information on avoiding plagiarism and on correct documentation practice. Students are held responsible for knowing and following all University regulations regarding academic dishonesty. If a student does not know how to properly cite a source or what constitutes proper use of a source it is the student's personal responsibility to obtain the needed information and to apply it within University guidelines and policies. If evidence of academic dishonesty is found in a course assignment, previously submitted work in this course may be reviewed for possible academic dishonesty and grades modified as appropriate. University policy requires that all incidents of academic dishonesty must be forwarded to the Dean’s office for review and possible action.
Attendance : The calendar states: “Regular attendance is expected of students in all their classes (including lectures, laboratories, tutorials, seminars, etc.). Students who neglect their academic work and assignments may be excluded from the final exam. Students who are unavoidably absent because of illness or disability should report to their instructors on return to classes.”
Other Course Policies:
Students should subscribe to the course discussion list. From whatever email account you wish to use, send the following [leave the Subject line blank]:
Address – To: majordomo@interchange.ubc.ca
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