Child-led play (when the child is in complete control of every aspect of the play) encourages independence, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills. Stacy Benge, an early childhood educator, suggests, “It is also the key to developing the foundations that support future reading and writing. Children are at the heart of play. It is not about the adults, the learning standards, or the curriculum theme—it is all about the children.” Visual processing, phonological awareness, and physical development are components of building literacy skills, and these are all elements found in child-led play.
Play gives children the agency to not only change and enhance a story, but to also make it real for them. Within the world of play, they can exert power over beginnings, middles, and endings. Play is the natural way children interact with the world.
Every Child Ready to Read® (ECRR) identifies five practices (talk, sing, read, write, and play) that adults should use to engage with children to build early literacy skills. TALK: Text & Learn for Kindergarten, based on the ECRR model, incorporates play in several of the two, age-appropriate texts sent to parents and caregivers each week. Texts are sent with the goal of raising the frequency and quality of parent/child interactions. Supporting children with their creativity, curiosity, imagination, and interests when they play is one way to help prepare them for kindergarten.
If your library would like to find out how TALK can help support early literacy development in your community, send queries to talkhelp@mcls.org. Request a quote here.
References
Allyn, P. (2025). It’s Not Too Soon: Early Literacy Works: Young children can joyfully learn foundational literacy skills through play–and it makes a difference. Educational Leadership, 82(7), 26–31.
Benge, S. (2025). The Key to Early Literacy is Child-Led PLAY! Exchange (19460406), 280, 33–37.
The Association for Library Services to Children held its biennial Conference in Buffalo, NY October 1-3, and TALK: Text & Learn for Kindergarten was among the vendors showcased. ALSC National Institute brings together children’s library staff, educators, literacy experts, authors, illustrators, publishers, and more to focus on creating healthy and successful futures for all children in libraries. While there were a variety of resources available for attendees to explore, TALK grabbed the attention of many. One person, Elizabeth Hurtado, Children’s Librarian at Springdale Public Library, Arkansas effectively identifies in her ALSC blog post, Three Resources I’m Bringing Home from ALSC Institute, exactly what we’re hoping to convey to patrons: early learning is linked to everything we do every day. Elizabeth explains, “The best part? The activities are simple enough to fit into everyday life, and participating libraries can use TALK to connect families with local events, programs, materials, and other early literacy services. As a children’s librarian, I love resources that help parents see that literacy doesn’t always require a special activity or a pile of books. Sometimes, it happens while you’re cooking, driving, playing, or talking about a family photo.”
TALK, built for libraries from the research-based Every Child Ready to Read® program, promotes the practices of talking, singing, reading, writing, and playing to build early learning skills with children from birth to age 6. TALK subscriptions are available for public libraries of any size, library cooperatives, consortia and groups, and statewide implementations. If you would like to find out more about TALK: Text & Learn for Kindergarten, please send queries to talkhelp@mcls.org. Request a quote here.
by TALK Coordinator Ann Kaskinen
Every Child Ready to Read® (ECRR) identifies five practices (talk, sing, read, write, and play) that adults should use to engage with children to build early literacy skills. While there are many ways to incorporate reading into a baby’s daily repertoire, board books are key developmental tools. In fact, board books have become so important that in 2023 the Margaret Wise Brown Board Book Award “was created to highlight the impact of high-quality board books on the learning and development of babies and toddlers.”
According to Caitlin Gallingane, clinical assistant professor at University of Florida’s College of Education, “A tot won’t get the same impact from a picture book or YouTube storytelling, because language retention increases with multisensory input: Being able to look at something, hear something, touch something, say something, all at the same time, reinforces that word and that concept more strongly.”
TALK: Text & Learn for Kindergarten, based on the ECRR model, incorporates board book suggestions into several of the two, age-appropriate texts sent to parents and caregivers each week. Texts are sent with the goal of raising the frequency and quality of parent/child interactions, and engaging young children with board books is just one of the many ways to help prepare them for kindergarten.
If your library would like to find out how TALK can help support early literacy development in your community, send queries to talkhelp@mcls.org.
Request a quote here.
References
Cornwall, Gail. “Solid Stories: Why board books are key developmental tools.” School Library Journal, vol. 69, no. 10, Oct. 2023, pp. 38–41.
Funding for early learning saw big changes in both Indiana and Michigan this past year. Indiana significantly cut its preschool (On My Way Pre-K) and childcare funding, creating fewer slots for low-income families to send their 4-year-olds to high quality preschool programs. And, while Michigan bumped up its PreK for All initiative targeting 4-year-olds, it simultaneously eliminated over $19 million in funding for Great Start Collaboratives (birth to 3-year-olds).
One of the ways libraries can support early literacy in their communities is by subscribing to TALK: Text & Learn for Kindergarten, which encourages caregivers and parents to read, write, talk, sing, and play with their little ones every day. TALK does not offer a replacement for preschool programs, but it does offer an effective way for libraries to support families amid recent changes. If your library subscribes to TALK, be sure to reach out to educational organizations that provide services to birth to 5-year-olds such as Intermediate School Districts (ISDs) and Regional Educational Service Agencies (RESAs) in Michigan, Educational Service Centers (ESCs) in Indiana, and Head Start programs in both states to let them know how easy it is to participate.
Learn more about TALK or request a quote here.
