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Literacy Preschool

Domain: Literacy

Sub-Domain: Phonological Awareness

Goal P-LIT 1. Child demonstrates awareness that spoken language is composed of smaller segments of sound.

Developmental Progression Indicators
36 to 48 Months48 to 60 Months By 60 Months
Shows rote imitation and enjoyment of rhyme and alliteration. With support, distinguishes when two words rhyme and when two words begin with the same sound.Demonstrates rhyme recognition, such as identifying which words rhyme from a group of three: hat, cat, log. Recognizes phonemic changes in words, such as noticing the problem with "Old McDonald had a charm." Is able to count syllables and understand sounds in spoken words. 
  • Provides one or more words that rhyme with a single given target, such as "What rhymes with log?"
  • Produces the beginning sound in a spoken word, such as "Dog begins with /d/."
  • Provides a word that fits with a group of words sharing an initial sound, with adult support, such as "Sock, Sara, and song all start with the /s/ sound. What else starts with the /s/ sound?"

Sub-Domain: Print and Alphabet Knowledge

Goal P-LIT 2. Child demonstrates an understanding of how print is used (functions of print) and the rules that govern how print works (conventions of print).

Developmental Progression Indicators
36 to 48 Months48 to 60 Months By 60 Months
Distinguishes print from pictures and shows an understanding that print is something meaningful, such as asking an adult "What does this say?" or "Read this."Begins to demonstrate an understanding of the connection between speech and print. Shows a growing awareness that print is a system that has rules and conventions, such as holding a book correctly or following a book left to right. 
  • Understands that print is organized differently for different purposes, such as a note, list, or storybook.
  • Understands that written words are made up of a group of individual letters.
  • Begins to point to single-syllable words while reading simple, memorized texts.
  • Identifies book parts and features, such as the front, back, title, and author.

Goal P-LIT 3. Child identifies letters of the alphabet and produces correct sounds associated with letters.

Developmental Progression Indicators
36 to 48 Months48 to 60 Months By 60 Months
Shows an awareness of alphabet letters, such as singing the ABC song, recognizing letters from one's name, or naming some letters that are encountered often.Recognizes and names at least half of the letters in the alphabet, including letters in own name (first name and last name), as well as letters encountered often in the environment. Produces the sound of many recognized letters. 
  • Names 18 upper- and 15 lower-case letters.
  • Knows the sounds associated with several letters.

Sub-Domain: Comprehension and Text Structure

Goal P-LIT 4. Child demonstrates an understanding of narrative structure through storytelling/re-telling.

Developmental Progression Indicators
36 to 48 Months48 to 60 Months By 60 Months
With support, may be able to tell one or two key events from a story or may act out a story with pictures or props.Retells two or three key events from a well-known story, typically in the right temporal order and using some simple sequencing terms, such as first … and then. 
  • Re-tells or acts out a story that was read, putting events in the appropriate sequence, and demonstrating more sophisticated understanding of how events relate, such as cause and effect relationships.
  • Tells fictional or personal stories using a sequence of at least two or three connected events.
  • Identifies characters and main events in books and stories.

Goal P-LIT 5. Child asks and answers questions about a book that was read aloud.

Developmental Progression Indicators
36 to 48 Months48 to 60 Months By 60 Months
Can answer basic questions about likes or dislikes in a book or story. Asks and answers questions about main characters or events in a familiar story. With modeling and support, makes predictions about events that might happen next.With support, provides basic answers to specific questions about details of a story, such as who, what, when, or where. With support, can answer inferential questions about stories, such as predictions or how/why something is happening in a particular moment. 
  • Answers questions about details of a story with increasingly specific information, such as when asked "Who was Mary?" responds "She was the girl who was riding the horse and then got hurt."
  • Answers increasingly complex inferential questions that require making predictions based on multiple pieces of information from the story; inferring characters' feelings or intentions; or providing evaluations of judgments that are grounded in the text.
  • Provides a summary of a story, highlighting a number of the key ideas in the story and how they relate.
women reading to childThe home languages of some children use non-alphabetic writing. The home languages of other children may not have a written form. These children would not be expected to identify letters of the alphabet or produce corresponding sounds in their home language.

Sub-Domain: Writing

Goal P-LIT 6. Child writes for a variety of purposes using increasingly sophisticated marks.

Developmental Progression Indicators
36 to 48 Months48 to 60 Months By 60 Months
Engages in writing activities that consist largely of drawing and scribbling. Begins to convey meaning. With modeling and support, writes some letter-like forms and letters.Progressively uses drawing, scribbling, letter-like forms, and letters to intentionally convey meaning. With support, may use invented spelling consisting of salient or beginning sounds, such as L for elevator or B for bug. 
  • Creates a variety of written products that may or may not phonetically relate to intended messages.
  • Shows an interest in copying simple words posted in the classroom.
  • Attempts to independently write some words using invented spelling, such as K for kite.
  • Writes first name correctly or close to correctly.
  • Writes (draws, illustrates) for a variety of purposes and demonstrates evidence of many aspects of print conventions, such as creating a book that moves left to right.
children coloringPreschoolers engage in a variety of writing activities and begin to convey meaning through their increasingly sophisticated marks.

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