Laura Soto

May 6, 2014
LRC 312C: Final

Transcription:
1. ME: Hi! Hi Mrs. Anne!
2. Anne: No, Sancho stay. (3)
3. ME: What are you doing?
4. Anne: I hurt my foot (4)
5. ME: You hurt your foot? Howd you
hurt your foot?
6. Anne: I tripped over there. (4)
7. ME: Ohhh
8. Anne: Umm you can come in my
room.(6)
9. ME: I can come in your room! Lets
go play Mrs. Anne. How are you
today
10. MOM: Good how are you?
11. ME: Good ready to play. What are
we going to play today?
12. Anne: hmm I have this prin-I have a
new princess crown (6)
13. ME: You have a NEW princess
crown!
14. Anne: Do you like it? (4)
15. ME: I do like it! Its really pretty.
When did you go get it?
16. Anne: mmm I dont remember
17. Sister: She also has a wand and when
you spin it, it does that
18. ME: Uwww very cool.
19. Anne: My belle dress, my belle dress
is in the wash (7)
20. ME: Its in the wash.
21. Sister: And then you can turn it back
22. ME: thats super cool. Wheres that
from?
23. Anne: Can you put that back can
you put this back in the frigerator (8)
24. ME: Do you know how it works?
25. Sister: Ya you have to spin it and it
moves
26. Anne: Look it! (2)
27. ME: Interesting, it looks like
bubbles.
28. Anne: Look it! (2)
29. ME: What is that?
30. Anne: A tablet (2)
31. ME: A tablet?
32. Anne: Do you want me to show
you what it does? It turns on
first. (14)
33. ME: Okay
34. Sister: I have to get your fairy wand
35. ME: This looks like bubbles. Its so
cool Anne.
36. Anne: I know. And do you like my
pretty ball? (9)
37. ME: Oh its sparkly! I do like it. Its
very cool. Do you know what this is
called?
38. Anne: Hmm?
39. ME: Oh you chose your name! Very
well
40. (Leap Frog is heard in the
background)
41. Sister: Here Anne heres your fairy
story. Oh whyd you take off Olivia?
Oh Ill take her
42. Anne: I want to do it! I know how to
do it. (11)
43. Anne Watch this! Watch this! Ms.
Laura? (6)
44. ME: Yes?
45. Anne: Im doing this Olivia (4)
46. ME: Olivia?
47. Anne: You. Press. This. One.
Umm(4)
48. Anne: Shes going to be a chef.
Shell make stuff. You have to see
her see. (15)
49. ME: She has her chef hat. Youre
right.
50. Anne: I made my own s-string (5)
51. ME: You made your own string?
You make these?
52. Anne: Yeah. Its really tasty. It has
two or one.t(9)
53. ME: Is that what they say in chef
school?
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May 6, 2014
LRC 312C: Final

54. Anne: And then they cut it. (5)
55. ME: Is that what they are doing next
56. Anne: No. Its not ready yet. (5)
57. ME: Its not ready yet?
58. Anne: We dont get a check mark (6)
59. ME: Why dont we get a check
mark?
60. Anne: Because we didnt (3)
61. ME: Hi (Her sister walked back in)
62. Anne: Lets go Lets go find Perry
(4)
63. ME: Perry?
64. Anne: Perrys him. The doggy.
Watch this. Gobbled the treat. Hes
going to do a trick. Did you see him?
(19)
65. ME: I did. He went in a circle.
66. (Closes the leap frog tablet)
67. Anne: I want to show you something
else (7)
68. ME: What are you going to show
me?
69. Anne: Hummm
70. ME: Well do whatever you want.
This thing is kind of my favorite
Anne.
71. Anne: I know. Want to see my little
mini Christmas tree? (10)
72. ME: Yeah
73. Anne: See! My little mini Christmas
tree (6)
74. ME: Do you hang it for Christmas
75. Anne: And I put And I put And
I put a necklace on it (7)
76. ME: Ohh as an ornament?
77. Anne: No theres already ornaments
on it. (6)
78. ME: oh ok
79. Anne: But I just like to put it there
(8)
80. ME: Well it looks very nice
81. Anne: And I have a little penguin
suit under it. See? Its aits
ummits like for the one you cook.
A guttery marble! (22)
82. ME: A marble!
83. Anne: If you bounce it then it will
break. (8)
84. ME: Oh really?
85. Anne: Uh huh. Shiny. (1)
86. ME: It is shiny. We both like shiny
things huh?
87. Anne: Uh huh. Shi-ny is my favorite.
Im going to listen to your heart beat.
(12)
88. ME: My heart? Okay. Ready. What
happened? Why am I in the doctors
office?
89. Anne: No I just want to feel it (7)
90. ME: Oh ok
91. Anne: I hear it. (3)
92. ME: What does it sound like?
93. Anne: Bumping and thumping (3)
94. ME: Bumping and thumping. I think
so too. Was it fast or was it slow?
95. Anne: You. Here. You try. (4)
96. ME: You want me to hear yours?
Okay.
97. Anne: No. Hear your own (4)
98. ME: Oh my own? Okay. (make a
heart sound) My heart sounds pretty
normal.
99. Anne: (Sings to herself too low for
me to understand or decipher)
100. ME: Whos that?
101. Anne: MMMMy dolly (2)
102. ME: Whats her name
though?
103. Anne: MMM
104. ME: Does she have a name?
105. Anne: Spectra
106. ME: Spectra
107. Anne: Do you like her?
108. ME: I do like her. Where did
you get her?
109. Anne: From the store.
110. ME: From the store? Did
111. Anne: I dont remember
112. ME: You dont remember.
You doing her hair
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May 6, 2014
LRC 312C: Final

113. Anne: Yeah
114. MOM: Whats up? Oh did
you show Ms. Laura your new wand
115. ME: Im in love with it
116. MOM: Isnt it cool
117. ME: It is so cool
118. MOM: She got some birthday
money
119. ME: Thats awesome
120. MOM: from a friend and so
we got some special, we went and
picked out some things, for, to use
the birthday money. She did a very
good job at finding some pretty cool
stuff.
121. ME: Thats awesome
122. Sister: Yea her belle dress is
in the wash
123. Anne: Do you like my clip
(5)
124. ME: I do like your clip. Its
shiny.
125. Anne: There. Theres more
up there (4)
126. ME: Theres more up there?
127. Anne: In my bookshelf but I
cant reach them (8)
128. ME: Yea its ok. She only
needs one clip. I like her earrings.
Theyre very pretty
129. Anne: They cant come off
(4)
130. ME: They cant come off?
131. Anne: Cuz theyre attached
(3)
132. ME: Oh
133. Anne: Everything is attached
to her (5)
134. ME: Everything?
135. Sister: Annie
136. Anne: What? (1)
137. Sister: The belle dress is in
your closet
138. Anne: I know (2)
139. Sister: Ill take it out
140. Anne: Umm, see the Belle
dress. Ballerina (5)
141. Sister: Very pretty. You wore
that to class one day didnt you!
142. Anne: Uh huh but I have but
I had a little stain on it so daddy
washed it (15)
143. Sister: Do you want me
to put this on you for Laura?
144. Anne: No (1)
145. Sister: You dont want to
wear it now? Okay. Ill just leave it
out. Wait wait wait. Oh yeah the
cream machine. For coffee and
cream
146. Anne: Look at look at this
(3)
147. ME: What is oh its a bed.
Thats pretty cool
148. Sister: If you fold it up it
turns into a computer
149. ME: Oh!!!
150. Anne: Want to see the
computer (5)
151. ME: It cool!
152. Anne: Can you put it away
now (6)
153. Sister: You want me to put it
away now? Okay.
154. Anne: I slipped (2)
155. Sister: Cream machine is
broke. Well it fell off of here.
156. Anne: I put my doll up a lot
in in some hair. I got my tiny clip
is under there. Im really good at
doing hair and I can even do orgarina
buns (32)
157. ME: Oh wow
158. Anne: Do buns. Bunny
wunny (4)
159. ME: What are these?
160. Sister: She keeps Band-Aids
in there
161. Anne: Oh my heart ffell
(4)
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May 6, 2014
LRC 312C: Final

162. ME: What goes in your
heart?
163. Sister: We had a lot of candy
164. Anne: Can I talk in here (5)
165. ME: You can talk in there
166. Anne: Uhhhthis. Isssss.
Preeeetty. But Where did your
camera go? Where did your camera
go (14)
167. ME: My camera is
somewhere in there. Somewhere in
all that technology
168. Anne: Can I see it (4)
169. ME: I have to keep this up
170. Anne: And I know. Watch
this! I have princess stickers (9)
171. ME: What do you do with
them?
172. Anne: I want to keep them on
here. Look its Cinderella. (10)
173. ME: Cinderella is very pretty
174. Anne: Whos this again? (3)
175. ME: Jasmine
176. Anne: Jasmine and this is
sleeping beauty. I love sleeping
beauty. Shes pretty. (12)
177. ME: Do you know sleeping
beauties real name?
178. Anne: Whats her real name?
(4)
179. ME: Aurora
180. Sister: They just call her
sleeping beauty cuz
181. ME: She fell asleep. Yeah.
Its like her nickname.
182. Anne: Aurora? (1)
183. ME: Auroras her name yeah.
184. Sister: What are you doing?
185. Anne: Going in my closet (4)
186. Sister: What are you looking
for?

Part A: General Summary and Description
In the following documentation I analyzed my case studys linguistic and literacy
development using the information taught in LRC 312 and the readings from Literacy
Development in the Early Years written by Lesley Mandel Morrow (2012) to fully comprehend
how and what she has developed. For this documentation I will be referring to my case study by
her pseudonym: Anne. She is female and just turned four in February. Shes quiet in a big group
but blossoms with one on one attention.
During my first home visit on February 26
th
, I walked in and was immediately directed
into my case studys room by my case study child. Once we were in there, I left the engagement
open ended. I told her that we could play whatever she wanted so we spent the whole hour
exploring her toys. Ultimately my case study child chose to build a temple with wooden blocks
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May 6, 2014
LRC 312C: Final

that varied in sizes and shapes. My case study has two older sisters. The middle sister who is
nine participated on and off with us. I represented her as Sister in the transcription. Her mom
came in to check in on us and explain something but she doesnt actively participate in the
interaction. The oldest sister, who is twelve, and her dad did not participate at all.
Here are some observations that have been documented that explain Annes past and
current experiences with language learning and literacy environment. Ive noticed Anne
demonstrates a consistent exploration, knowledge, and curiosity for books. On March 12, during
a home visit for LRC 312, I read Anne a book (she asked me to) and she demonstrated that she
knew how the book should be held and was able to describe the consecutive events that would
happen next in the book. The book was called Why Cant I Fly by Rita Gelman. She handed
me the book and asked if we could read it. I answered, I would love to but Im not sure I
remember how to hold it. Can you show me? She took the book from me and showed me the
proper way (she held it with two hands and positioned it right side up) and then handed it back.
During the book reading, I would ask Anne to make predictions about the book and ask her why
the character was doing the things that she was doing. Her answer always followed the plot line.
Due to the fact that it was a rhyming book with a repeated phrase at the end, I would pause
before the repeated phrase and look at my case study to fill in the blank. She instinctively knew
what her role was and would fill in the blank that I left out. This demonstrates Annes
comfortability and prior knowledge of syntax and context in predicting words (Morrow, 2012,
p. 156).
Later, during the same home visit, Annes mom also made a remark about her questions
regarding books on March 12
th
. We read Llamas Mama the other day and she asked where his
dad was because he never showed up in the book. Then she asked if the llama had a pet. Another
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May 6, 2014
LRC 312C: Final

day we were reading a book and she noticed that a characters hand was missing from the
picture. She asked where it was and pointed off the page and said it should be here. She always
asks about whats not happening in the picture and applies logic.
A quote from Morrow underlines why this is happening: Experiences with literature can
lead children to use contextual clues and illustrations to figure out words and recognize that they
have meaning (2012, p.156). Due to Annes consistent exposure with literature in her home, she
is able to develop this skill at an early age.
This rapport with literacy has been a consistent one in the home that Ive noticed since
last semester. On November 16
th
, during a home visit, Anne talked about books without any
prompting on my part. Here were some quotes from that interaction: Anne: Are we going to
read those? I can read some of these books. Me: Yes, we even have some in different languages!
Anne: Only if you find only English ones. Me: Ill see what I have. Anne: Lets see if there is a
book that I can read. These are pretty ones. If you find English things I can read them.
Here is another quote from the same date: Me: This one is English. Do you know who
this is? Anne: Its cat in the hat. Me: Do you know who the author is? Sister: Do you know who
wrote it? Sister: (nods) The author. Mom and Sister: Yes (laugh) Anne: Dr. Seuss!!! Me: Dr.
Seuss, youre right. Anne: We have a lot in my room. I can bring some from my room. Can you
help me read this??? Me: I can, how would you like me to help you? Anne: Help me do the
words. Me: Okay, you can point at the words and Ill read it. Anne: (Furrows her eyebrows so I
try a different approach.) Me: Do you want to tell me whats happening and Ill read it? Or
maybe your sister can help you? Anne: Can you help me read this book. (She is asking Sister.
Sister walks over) Sister: What is the cat doing? Anne: Reading. Sister: Where is he reading?
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May 6, 2014
LRC 312C: Final

Anne: In his bed. Sister: What color is that? Anne: Brown. Sister: Well thats brown, what
color is this? Anne: Purple.
Ive also observed that Anne can follow oral instructions in the classroom and at home.
On March 6
th
, I asked Anne to do an active learning activity to see if she understood passive
sentences. She was able to follow the multiple step instructions and understood the difference
between both sentences. This observation from me was reinforced by a note on November 11
th

by my mentor teacher that she can follow two step-directions. She even made a note to the side
that she could follow multiple step directions. All of these observations indicate a strong
language and literacy development. However, none of these skills would have been observed in
the classroom if there hadnt been extra support in the home. In fact, throughout each of my
home visits, I have noted many experiences provided by the family members to create a strong
base for language and literacy development so that neurons for language and literacy connect and
remain permanent (Morrow, 103).
I want to explore the habits within the home environment that supports the development
of neurons. One recommendation that Morrow makes is to provide love, food, and clothing
(2012, p. 103). During my multiple home visits this semester, Ive seen Annes mom snuggle
her, hug her, and call her affectionately by her nickname. Anne is also very well provided for
with food and clothing. In fact, clothing is one the funds of knowledge that I identified in their
family. The next recommendations include: talk to them, use sophisticated vocabulary, use
complex sentences, read books (Morrow, 2012, p. 103) and be responsive towards emotions.
Mom has a very open relationship with her daughters and takes the time to explain information
to them. There have been many examples of this interaction throughout my home visits but the
most recent one revolved around my transition out of the classroom. I received a note from mom
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LRC 312C: Final

that said the following on April 30
th
, I told Anne this AM that you would be moving on to your
new school next week. She wanted to know why! I explained that kids needed a great teacher-so
you would be perfect. Once Anne had this conversation with Mom, she was able to explore the
idea more and felt more comfortable asking me questions too. This demonstrates how
accommodating and supportive Mom is with Annes emotions. Mom also models sophisticated
language with all her children and encourages them to read books and explore language through
different mediums. They read thirty minutes together every night and she extends their
knowledge by answering or asking questions. Lastly, Morrow recommends singing songs,
playing many different types of music, [and] be[ing] playful with language, such as using
rhymes (Morrow, 2012, p. 103). Last semester during my home visit, Anne brought out a book
full of songs and the family sang together. They also listen to LPs and Opera at home and I
identified it as one of Annes funds of knowledge. Then this semester, I observed that Anne
invariably would start singing while playing and would make up her own rhymes. All of these
observations delineate that Annes mom is modeling wonderful literacy development for her.
However, Morrow points out that this doesnt mean they simply imitate adult language; they
develop their own based on their awareness of semantics and syntax and based on their
background (2012). However, modeling is very beneficial and is very important because a lot of
language development is still happening at the age of four (Morrow, 2012)
Because she has such wonderful modeling at home, its not a surprise that Anne has
excelled vocally as well. In fact, Anne has demonstrated the use of all of Hallidays functions of
language in the transcription (Morrow, 2012). Anne demonstrated instrumental language by
saying, Can you put that back, can you put this back in the frigerator. (Line 23) An example of
regulatory speech demonstrated in the transcription was, I want to do it! I know how to do it.
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(Line 42) She also uses interactional language many times throughout the transcription.
However, one that stood out was, Umm you can come in my room. (Line 8) Anne was telling
me to go into her room so that we could play. She used personal language in the following line,
I hurt my foot. (Line 4) My case study also demonstrated heuristic language in the following
line, Whos this again? (Line 174) She was trying to figure out who the princess on her
stickers was. Anne is very imaginative and uses imaginative language multiple times throughout
her play. This excerpt didnt even begin to depict how much she uses it but showed a little of it:
the cream machine broke and Anne pretended that she slipped and her sister went along with it.
She made noises of discontent and talked about how they would need to clean it up. Lastly, when
my case study was playing on her tablet, she used a lot of informative language to explain to me
how the game worked. Here is an excerpt from that experience, Shes going to be a chef. Shell
make stuff. You have to see her see. (Line 48) (Morrow, 2012).
Quoted from Annes mom on March 12
th
during my second home visit for 312, Anne
has started to do her letters. She started writing Is and Ns but shes really good at numbers. In
the background I heard Anne say that she drew a Z. I looked on the white board that she was
using in the living room and noticed that her z looked like an s. Annes mom encouraged her to
keep writing and documented it before I left.
There are also many languages spoken in the childs household. Dad speaks French to all
the children. They understand it but they dont respond in French. They also dont know how to
read it. Spanish is the secret language between Mom and Dad. They hope this will encourage
the children to want to learn the language. One of her older sisters is learning Mandarin in school
and is teaching Anne.
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On February 26
th
, my first home visit for LRC 312, I learned many things about my case
studies language. I was able to observe Annes phonetic language during this interaction. An
example that demonstrated her success with phonological awareness is her ability to make up
lyrics or words that rhyme when she makes up a song. An example of this in the transcription is
when she says, bunny wunny (line 158) or later on in the visit when she sings, Build build
high. Build until it reaches the sky. She uses a lot of prosodic features of languages and
changes the way she wants to say something depending on the objective of what she is saying.
My mentor teacher noted that Anne spoke clearly enough to be understood on November 11
th
.
On March 12
th
during my home visit for LRC 312, I agreed with this observation and even
noticed that Anne repeats herself to get someones attention. She would also change her volume
if she wanted someones attention. She would also change the intonation in her voice when she
was asking for my opinion. For example, Anne said, Do you like her? (line 107) with an
emphasis on like. She also pauses a lot when asking a question. I emphasized the pauses with
ellipsis or periods in the transcription. I noted her mom use some of the same language patterns
when she came into the room to talk to us illustrating once again Annes modeling capacities.
During the first home visit, I was also able to spot some morphemic and syntactic
development. Morrow explains that its not uncommon for a childs vocabulary and knowledge
of sentence structure continues to develop rapidly during the fourth year (2012, p.106). These
are some of her sentences that contained errors: Perry is him, Where is my stickers, She
turned into frog, He made me scared, Much more funner, Do you like when he slid, and
I wanna go, I tired. However, most of the time, she catches herself when she says something
that is grammatically incorrect and corrects herself. Morrow points out that the
overgeneralizations of syntactic structures such as plural and regular verbs are not uncommon at
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this age (2012, p. 114). Id like to emphasize that she rarely falters into this type of language
though. I hypothesize that it has to do with the modeling of sophisticated language and complex
sentences that her family uses at home. For example, on February 26
th
during my first home visit
for LRC 312 Anne said, Can you put that back Can you put this back in the fridgerator?
(Line 23) She also asks a lot of questions about the vocabulary that she doesnt understand. On
March 12
th
, her sister passed her a blanket she said was fresh and ironed. Then Anne asked what
ironed meant, emphasizing that she is making a semantic connection and is still developing the
skill.

Socio-Cultural Knowledge and Family Interview/Dialogue (Family Interaction #2)
To interview my case study family I used the question on pages 98-100 in Kidwatching
by Owocki and Goodman. These questions allowed me to learn many things about my case
study. I learned that my case study loves to play with her nine year old sister (I also observed this
during the first home visit), puts on shows with her sister, plays exploration games outside,
plays with dolls, and has tea parties. However, one thing that she plays consistently is dress up.
Her mom explains that her child is always comfortable talking and never stops. Anne
speaks in English. Mom reiterates that they speak multiple languages in the household including:
Spanish, French and English. She also mentions that some of the family members know how to
read these languages too. Anne initiates and enjoys conversation with friends and adults. She
also listens and responds appropriately to others. I havent noticed this multilingual environment
affect Anne. Morrow says that if English is not a childs first language, that child is less likely
to be successful (2012, p.63). However, English was her first language and it still is her primary
language. She is currently still learning the other languages.
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Mom explains that she reads to Anne daily. Anne is exposed to many types of books. Ive
even identified it as one of her funds of knowledge last semester. Her mom explains that she
reads with family members and looks at books on her own. I was surprised to learn that she is
exposed to books in French. Anne really enjoys being read to and will choose to read
independently. She has favorite book characters and can retell a story in her own words. She also
reads to others (telling about pictures). I didnt know (but I assumed) that Anne checked out
books from the library.
Other environmental prints that she is exposed to and interacts with are signs. She will
sound out the first letters of words on signs. She occasionally plays on the computer and
watches Peep and the Big Wide World, Arthur, Peg and Cat and Despicable Me on the
television. Some recreational print that Anne enjoys are drawing or writing letters, designs,
people, maps, menus and lists. She will explain her writing or drawing and will
elaborate if asked to do so. Im excited to apply this new language knowledge into developing
Annes play center for TTE 309.

Reflection
Annes home environment is enriched with language and literacy. They value its
importance and enjoy it. Through exposure and modeling, Anne has benefited from her home
environment by developing a deeper sense of phonemes, syntax, and semantics, allowing her to
acquire the basic foundations of adult language (Morrow, 2012, p. 106). Her close relationship
with her mom also allows her to feel comfortable in exploring. Morrow explains that children
develop most of their language through new experiences (2012). This indicates that Anne will
not plateau and will continue to seek out these engages on her own accord as well. Ive learned a
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LRC 312C: Final

lot about Annes capabilities and now know that I need to extend her knowledge of language and
literacy in the classroom. I have many students who arent as proficient in language and literacy
within my classroom so I want to use Annes skills to scaffold their learning while
simultaneously extending hers.

Part B: Using Data to Inform Instruction
Rational Statement This lesson will give the students the opportunity to use context clues in
order to explore their comprehension, vocabulary, inferring and predicting skills. . Ive noticed
Anne demonstrates a consistent exploration, knowledge and curiosity for books. She has
demonstrated comfortability and prior knowledge of syntax and context in predicting words
(Morrow, 2012, p. 156) while reading in the past. She has also used context clues to answer and
ask questions. Knowing this is the case; I want to use wordless books in the classroom to expose
other children to her vocabulary, vivid imagination and predictions. In scaffolding she can
provide a verbal response for some of the students who arent at that proficiency level yet
(Morrow, 2012). I also want her to practice using this skill in an environment that isnt home.
Goal: Have Anne model her vocabulary and predictions. Through scaffolding for others she is
able to practice and extend her own skills.
Resources/Materials: I will need paper, pencils, Free Fall by David Weisner and Tuesdays
by David Weisner
Lesson Plan: This lesson plan would take two weeks to carry out. On the first day, during circle
time, I would introduce the topic of wordless books and take them on a picture walk of
Tuesdays by David Weisner. Id ask if they saw any words. Then Id ask them who writes the
words. What does it mean if there are no words? Who draws the pictures? So who is the author?
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Then Id ask them to look at the details in the picture. What do they see? Then Id explain to
them that for the next three days Im going to read the same book but tell a different story. Id go
on to read the first interpretation of the book. Id read the second interpretation on day two and
the third interpretation on day three. On the fourth day I would introduce a new wordless book
(Free Fall by David Weisner) during circle time and explain that they would each get to make
up their own story and they would read their story during circle time (Id read if they were too
shy to). Id then transition them into free play by saying that I would call them one by one.
During one-on-one time, I would sit at the table and leaf through the book with them while
asking questions like: What do you think is happening here (comprehension), what makes you
think that (inferring), what do you think will happen next (prediction) and why (vocabulary)? Id
dictate what they said on the paper. The next morning one student would read their story to the
class. This would happen every morning until everybody ready their story.
Part C: Family and Community Literacy Event
I learned the Ocotillo community is predominantly Hispanic. For a lot of them, Spanish
was their first language and English was their second language. They are an inclusive
community who serve children from birth to five years old.
When we created our theme, my group was told to create a theme that had each of our
case studys funds of knowledge in mind. We started discussing their backgrounds and couldnt
find commonalities in the beginning. After digging deeper, we came across the fact that each of
our case study children had family members that didnt live in this country or they had family
members who traveled to other countries. Therefore, we thought about travel and how our case
study children viewed it. After discussing the multiple perspectives, we came to the conclusion
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May 6, 2014
LRC 312C: Final

that our goal would be to teach the children about traveling and make it a less abstract concept
that each child could understand.
The tools we used to create this station were: paper map, pins, globe, ribbon construction
paper, letter stamps, camera, suitcases, airport signs and tape. This is what our station ended up
looking like:

I documented through photographs and made notes about the stories that my case studys
told me or that her mom told me on my phone. We embraced literacy by having each child find
countries on the map, showing them the names of airports, supporting them in writing their
names on the passports, and stamping the names of the countries they want to visit in the
passport.
My case study did attend the literacy event at Ocotillo and surprised me. I did travel
because it was one of her funds of knowledge. When she got to the library, I took her to my
station and took a picture of her with the Polaroid camera. However, as soon as I took the picture
she lost interest and went to find her mom. Her mom was by the fish tank and she started to tell
her mom something that I couldnt hear. Her mom smiled and explained to me that her parents
have a pond and every year they have to buy new fish because they keep dying. Anne saw the
books in the cart and asked me if we could go to the library. I nodded and followed them. Then
Laura Soto
May 6, 2014
LRC 312C: Final

my case study told her mom to find a Curious George book. Her mom answered by explaining
that they would be in alphabetical order by author. She pointed to the letters and said the letter
out loud until they came across the Curious George book. Once they found it, Anne came over
to me and asked me to read it. I smiled and said Id love to. We never interacted with any of the
other children. She spent her time bringing me book after book until it was time to clean up. I
had her read some of the books to me too and she answered that she couldnt read. I answered,
Sure you can! Tell me whats happening in the pictures? Just like in the home observations, I
noticed Anne using contextual clues and illustrations to tell me what the story was about
(Morrow, 2012). She enjoyed reading so much that when I left to help my peers to clean up,
Anne stayed with her mom and sister in the library reading for a while longer.
If I could change my station, I would definitely have it include more books next time. In
fact, wed probably change the whole theme. It was brought to our attention that an airport
wasnt very inclusive of the community at Ocotillo. Not everyone there has the opportunity or
ability to get a passport due to family backgrounds. Community literacy is important because it
gives the family more opportunities to tell stories. It also exposes the children to new experiences
and interactions. These stories help the educator have more opportunities to find more funds of
knowledge within the familys stories and include these elements in future lesson plans. It gives
the educator the opportunity to learn more about the childs behavior and why they learn that
way they learn through a one-on-one experience. Its also a great way to expose the case study to
the fact that literacy is all around them and it can be fun.
All of these experiences are important to connecting the childs learning experience and
literacy practices at home into the classroom. For example, Ive learned that family is very
important to my case study so Ive provided her with more opportunities to learn through talking
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May 6, 2014
LRC 312C: Final

about her family, such as making connections during a read aloud. Its also helped me to see the
teachable moments Annes mom uses at home because I can bring the activities into the
classroom too. Her mom knows how she learns best and we can work to build a supportive
learning experience that allows each environment to work together. For example, if shes
showing interest in letters at home, I can work on this component at the same time in the
classroom to give her other resources. Theres also a bond between me and Anne that was
created through home interaction that I can bring back into the classroom that allows her to be
more engaged in my lesson plans. The more she trusts me the more shes willing to challenge
herself and take risks.
Here is some of the documentation I took of my interaction with my case study at the
community literacy event:
amily is







Laura Soto
May 6, 2014
LRC 312C: Final

Reference
Otto, B. (2012). Literacy development in early childhood: Reflective teaching for birth to age 8.
Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merrill Prentice Hall