NAME : FAJAR ABIMANYU ANANDA

NIM : I2J022009

CLASS : Teaching English for Young Learners (TEYL)

TEACHING READING AND WRITING TO YOUNG LEARNERS

Reading and writing are dynamic and interactive processes. However, the reader actually
brings meaning to the text and interacts with the meaning that is encoded in the text. Our
comprehension of text is often based on making connections from the text to our own experience
and background knowledge. Reading can be seen as an interactive process involving the reader,
the text and the writer. Writing is also an interactive process that involves thinking about who will
read the text. Writers must make decisions about what to write and how to write it based on the
reader. We often read what we write multiple times to make sure we are communicating our
intended meaning to the potential reader. The interaction between the reader and writer through
text is a dynamic process that requires many skills to learn.

Young learners of English are more successful when they receive meaningful exposure to
language and plenty of opportunities to practise. EYL teachers can integrate reading and writing
activities with oral language instruction for children at an early age, focusing as well on helping
children to understand speech-to-print differences, as well as similarities between their L1 and
English. Some helpful ways to ensure your EFL literacy programme is meaning-based and
balanced, include the following:

 Immerse students in print and literature

The students need to participate in reading experiences with a variety of texts. Those texts
should include not only stories, but also poetry and information texts (which can be drawn from
their other classes), and a wide array of texts from the Internet.
 Give explicit instruction in phonics.

An effective literacy instruction needs to incorporate both bottom-up and top-down skills.
Phonics instruction will help young EFL learners to develop bottom- up skills to decode text in
English, and over time, they will be able to develop automaticity in decoding and spelling English
texts.
  Build vocabulary and automaticity of high frequency words

Children need explicit vocabulary instruction to make sense of oral and written texts as
well as multiple opportunities to see and use that vocabulary in various contexts. In order to
develop a balanced literacy programme, young learners need a balance between authentic
children`s texts (trade books) as well as graded readers. As a result, teachers often use graded
readers, which are purposely written to control the vocabulary and language in a text. Graded
readers can help young learners become familiar with the most frequently used words in English,
while also systematically introducing new vocabulary in a meaningful context.
 Utilise and build students’ background knowledge

Building cultural knowledge helps prepare learners to be effective readers and writers of English
across cultures. Teachers can also usecontent-area texts on a variety of topics, which help students
make cross-curricular connections and promote comprehension of text.
 Model and teach various reading and writing strategies

Provide a young EFL learners with variety of strategies to both understand and create different
[Link] way to help young learners build reading and writing skills is to model the skills and
strategies the students need to use. In a read-aloud, the teacher models how to read fluentlyand
with expression, while also communicating interest and enthusiasm for reading.
 Involve young learners in literacy activities

Children learn by doing and need to actively participate in literacy activities. Not only does this
mean participating in the actual reading and writing activities themselves, but also engaging in
discussions about texts, comprehension strategies and the writing process.
 Use a ‘To/With/By’ approach.
Provide step-by-step scaffolding through modelling as well as guided activities that help move
children towards becoming more independent readers and writers. Teachers may find it helpful to
conceptualise the process of scaffolding studentsto become more independent using the
To/With/By approach (Cappellini 2005; Mooney 1990; Walter 2004).
Reading and writing to students: The teacher provides a model to learners of reading and writing
skills and strategies, e.g., read-alouds and think-alouds.
Reading and writing with students: After modelling, the teacher reads and writes with students,
gradually giving learners more responsibility for reading and writing, e.g., bigbook shared reading,
the Language Experience Approach, Reader’s Theater and small group guided reading.
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– Reading and writing by students: After guided practice with the teacher, learners can begin to
read and write independently, e.g., through literacy centres, literature circles, interactive and
collaborative writing and research projects.
The To/With/By approach is a simple but effective step-by-step framework for teachers to
help young learners become readers and writers in English.

The status of English as a global language requires us to take a critical stance on the texts
weincorporate into our classrooms, which should not only represent the dominant discourses from
the USA or the UK, as is common for authentic texts in English. We will need further

exploration of how we produce and select texts we use to teach reading and writing in EYL
classrooms. Such texts may include:
 Texts that represent other Englishes (i.e., varieties of English spoken around the world).

 Texts that integrate cultural information from other countries and cultures.

 Texts that are written for a global audience.

These texts will require cross-cultural interpretation skills to understand cultural content that comes
from diverse cultures and represents other Englishes. This can include crosscultural visual literacy since the
images accompanying text will be diverse as well.

Teaching young EFL learners to read and write is a challenging yet exciting endeavor. EYL
classrooms may focus primarily on oral language skills. Young learners need to be actively
involved in reading andwriting, and teachers can effectively scaffold young learners to become
independent readersand writers by using techniques such as the To/With/By approach. Hopefully
teachers can connect young learners to literacy practices in linguistically and culturally appropriate
waysand look ahead to new literacies in the future.