Building Literacy Skills By Sparking Imaginations

>>Student: Do one side and then the
spider crawled up the house and then...

>>Heather: Playful learning to me is
seeing the joy on the children's face

when they're learning something new.

So seeing them smile, seeing
them be able to use it in context

when they're playing, because they've
learned it through play from us.

When I see them giggling and laughing,
but still doing what I've asked them

to do, I say, "Yeah, that's it.

That's great."

>>Storyland is oral storytelling.

My students are learning the basics of
writing, but they're learning it orally,

which is where they need to
learn it in kindergarten.

They need to learn the oral
part of it because they can move

into the written part as they get older.

>>Once upon a time, tell me
about your beautiful house here.

>>Student: One day, a spider...

>>Heather: And I cover each table with
a tablecloth and it becomes that land.

So, you know, the land of fall, the
land of water, the land of snow,

so all of those different lands.

I change them up so that
they're not always the same.

What we play with is nature-based.

I had acorns, I have pine cones, I
have shells, I have pieces of wood.

I do have animals out so
that they can add those in.

I put out the baskets with all the
nature items in it, and then they come

in very quietly and they gather the
items that they want to play with,

and they bring it to
their land of choice.

And then they create
whatever they're making,

the house, the trees, whatever it is.

And they start telling their
story, you know, to themselves,

or sometimes with a partner.

>>Student: I think this
is actually real.

This is real, so we tuck down...

>>Heather: And then I circulate and I
walk around and I make sure that I touch

in with every child at least once.

>>Student: And then this ran away
and then they jump back up there...

>>Heather: So then, as they play
Storyland, I'll go around and I'll say,

"Okay, what's the setting
of your story?"

and then they orally tell
me what the setting is.

>>Student: And this is
the water where he swims.

>>Heather: If we're working on
characters, I'll say, "Okay,

who are the characters in your story?"

>>Student: It was birds
flying and some butterflies.

>>Heather: It was birds flying and
then their friends were butterflies?

>>Right now, I'm trying to work on
more of a beginning, middle and end.

>>And so when they get to grade one,
if they can orally tell the story,

they can hopefully start to
put something down on paper.

It's magical to them and they
love it, so that's a good way

for them to start their writing.

>>Student: I make this goat never
get his chocolate peanut butter--

>>Heather: Oh, look, and I
think someone's at the door.

>>Student: That's a bear.

Hello. Who's there?