Developing Language Literacy in the Early Grades
Language is like an ocean of experience that very young children live in uninterrupted even from before they enter the world. In the womb, the developing child experiences and is moved by the sounds that occur nearby, especially those of the mother, who knows intimately of this special aspect of the mother-child bond. Very young children swim in the ocean of sounds around them and slowly develop awareness that the sounds of creatures and humans carry a depth of meaning that speaks directly to the soul through volume, tone, color, timbre, and other nuances of expression. This meaning, to begin with, is soul to soul, and not yet intellectual.
Gradually, children learn that meaning is also conveyed through the medium of language, something that is carried on the ocean of sound from person to person. Words are components of language that express knowledge and definition, especially for mature human beings, and the developing, maturing child begins to grapple with this elusive aspect of the ocean of sound (language) even from very early on, as they enter into a deeper relationship with the larger human community. Although human languages differ greatly from culture to culture, each language serves to strengthen and bind community members together through communication. Language is a living, breathing, evolving lifeblood of human culture and community.
If one looks at the interwoven evolution of language and culture through time, a pattern emerges that is recognizable and important when considering how to best develop language literacy through education. Human cultures have evolved in their relationship to language in a similar way that developing children do. The story of how a young child encounters and develops a relationship with language is the same story of how early human cultures evolved language. Young children recapitulate the processes that their ancestors lived through and experienced as a matter of course, eventually arriving in maturity at a nuanced understanding and relationship to language that reflects the mature state of the language itself and of the communities that utilize it. This process unfolds gradually, in stages, and these stages can be characterized thus:
Musical and Oral Tradition - Storytelling
In the earliest stages of language development sounds were conveyed rhythmically, musically, and eventually through the spoken word, as sounds differentiated and became laden with distinct meanings. Oral traditions of sung and spoken word enabled the imparting of names, events, customs, and many other things of importance to the community. These were carried, conveyed, and passed down through generations within human communities through song, verse, dance, and story. Storytelling is a primary means and medium in this very early stage. In modern families and communities, and the classrooms of young children, storytelling is both an echo of an earlier stage of human development and a vital means of language cultivation. Lively storytelling is an essential educational tool utilized daily to develop language literacy.
Pictography and Form Drawing
In time, human communities evolved a new and nuanced facet of language conveyance that came in the form of symbolic representation through the drawing of forms imbued with distinct meanings. To begin with, these ‘drawings’ closely resembled the content that was being conveyed through this medium. A hieroglyph, or pictograph, communicated meaning from one soul to another, just as, or in addition to, how the spoken word had done previously. Over long periods of time, pictography went through gradual refinements in various places. Forms often became increasingly symbolic; less complex in form and more complex in meaning. In Waldorf's early grades classrooms, the practice of drawing simple and complex forms echoes this stage of development and is a precursor to the drawing of letter forms that soon follows.
Letters and Writing
The symbolic representation of story content and other culturally relevant information continued to evolve in fascinating ways in human communities, which eventually led to the formation of special sets of symbols laden with mutable sound-meaning; alphabet symbols, of which there are many diverse kinds within the larger human community. The culturally diverse dance, spoken, and sung word traditions within communities continue even up to the present time. However, with the advent and refinement of written language, the relative importance of the earliest forms of language communication diminishes within those circles of community that place value and greater emphasis on the advancements that written language offers.
In the Waldorf first-grade classroom the letter forms are introduced through the mediums of storytelling and form drawing. The early evolutionary stages of language literacy are faithfully and experientially incorporated into the process of further language development. Even singing, movement, and the speaking of sounds, words, and short verses are included in this daily work. The letters are individually “crystallized out” of living story content as the children extract the symbols of written language that they will soon use ubiquitously throughout their further education. In this process, the children themselves refine their storytelling skills by recalling, retelling, and drawing stories daily. Eventually, they learn to recognize the extracted symbols (letters) in whole words, and soon these words appear on the chalkboard in whole sentences that they will practice writing.
From Writing to Reading
In the further evolution of language, the stages of pictograph and the formation of alphabetic symbols were intimately bound up with the interpretation of the symbols that were emerging. One could say that writing thus mutually co-evolved with reading. This is true, though the process continued in such a way that the symbols in many alphabets, including the one that we use in conjunction with the English language, became increasingly far removed and abstract from their origins. The letters that we have today are very abstract indeed, relative to the forms they once had. They are a thing of convention and practicality, and as such, an immensely useful and essential component and tool of modern language.
When we teach reading in the first grade we do so in conjunction with writing, though writing precedes reading in our methodology. We teach the children to write, as described above, and then to read what they have written. The forms of the letters become familiar to them through the writing process, and interpretation of the letter symbols follows. This generally occurs midway through the first-grade year. This also echoes the evolutionary stages of language development. As their phonemic awareness deepens through practice we can eventually present them with books that feature printed letter forms that look somewhat different than the ones they have learned through writing practice. The transition is a relatively easy one, however, when facilitated in this way.
The Timeline for Developing Language Literacy
The process of developing language literacy and fluency is different for each child because each child is endowed with a unique temperament, personality, family and cultural history, constitution, and many other factors. Even so, they encounter the same developmental milestones at relatively the same time, so we can educate them together in the ways described here. Some students enter the first grade already fluent and able to read in their first language, while others will first encounter this work over the course of the first-grade year.
The teacher must develop an understanding of the unique needs, abilities, and challenges of each student. They then need to meet each student where they are at and work with them from there. This is one of the most rewarding aspects of educating according to the principles of Waldorf pedagogy. It will take some students years to master the basic skills of writing and reading, while others will do so sooner. The beauty of having the teacher accompany a group of students through the grades is that they will come to understand each student deeply. This will enable them to find the unique approach that will keep each student engaged and moving forward on the road to language fluency and literacy.
Written by Peter Hayes. Peter has been a Waldorf teacher for more than 20 years and has guided three classes from first through eighth grade. He is currently on his third loop at Cedarwood.