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An Early Education ProgramAn Early Education Program

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Webbing into Literacy (WIL)Webbing into Literacy (WIL) is a is a downloadable program designed to downloadable program designed to provide rural Head Start teachers with provide rural Head Start teachers with materials and instruction that will launch materials and instruction that will launch America's young children on successful America's young children on successful academic careers. WIL has begun as a academic careers. WIL has begun as a component in a best practices study component in a best practices study conducted by Dr. Laura B. Smolkin, conducted by Dr. Laura B. Smolkin, Principal Investigator in CIERA, the Principal Investigator in CIERA, the national Center for the Improvement of national Center for the Improvement of Early Reading Achievement.Early Reading Achievement.

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Presented at the 1999 Core Knowledge Presented at the 1999 Core Knowledge Conference as part of the Core Conference as part of the Core Knowledge sequenceKnowledge sequence

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Webbing Into Literacy

WIL,WIL,

stressing a developmentally stressing a developmentally appropriate, balanced approach to appropriate, balanced approach to literacy instruction, provides teachers literacy instruction, provides teachers with guidance and suggestions for with guidance and suggestions for literacy development both literacy development both in the in the classroomclassroom and and at homeat home..

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Guiding Principles

WebWeb refers to the World Wide Web refers to the World Wide Web without which it would be impossible to without which it would be impossible to reach or offer the program to so many.reach or offer the program to so many.

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WebWeb calls to mind Miss Muffett and her calls to mind Miss Muffett and her spider, reinforcing the important role spider, reinforcing the important role that nursery rhymes play in the WIL that nursery rhymes play in the WIL program.program.

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Most importantly:

Those at WIL are committed to weaving Those at WIL are committed to weaving a a WebWeb– There are many fine threads which when There are many fine threads which when

woven together provide the support woven together provide the support children need to succeedchildren need to succeed

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Alphabet Books

Take-Home Materials

A Book-A-Week

A Rhyme-A-Week

WIL Instruction

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A Rhyme-A-Week

Phonological awareness Phonological awareness program featuring 30 program featuring 30 different rhymes.different rhymes.

Phonograms or “rimes” Phonograms or “rimes” first identified by Richard first identified by Richard Wylie and Donald Durrell Wylie and Donald Durrell in 1970in 1970

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A Rhyme-A-Week

Wylie and Durrell Wylie and Durrell identified 37 rimes that identified 37 rimes that accounted for almost accounted for almost 500 words of Murphy's 500 words of Murphy's listlist

To determine the order To determine the order of rhymes and rimes to of rhymes and rimes to present each week, Wil present each week, Wil creators followed Fry's creators followed Fry's (1998) suggested (1998) suggested consideration of consideration of frequency.frequency.

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A Book-A-Week

A-Book-A-Week A-Book-A-Week instruction makes use instruction makes use of the of the 101 Best Books101 Best Books

Cover four books per Cover four books per month month

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A Book-A-Week

Language DevelopmentLanguage Development, , with attention to with attention to vocabulary and vocabulary and syntactic structures. syntactic structures. (WIL's (WIL's A-Rhyme-A-Week A-Rhyme-A-Week deepens this particular deepens this particular emphasis) emphasis)

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A Book-A-Week

Acts of WritingActs of Writing, , including letter-including letter-sound relationships, sound relationships, print concepts, and print concepts, and genre knowledgegenre knowledge

Lots of LinksLots of Links, , including intertextual including intertextual connections, connections, connections to other connections to other content areas, and content areas, and connections to connections to children's liveschildren's lives

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A Book-A-Week

Artist's CraftArtist's Craft, ,

with attention to the with attention to the ways authors and ways authors and illustrators have illustrators have created their workscreated their works

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Take Home Materials

““My Very Own Nursery Rhyme Collection”My Very Own Nursery Rhyme Collection” ““My Reading Log”My Reading Log”

– Builds commitment with familiesBuilds commitment with families

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New classroom New classroom alphabet each alphabet each monthmonth

They are sent home They are sent home for families to read for families to read together at month’s together at month’s endend

Alphabet Books

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Benefits for Instructions

Easily Easily AccessibleAccessible

Complete Complete Lesson Lesson PlansPlans

Colorful Colorful GraphicsGraphics

Multi-facetedMulti-faceted Multi-Age Multi-Age Developmentally Developmentally AppropriateAppropriate

Balanced Balanced LearningLearning

TransitioningTransitioning Home-School Home-School ConnectionConnection

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Resource

Smolkin, L.B. (2000). (Homepage of Webbing Smolkin, L.B. (2000). (Homepage of Webbing Into Literacy). (Online). Available: Into Literacy). (Online). Available: http://curry.edschool.virginia.edu/go/wil/home.http://curry.edschool.virginia.edu/go/wil/home.html (2000, June 3)html (2000, June 3)

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