Early Literacy Specialists

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We are a team of five individuals who support and promote early learning and early literacy through the Ontario Early Years Initiative in the Eastern Ontario Region. We serve early years practitioners who work with individuals, families and groups of children, pre-natally to six years of age.

Where do we work?

We are housed in the Parent Resource Centre, as part of the Ontario Early Years Initiative
We work with the Ontario Early Years Centres, their satellites and partner agencies
Our services are available in Ottawa, Stormont, Dundas & Charlottenburg, Prescott, Russell & Glengarry and Renfrew-Nipissing-Pembroke.

What are our services

Visit community partners and programs to offer support, provide resources and develop tailored training workshops for professionals working with families, from drop-in programs to child care centres
Offer on-site program evaluations and recommendations
Work within the principles of the Ontario Early Learning Framework and Full-day Early Learning Curriculum
Refer families and practitioners to community programs and support services such as First Words
Train professionals and parents on early learning and early literacy concepts
Use current data to guide training workshops and resources being developed
Provide research materials and a reference library on early learning and early literacy issues
Link to adult literacy programs , as needed, ,

Desired Program Outcomes:

Improved school readiness
Improved parental and community ability to support early learning and early literacy development in young children
Increased general awareness of early brain development and the importance of positive stimulation and nurturing

What is early literacy?

The set of skills that children will use to learn to read, to write, and to communicate
Early literacy begins prenatally
It combines a child's ability to speak, to listen and to experience, with their ability to understand, to create and to talk about the ideas, events and experiences in their world
Early literacy skills evolve in relation to a child's interaction with their family and community environment
Key components are language play with rhymes, songs, books, and make- believe play

Tip of the Day

Try to turn some No's into Yes's. Instead of "No cookies before supper," say, "Yes, you can have a cookie after supper." Everyone (even parents) finds it easier to handle a "yes" than a "no".