Emergent Literacy

Emergent literacy refers to the cognitive knowledge children gather about language, reading, and writing before they learn to read. This knowledge is the foundation for success in literacy later in the educational process. (Note the difference from prebraille skills, which are physical and tactile.) For children with visual impairments, emergent literacy must include tactile experiences integrated with verbal language. Teachers will find many resources for fostering emergent literacy, including creating tactile books, story boxes, and language experience stories.

Activities and Experiences

Essential Literacy Experiences for Visually Impaired Children, Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired (TSBVI)
Eva Lavigne explains how "to individualize literacy experiences for visually impaired students…."  She includes a list of essential global experiences and suggests how parents and teachers can cooperate to promote reading and writing skills; available in English and Spanish.

Story Boxes and Tactile Books

Story Boxes: A Hands-On Literacy Experience, e-Advisor
Perkins teacher Norma M. Drissel introduces story boxes, lists some children's books well suited to story boxes, sources of print/braille books, and ideas on literacy opportunities.

Creating Tactile Books, American Foundation for the Blind
This article offers guidelines and good topics for stimulating books for parents to make with their children.

Creating and Using Tactile Experience Books for Young Children with Visual Impairments, Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired (TSBVI)
Sandra Lewis and Joan Tolla discuss the benefits of tactile illustrations, and share techniques and some cautions for making tactile experience books; available in English and Spanish.

Experience Stories for Functionally Blind Pre-readers, Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired (TSBVI)
This page outlines the ways that experience stories can be used as a tool to combine literacy skills, language skills, and concept development.

Making a Fabric Tactile Book, ClearVision
These guidelines outline each step in making a fabric tactile book, from selecting a theme to gathering materials and putting it all together.

Move, Touch, Read!, Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired (TSBVI)
Although these reading activities support American Printing House's Move, Touch, Do curriculum, Wendy Drezek's ideas for using story boxes, story bags, adapted books, touch books with real objects, puppet play, and rhyme are useful on their own.

Object Books, Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired (TSBVI)
Readers will learn what an object book is, how to create one, suggested topics, what the child learns from them, and explore additional ideas as a child's skills develop,.

Stories through Touch: Communicating Tactile Story Ideas to Young Visually Impaired Children, RNIB - National Centre for Tactile Diagrams - Tactile Book Advancement Group
This booklet offers suggestions for making tactile books for young children with visual impairments. (requires Adobe Acrobat Reader)

Making Tactile Books, Tactile Book Advancement Group
This organization offers advice and information on the design and creation of tactile books, including guidelines for commercial publishers for small changes that will make their products more accessible to children with visual impairments.

Research

Literacy in Early Intervention for Children with Visual Impairments: Insights from Individual Cases, Journal of Visual Impairment and Blindness
"A qualitative case study" that provides "practical insights into the role of the early interventionist in supporting early literacy development."

Emergent Literacy: A New Perspective
J.M. Stratton "explores the fit between emergent literacy and the learning needs of children who are blind or visually impaired"; includes literature overview.

See related links in Child Development and Early Intervention