Print Awareness

Definition

Print awareness is the understanding that written language is related to oral language. It involves recognizing that print has meaning and understanding the conventions of how print works, such as reading from left to right and top to bottom, and knowing the difference between letters, words, and sentences.

Prerequisites

None. Print awareness is one of the most fundamental pre-reading skills, often developed through exposure to books and print in the environment.

Learning Objectives

After developing print awareness, learners should be able to:

1. Understand that print carries meaning.
2. Know how to handle a book correctly (e.g., front cover, back cover, orientation).
3. Follow text directionality (left-to-right, top-to-bottom).
4. Distinguish between print and pictures.
5. Identify basic book parts (e.g., title, author, illustrator).
6. Recognize that print is made up of letters and words.
7. Understand the concept of a word (space between words).
8. Understand the concept of a letter.

Key Concepts

Print Has Meaning

The core idea that the marks on a page represent spoken words and convey information or stories.

Book Handling

Knowing the front/back of a book, holding it right-side up, and turning pages correctly.

Directionality

Understanding that in English, we read text starting at the top left, moving across the line to the right, and then sweeping down to the next line on the left.

Print vs. Pictures

Recognizing that the story or information comes primarily from the text, although pictures provide support and context.

Letters, Words, and Sentences

Understanding the hierarchy: letters combine to form words, and words combine to form sentences. Recognizing the spaces that separate words.

Book Concepts

Identifying the title, author (who wrote the words), and illustrator (who drew the pictures).

Examples & Activities (PreK-K)

Example 1: Shared Reading (Dialogic Reading)

Activity: While reading aloud, point to the words as you read them. Ask questions about the book itself: "Where should I start reading on this page?" "Can you show me the title?" "Point to just one word on this page."

Example 2: Handling Books

Activity: Let children explore books independently. Model how to hold a book, turn pages, and identify the front and back covers.

Example 3: Environmental Print Awareness

Activity: Point out print in the everyday environment – signs (STOP, EXIT), labels on food items, logos, names on mail. Discuss what the print says or represents.

Example 4: Writing Center Exploration

Activity: Provide paper, crayons, markers, and perhaps letter stamps. Encourage children to "write" (even if it's scribbling) and talk about their writing, reinforcing that marks on paper can represent ideas.

Example 5: Concept Sort

Activity: Use cards with single letters, simple words (cat, dog), and pictures. Ask the child to sort them into piles of "letters," "words," and "pictures."

Common Challenges

1. Ignoring Print: Focusing solely on pictures and not understanding that the text tells the story.
2. Directionality Confusion: Trying to read from right to left or bottom to top.
3. Distinguishing Letters/Words: Difficulty understanding that words are separated by spaces or that letters combine to make words.

Importance for Reading

Print awareness is the bedrock upon which all other literacy skills are built. It ensures that children understand:

1. The Purpose of Print: Why reading and writing are important.
2. The Mechanics of Reading: How to navigate text on a page.
3. The Building Blocks of Language: The relationship between spoken sounds, letters, and words.

Without print awareness, learning phonics or recognizing letters lacks context and purpose.

Practice Activities

• Read Aloud Daily: Make reading together an interactive experience, pointing to text and discussing book features.
• Label Objects: Label common items around the classroom or home (e.g., "chair," "door," "table").
• Use Big Books: Large-format books make it easier to point to text and demonstrate directionality during shared reading.
• Create Name Cards: Help children recognize their own names in print.
• Encourage Scribbling/Drawing: Value children's early attempts at writing as explorations of print.