This paper was prepared by Jayne White
Biography:
Jayne White is a senior lecturer at Waikato University. This paper draws from her recent doctoral research with toddlers and their teachers.
Literacy as reading language
When I think of literacy, the idea of 'reading' some sort of language system – be it oral or written word - springs to mind. However, there are also language systems that are used by all of us throughout our lives where words are substituted with actions or are absent altogether, whether we realise it or not. This silent language is sometimes referred to as non-verbal or gestural/body communication. Though used alongside words by adults and children alike in everyday talk, its almost exclusive use is never more dominant than during our early years - in the period between infancy and childhood, which I call 'toddlerhood'.
Sound fulfils a similar role for toddlers in their everyday language. Sounds can often be recognised by adults as emerging words which are enthusiastically latched onto as a concrete indication of 'development'. However, sounds are also used by toddlers to convey experiences and emotions such as joy in upward inflection, noises like "aaaaaHHHHHHH" as the toddler runs across a wide space, or onomatopoeic sounds such as "bop bop bop" to emulate a sharp sound or action. This is hardly surprising when we consider that the origin of many words in adult language is based on our lived experience with the world.
In my research with toddlers over the past few years I have come to appreciate the way silent language and sound are used to convey meaning when toddlers communicate. That is not to say that I claim to know exactly what a toddler means when he or she uses gesture or body language but merely that I, with the help of others, have developed an awareness of their purpose and intent in communication. I have come to see the importance of noticing these language forms as essential for teachers who want to get to know toddlers in their fullest sense, and develop deeper relationships that are so important for learning.