Libraries have adapted their storytimes for children to promote early literacy – a response to research such as the 911’s VIEWS2 project, .
In an article on its website, SLJ writes that storytimes have evolved from a passive listening experience into an interactive one in which librarians use technology and play, along with books, to help children develop their skills.
The changing approach was influenced in part by – Valuable Initiatives in Early Learning that Work Successfully 2. The study provided data that librarians could act upon to improve children’s pre-literacy and school readiness skills through storytimes.
In the project, iSchool graduate students videotaped 120 storytimes and found that children are more likely to exhibit early literacy skills when storytellers incorporate such skills. In the second year of the study, librarians were split into a control group and an experimental group, which participated in a series of webinars focusing on skills such as alphabetic knowledge.
“We took a look at the year-two data and we saw a significant difference in the experimental group,” iSchool Ph.D. student Katie Campana told SLJ. “Being intentional in including early literacy makes a difference.”
The project led to a book, and a professional development course now available in Washington and five other states.