A Breakthrough in Early Childhood Education: The Secret to Oral Language Development

In this webinar, we welcomed Nancy Garrity from Scholastic and Dr. Tricia Zucker from the University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston. Nancy and Dr. Zucker talked about the research related to developing talkers and shared the groundbreaking key to oral language development for children. They also shared how this research can be implemented and turned into practice to support language development in your childcare.

🎤Our Special Guests!

Nancy Garrity, Senior Director of Early Childhood at Scholastic

Nancy Garrity is Senior Director of Early Childhood at Scholastic. She has spent more than twenty years developing educational experiences for children, teachers, and families—first in the classroom and then at Scholastic, working with leading early childhood experts and practitioners across the country. Nancy is passionate about foundational early learning and its impact on children’s engagement and success in school and beyond.

Dr. Tricia Zucker, PhD, Co-Director of the Children’s Learning Institute at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston.

Dr. Zucker is the Co-Director of the Children’s Learning Institute at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. She is also the lead researcher behind Developing Talkers and Hablemos Juntos, groundbreaking oral language development programs proven to significantly expand children’s receptive and expressive vocabulary skills. The research-proven intervention strategies have been incorporated and expanded upon in Scholastic’s new PreK curriculum PreK On My Way™

🧪Key Learning Outcomes from Nancy and Dr. Zucker

• Oral Language develops from birth! 
• Different brain regions in the left and right hemispheres have been identified to support particular language functions. 
• Most language-related brain activity occurs on the left side of your brain. 
• As Educators this is our call to action – we build strong brain function with back-and-forth conversations.
• Children should talk with you and others as much or more than you talk to them. 
• Through discussions about the book you read out loud, you can link the text to children’s experiences, build vocabulary, and enhance language skills. 
• Use a combination of concrete and abstract questions to facilitate a discussion while reading quality literature.

✨Resources

• [Podcast] –Tools for Life & Socioemotional Development  
• [Podcast] – The Benefits of Dual Language Development in Early Childhood Education
• Check out Scholastic for more information and resources
• Want to learn more about PreK On My Way? Then check their website for more resources.
• [Article] – Going Nuts for Words: Recommendations for Teaching Young Students Academic Vocabulary 
• [Article] – Asking Questions Is Just The First Step: “Using Upward and Downward Scaffolds

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