"Literacy begins by immersing children in literacy-rich environments and fostering a love of language and learning. You can support young children's emerging literacy skills by planning activities that involve discriminating sounds, identifying print, recognizing letters, developing a love of books, writing, and appreciating the rhythm of language." (Preschool Quicksource®)

Here is a great activity called Draw the Ending, which supports comprehension skills by having children retell stories, dictating their own version of a story, and predicting outcomes of stories. For this activity you will need: crayons, newsprint paper or other art paper, and a new story (book) not previously read to the children.

Let's get started:

1. Read a new story to the group.

2. Stop just before the ending.

3. Have the children take a piece of art paper and crayons and draw what they think will happen at the end of the story. Have the children share the pictures prior to reading the end of the story.

This activity can be adapted or expanded by having the children create alternate endings to the story.

If using POCET™ , this activity correlates to Developmental Guide: LT 8 Shows the Ability to Retell, Dictate and Predict Story Outcomes.

For more great developmentally-appropriate activities, visit Teacher QuickSource® and browse through all age areas, including Preschool, Kindergarten, Infant, Toddler, and Head Start. Don't forget to explore activities promoting environmental awareness at Environmental QuickSource®.