So Much More Than the ABCs: The Early Phases of Reading and Writing, Revised Edition

Laying a Strong Foundation for Literacy in the Early Years

A child's literacy development begins long before their formal education does. The skills and knowledge that infants, toddlers, and preschoolers acquire through meaningful, playful language and literacy experiences are the building blocks of their later success in reading and writing.

How do early childhood educators foster young children's understanding of reading and writing during this emergent literacy period? Moreover, how can they nurture a love of reading and writing? With these two questions at its core, the revised edition of this bestselling resource provides

• A comprehensive and updated overview of what literacy development looks like for children from birth through age 5


• Instructional approaches that support robust early language, literacy, and content knowledge learning


• Considerations for choosing and sharing materials and for designing the physical environment in ways that support language and literacy learning


• Recommendations for developmentally appropriate books that engage children's minds and imaginations


• Authentic writing samples that showcase young children's thinking around and explorations with mark making

Grounded in new research and drawn from the authors' extensive experience, this book gives educators the tools they need to create and build on learning opportunities that will lead to thriving, motivated readers and writers.

Molly F. Collins, EdD (Boston University), associate professor of the practice of literacy in the Department of Teaching and Learning at Vanderbilt University's Peabody College, has taught graduate and undergraduate courses in cognitive development, language acquisition, linguistics, and storybook reading. She has also provided multiyear professional learning experiences on language and literacy for preschool teachers in national and international settings. Previously, she taught toddlers and preschoolers.

Collins directed early literacy and professional educator projects funded by the US Department of Education, foundations, and universities, and she served as principal investigator for foundation- and university-sponsored grants to explore monolingual and multilingual children's vocabulary learning and comprehension from story reading. She is a member of the American Educational Research Association, the Literacy Research Association, the National Association for the Education of Young Children, and the Society for Research in Child Development, and she serves as part of the National Early Education Council at Jumpstart.

Judith A. Schickedanz, PhD (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign), professor emerita at Boston University, taught courses in child development, early literacy, and curriculum and instruction; served as director of the laboratory preschool; coordinated the early childhood program; and helped launch the Jumpstart volunteer program. She taught preschool and has worked extensively with early childhood teachers on funded projects, including Early Reading First.

Schickedanz has authored numerous articles, book chapters, and books, including Understanding Children and Adolescents (Allyn & Bacon, 2000); Increasing the Power of Instruction (NAEYC, 2008); Writing in Preschool (International Reading Association, 2009); Inside Preschool Classrooms (Harvard Education Press, 2018); and What Are Preschoolers Thinking? (Harvard Education Press, 2022). She lives with her husband, David, in Southern California near their son's family and enjoys their two grandchildren, a 10-year-old and a 3-year-old.