August 12, 2025 • 23 mins
Join hosts Inette Bolden and Jennifer Ferreira as they welcome Maranda Schoppert, Program Manager for Early Literacy and Children's Services at Montgomery County Public Libraries. With over 11 years of experience working with young children and caregivers, Maranda brings valuable insights into the foundational skills that set children on the path to becoming confident readers.
In this episode, listeners will discover what early literacy truly means, why it matters before a child can even read, and how families and educators can nurture these skills through everyday activities.
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Episode Transcript
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Inette Bolden (00:11):
Unlock the magic of early childhood with Elevate.
This podcast is brought to youby Early Childhood Services, a
program within Montgomery County, Maryland's Department of
Health and Human Services.
We are dedicated to empoweringparents and educators with the
knowledge and tools to nurturethe next generation.
I'm Inette Bolden and I'mJennifer.
Jennifer Ferreira (00:33):
Ferreira, and we're your hosts of Elevate.
Today we're diving into a topicthat's close to the hearts of
many families and classroomsearly literacy.
Joining us today is MirandaSchoppert, program Manager for
Early Literacy and Children'sServices for Montgomery County
Public Libraries.
She has been working with youngchildren and their caregivers
(00:55):
for over 11 years, creatingprograms that spark joy,
imagination and foundationalreading skills.
As the Program Manager forEarly Literacy and children's
services, miranda works toimplement system-wide
programming and initiatives foryouth ages 0 through 12
throughout the library system's21 branches and beyond.
She has presented at theMaryland Library Association
(01:18):
Yearly Conference and theAmerican Library Association
LibLearnX Conference, writtenfor Washington Family Magazine
and American Libraries Magazine.
Miranda enjoys connectingpeople with resources and
working with local outreachgroups to bring county services
to the MCPL community.
Welcome to the show, miranda.
Maranda Schoppert (01:36):
Thank you, I'm so excited to be here, guys.
Inette Bolden (01:39):
We're so excited to have you.
So let's start with the basics.
What exactly do you mean whenyou say early literacy?
Maranda Schoppert (01:48):
So that's a really good question.
You know, those in the fielddon't realize how many people
are not familiar with this term.
New parents and caregivers maynot truly understand all that
early literacy entails To some.
We hear the word literacy andwe think being able to read,
when in fact it's actually somuch more.
Inette Bolden (02:10):
You're right, that's true.
It is so much more.
So tell us more about whatliteracy means.
Maranda Schoppert (02:16):
Great.
So in a nutshell, earlyliteracy is what children know
about communication, the verbaland non nonverbal language,
reading and writing before theycan read or write.
So building good early literacyskills means creating a strong
foundation so that when kidsbegin learning to read and write
(02:38):
they have those necessaryskills to begin that learning
process.
So an example in the UnitedStates text printed text runs
left to right.
We turn our pages to the left.
So if a child already knowsthat, you know they're going to
turn those pages to the leftbefore entering kindergarten.
(02:59):
That's just one less thing wehave to worry about on that road
to reading.
Jennifer Ferreira (03:05):
That makes a lot of sense.
Even something as simple asknowing how to hold a book or
which direction to turn thepages can make a big difference.
What are the most importantliteracy skills children develop
before they actually learn toread?
Maranda Schoppert (03:18):
So there are six early literacy skills that
early literacy specialists splitinto two separate categories.
There are constrained skills,or those skills that you master,
that you memorize, and thenthere are those unconstrained
skills, those skills that youcontinue to learn throughout
your life.
Jennifer Ferreira (03:38):
Very interesting.
So what happens to be those sixskills?
Maranda Schoppert (03:43):
Well, let's start with the constraint skills
.
So the constraint our firstconstraint skill I'll tell you
about is print awareness.
So print awareness meansknowing that printed words have
meaning, that they followpatterns, that they're different
from pictures and that theyrepresent spoken words.
This can include knowing printconventions, like knowing when
(04:07):
the book is upside down or thatwe flip those pages to the left.
Letter knowledge would be thesecond constrained skill, that
skill that you memorize.
And this means recognizing thatletters are different from one
another, that the same letter,an uppercase A and a lowercase a
they can look different butthey are both still the letter A
(04:30):
, and also that those lettershave names and represent sounds.
And the third constrained skill, those skills you memorize is
phonological awareness.
This is knowing that words aremade up of sounds and being able
to break those words down intosounds and then manipulate them.
(04:51):
Also recognizing rhyming words,words with same sound.
At the beginning, those are allimportant parts of learning
phonological awareness, Wow.
Jennifer Ferreira (05:03):
I personally just feel that I learned so much
.
That is very interesting.
So you mentioned the nextskills are unconstrained skills.
Can you share more about thatwith?
Maranda Schoppert (05:11):
us Absolutely so.
Like I said, thoseunconstrained skills are skills
that you're continuing to learnthroughout your life.
We are continuing to learnthese skills, and one of the
first three is print motivation.
So how do I explain this?
A child who is interested in umand enjoys books from an early
(05:34):
age is a child that's likely tospend more time reading.
So really, very simply, um,print motivation is that love of
reading, building a love ofreading, and we know, as adults,
we can always come back to thatlove of reading if we lose it
along the way, right?
The second skill, the secondunconstrained skill that we're
continually learning I'mcontinually learning every day
(05:56):
is vocabulary, and this isbasically knowing the meanings
of words, actions and adjectives, feelings, concepts, ideas, not
just things.
It's much, much easier to reada word you've heard before, read
(06:17):
a word you've heard before.
Children can make sense of whatthey're sounding out when they
were already familiar with wordsand have a context for it.
And then the finalunconstrained skill, that final
skill we are always learning, isbackground knowledge, and this
is basically prior knowledgeabout anything.
So when we know or have thatfoundational knowledge of
something, it's so much easierto build comprehension skills.
(06:40):
You can choose the meaningbetween words when you know what
, when you have that backgroundknowledge.
So, for example, the word partP a RT, is it a part in your
hair or is it a role in a play?
You're going to play your partin a play.
You can make inferences fromtext when you have background
knowledge.
So why would someone's stomachgrowl?
(07:03):
The background knowledge isbecause they're hungry.
Your stomach me noises whenyou're hungry well.
Inette Bolden (07:10):
Thank you for breaking down all of those six
skills.
One of the ones that stuck outto me the most is how kids are
more likely to recognize andread a word they've heard before
, even if it seems like they'renot fully paying attention.
I think that's really importantfor families as well as early
childhood educators in theclassroom.
(07:31):
When a child may not be payingattention during circle time,
but they're hearing it, thatexposure matters.
So why is early literacy socritical for long-term academic
success?
Maranda Schoppert (07:45):
Oh yeah so let's look at a child's brain
development to answer thisquestion.
In the first year of life, achild's brain doubles in size
and then by age three, the brainhas grown to an incredible 80%
of its adult size.
And then by the age of fiveonly two years later the brain
(08:06):
has reached 90% of its fulladult size.
So it's practically full grownby the time a child is five
years old.
So when we think about earlyliteracy and why it's so
critical for long term academicsuccess, it's not really hard to
see that laying that strongfoundation in these early years,
(08:28):
when that child's brain is asponge and able to absorb such
huge amounts of information, isso important.
Inette Bolden (08:37):
Wow, I really love learning all about brain
development.
This really puts things intoperspective.
It's incredible to think abouthow much a child's brain is
already developed by age five.
It really highlights why thoseearly learning experiences
matter so much.
Speaking of early learningexperiences, can you describe
(08:58):
some of the programs or storytimes that you offer at the
libraries?
Maranda Schoppert (09:03):
Oh, yes, now I'm going to get on my soapbox,
right.
So early literacy is just soimportant to libraries.
It's important to me for sure,it's a large part of our 2023 to
2026 strategic plan thatchildren under five are ready to
enter kindergarten.
And to meet this goal we have alot of programming going on.
(09:24):
So let me talk about some ofour system-wide initiatives that
happen at you know, all of ourbranches, or throughout our 21
library system branches.
The first one is our HatchlingsParent Workshop.
So Hatchlings is a three-partseries designed for expectant
parents and parents with babies,zero to four months.
(09:45):
In these series of workshops,parents get to explore ways to
support baby's development withplayful early learning
activities.
So we're actually catching youbefore baby's even born, right
from when you're expecting,building those good habits
through four months with thisworkshop.
It's one that's near and dearto my heart.
(10:07):
Another initiative that we haveat the library is our
longstanding 1000 books beforekindergarten.
This is just a really fun andinteractive way to help prepare
your child for kindergarten bycompleting 1,000 early learning
activities together beforeentering school.
And I know 1,000, it seems likea lot, it seems daunting, but
(10:31):
just think if you read or sharebooks or sing a song, one, two,
three before bed.
How quickly in that first fiveyears of life you can hit 1000.
We have some kiddos that wantto complete it again and again
before they get to five.
Uh, preschool play and learn um, is another initiative that we
do for this early literacy group.
(10:52):
Um, it's a library-led programfor children between three and
five years old, with theircaregivers.
Very important with theircaregivers because this program
it features a variety ofplay-based activities and these
activities are actually designedto help get preschoolers ready
(11:12):
for kindergarten by buildingessential skills across five
early learning domains.
The setting for preschool playand learn is very reminiscent of
like circle time that they'regoing to hit in preschool, being
able to do independentactivities when they get into
kindergarten.
So it's a great foundationalprogram.
And then, of course, our storytime.
(11:34):
You know the bread and butterof libraries, I think, for
children's services.
So story times across oursystem they're generally 25
minutes to 30 minutes.
These programs.
They're designed to delightchildren of all ages.
They're filled with diversestories and activities that
promote those developing thoselanguage skills that we talked
(11:55):
about earlier and imagination.
And we're really just in storytime, encouraging children to
develop that lifelong love ofreading and just introducing
them to the culture of reading.
So those are some of thesystem-wide initiatives, but
there are tons of programshappening at each of our
individual branches.
Several of our libraries, likeGaithersburg and Connie Morella,
(12:18):
have first book clubs, just anexposure to how a book club
works and how reading in a groupmight work.
Noise library for youngchildren has boogie woogie
Wednesdays.
We have play dates at thelibrary, performances by local
performers and, of course, rightnow we have summer reading
happening and summer reading isfor all ages and you can color
(12:42):
your world with art byparticipating.
So if you're not signed up forsummer reading yet, you should
be.
Jennifer Ferreira (12:47):
Wow, miranda.
That was incredibly insightful.
Such great information to sharewith our parents and community.
Many parents often wonder whatthey can do at home to support
their child's literacy.
Your opinion what are somepractical everyday tips you can
share with families?
Maranda Schoppert (13:02):
So this is a really great question.
You know, in the library wepromote five practices of Every
Child Ready to Read 2.
And Every Child Ready to Read 2is a caregiver education
initiative created by the PublicLibrary Association.
Caregiver Education Initiativecreated by the Public Library
Association and the Associationfor Library Services to Children
(13:23):
in order to support parents andcaregivers with early literacy
development for children birthto age five.
So these five practices reallyweave those six skills I talked
about those unconstrained andconstrained skills earlier into
daily activities.
Jennifer Ferreira (13:38):
Amazing, and are there any specific books or
a list of books that can helpincrease literacy for children
in certain age groups?
Maranda Schoppert (13:47):
Yes, there's actually so many ways to find
books and book recommendationsat the library.
We have librarian curated booklists for babies through high
schoolers.
We have databases like Novelist, which can actually provide a
list of award winners orread-alike.
So say your child loves, youknow brave, the picture book
(14:09):
brave.
You can type that in and it'llgive you, you know, similar
titles either about fire trucksor written in the same way that
they might relate to or respondto.
You can get readingrecommendations straight from
our catalog, which is now an appthat you can download.
So download the MCPL catalogapp and also you can even
(14:30):
request specially curatedrecommendations through our Ask
a Librarian service.
Inette Bolden (14:35):
Wow, those all sound like great and fantastic
initiatives.
Could you tell us a bit moreabout the five practices the
library promotes?
Maranda Schoppert (14:44):
Oh sure, absolutely so.
These five practices that wepromote are talking, singing,
reading, writing and playingwith your child every day At the
library.
We actually incorporate thesetips using those practices every
day with your child day at thelibrary.
We actually incorporate thesetips using those practices every
day with your child.
So I'll just give you a coupleexamples of each, though this is
(15:06):
not exhaustive at all.
Um, so let's start with talkingtalking to our child every day.
Why is it so important to talkto our child?
They don't't talk back to me.
Well, so when we do things likeoutlining our day I'm folding
green socks, I'm cutting up ared apple we're actually helping
(15:29):
to build and enlarge ourchild's vocabulary.
Exposing them to new words canhelp with learning
conversational conventions.
We can teach children to beexpressive that way and have
that background knowledge of theway the world works.
But very important, don'tforget to give your child time
to think when talking to yourchild.
(15:51):
It takes a little extra timefor your child to respond to a
question.
A really good tip to keep thisin mind is to count slowly to
seven before repeating yourselfor asking a question, no matter
how hard that is.
I know I'm a culprit of thattoo.
I continuously ask myfour-year-old the same question
(16:12):
over and over.
Jennifer Ferreira (16:14):
I think we all can relate to that.
That is so interesting.
I didn't think of theimportance of giving a child
time to think and I know youmentioned the next one is
singing.
Can you tell us more about that?
Maranda Schoppert (16:42):
voice, because singing actually can
help to slow down language.
It helps children hear thosesmall sounds in words.
Songs break words down intoparts.
It's easy, fun and a great wayto teach simple concepts.
So you know there are songs foreverything out there, like
washing our face this is the waywe wash our face.
Or learning how plants grow.
(17:02):
The green grass grows allaround, all around.
And, of course, adding more inof that vocabulary building.
Another great thing with songsis that you can build songs into
your daily routine so thatchildren know when they hear a
certain song it's time to dosomething.
So if we hear the song, this isthe way we wash our face.
(17:23):
Children automatically willconnect that with it's time to
get ready or it's time to getcleaned up understood.
Jennifer Ferreira (17:30):
Wow, that's great.
Personally, I love singing andwould love to teach any child
through singing.
And the next topic is reading,which I love.
We'd love to hear more aboutthat.
Maranda Schoppert (17:42):
Yes, reading, I mean, it seems like the most
obvious one.
Right, but reading to yourchild not only will instill that
love of reading but will expandtheir vocabulary and build
those comprehension skills.
Storybooks teach children aboutnarrative structure, that a
story has a beginning, a middleand an end.
(18:03):
Reading, or even just sharingbooks with your children not
necessarily reading them frontto back also builds that
familiarity with books.
But don't forget, it is okayagain, it's okay to stop reading
if your child lose interest.
Forcing your child to finish astory, no matter how much we may
(18:25):
want to, could associatenegative feelings with reading
and we only want those positiveones.
Inette Bolden (18:31):
That's a really great reminder for early
childhood educators as well.
When a child loses interest,it's okay to stop.
And I'm also part of an adultbook club and as an adult, we
have to remember that if we loseinterest, it's okay.
We don't have to finish thatbook, it's okay.
So thank you for that reminderuh, we have two more left.
Maranda Schoppert (19:01):
Uh, writing.
Writing is the next one, um,but my baby isn't writing.
My baby can't write.
That's true, very true, um.
But writing actually alsoincludes those small motor
movements like scribbling orgrasping, which help with
writing.
Later on you can incorporatewriting into your daily routine
by tracing the letters on a sign, quote unquote, writing out a
grocery list, even if it's justscribbles, um.
(19:23):
Those are all ways to buildthat concept of writing and show
that written words have meaning.
And the last one is fun.
In in name too, it's playing,um, playing.
Imaginative play encourages youand your child to think
creatively about how we uselanguage.
(19:44):
You can ask questions duringplaytime so that your child can
practice their oral language andnarrative building skills.
Just playing, you know, grocerystore, for example, we're
ringing up those red apples.
What am I ringing up A redapple?
So playing is also just fun,right?
Jennifer Ferreira (20:06):
Oh yeah, it certainly is, and you know, we
really appreciate how you brokeeach of those down, like the
reminder to pause and give kidstime to respond when talking, or
how simple songs can signalroutines.
Those little tips can reallymake a big difference.
Now, what outreach programs doyou offer to families?
Can you share the many waysfamilies and educators can
(20:28):
connect with the libraries?
Maranda Schoppert (20:31):
Oh yeah, there are so many ways to reach
out and stay connected with thelibrary.
The best way, in my opinion, isto sign up for a library card,
because once you sign up, notonly can you check out 100 books
and have access to all the many, many wonderful electronic
resources we have, you areactually automatically enrolled
(20:53):
in our library newsletters,which are just jam-packed full
of upcoming events and resources.
But some other ways you caninteract with the library and
some of our outreach.
We have our wonderful outreachlibrarians and our library staff
that are always connecting withlocal schools, groups and
agencies.
To get out into the community.
There's social media, of course, always media.
(21:16):
You can follow us on any of oursocial media platforms, like
facebook, instagram, youtube,all of the other ones that I'm
not naming right now.
Um and story.
You know, for story timespecifically or for specifically
learning about early literacy,I would check out the library's
resource page for babies,toddlers and preschoolers at
(21:40):
wwwmcpllink slash early literacy.
Inette Bolden (21:45):
Wow, thank you for sharing so much of your time
and expertise with us today,and I've learned a little tidbit
I didn't know you can check outa hundred books at one time.
That's exciting.
So you've given us suchvaluable insight into how
families and educators can buildearly literacy in simple and
meaningful ways, and it has beenan absolute pleasure having you
(22:07):
on the show today.
Maranda Schoppert (22:09):
Thank you so much.
I'm always excited to come andtalk about children early
literacy the library.
It's been so much fun.
Thank you guys, thank you thelibrary.
Inette Bolden (22:17):
It's been so much fun.
Thank you guys.
Thank you, Thank you.
All right.
So listeners, be sure to tunein next time as we explore more
supports and community resourcesavailable to those who nurture
young children.
Stay informed, inspired andconnected to the vibrant
community of early childhoodenthusiasts.
Together, let's build a strongfoundation for the future, one
(22:39):
child at a time.
Jennifer Ferreira (22:41):
And thanks for tuning in to the Elevate
podcast today.
Stay connected and join theconversation by following us on
social media at DHHSCCSS, andwe'll see you next time.
Speaker 4 (22:55):
This podcast is brought to you by County Cable
Montgomery, your source for newsand information from the
Montgomery County government.
Connect with us via cable,facebook, instagram or YouTube
by searching for County CableMoCo Bye.
Unlock the magic of early childhood with Elevate.
This podcast is brought to youby Early Childhood Services, a
program within Montgomery County, Maryland's Department of
Health and Human Services.
We are dedicated to empoweringparents and educators with the
knowledge and tools to nurturethe next generation.
I'm Inette Bolden and I'mJennifer.
Jennifer Ferreira (00:33):
Ferreira, and we're your hosts of Elevate.
Today we're diving into a topicthat's close to the hearts of
many families and classroomsearly literacy.
Joining us today is MirandaSchoppert, program Manager for
Early Literacy and Children'sServices for Montgomery County
Public Libraries.
She has been working with youngchildren and their caregivers
(00:55):
for over 11 years, creatingprograms that spark joy,
imagination and foundationalreading skills.
As the Program Manager forEarly Literacy and children's
services, miranda works toimplement system-wide
programming and initiatives foryouth ages 0 through 12
throughout the library system's21 branches and beyond.
She has presented at theMaryland Library Association
(01:18):
Yearly Conference and theAmerican Library Association
LibLearnX Conference, writtenfor Washington Family Magazine
and American Libraries Magazine.
Miranda enjoys connectingpeople with resources and
working with local outreachgroups to bring county services
to the MCPL community.
Welcome to the show, miranda.
Maranda Schoppert (01:36):
Thank you, I'm so excited to be here, guys.
Inette Bolden (01:39):
We're so excited to have you.
So let's start with the basics.
What exactly do you mean whenyou say early literacy?
Maranda Schoppert (01:48):
So that's a really good question.
You know, those in the fielddon't realize how many people
are not familiar with this term.
New parents and caregivers maynot truly understand all that
early literacy entails To some.
We hear the word literacy andwe think being able to read,
when in fact it's actually somuch more.
Inette Bolden (02:10):
You're right, that's true.
It is so much more.
So tell us more about whatliteracy means.
Maranda Schoppert (02:16):
Great.
So in a nutshell, earlyliteracy is what children know
about communication, the verbaland non nonverbal language,
reading and writing before theycan read or write.
So building good early literacyskills means creating a strong
foundation so that when kidsbegin learning to read and write
(02:38):
they have those necessaryskills to begin that learning
process.
So an example in the UnitedStates text printed text runs
left to right.
We turn our pages to the left.
So if a child already knowsthat, you know they're going to
turn those pages to the leftbefore entering kindergarten.
(02:59):
That's just one less thing wehave to worry about on that road
to reading.
Jennifer Ferreira (03:05):
That makes a lot of sense.
Even something as simple asknowing how to hold a book or
which direction to turn thepages can make a big difference.
What are the most importantliteracy skills children develop
before they actually learn toread?
Maranda Schoppert (03:18):
So there are six early literacy skills that
early literacy specialists splitinto two separate categories.
There are constrained skills,or those skills that you master,
that you memorize, and thenthere are those unconstrained
skills, those skills that youcontinue to learn throughout
your life.
Jennifer Ferreira (03:38):
Very interesting.
So what happens to be those sixskills?
Maranda Schoppert (03:43):
Well, let's start with the constraint skills
.
So the constraint our firstconstraint skill I'll tell you
about is print awareness.
So print awareness meansknowing that printed words have
meaning, that they followpatterns, that they're different
from pictures and that theyrepresent spoken words.
This can include knowing printconventions, like knowing when
(04:07):
the book is upside down or thatwe flip those pages to the left.
Letter knowledge would be thesecond constrained skill, that
skill that you memorize.
And this means recognizing thatletters are different from one
another, that the same letter,an uppercase A and a lowercase a
they can look different butthey are both still the letter A
(04:30):
, and also that those lettershave names and represent sounds.
And the third constrained skill, those skills you memorize is
phonological awareness.
This is knowing that words aremade up of sounds and being able
to break those words down intosounds and then manipulate them.
(04:51):
Also recognizing rhyming words,words with same sound.
At the beginning, those are allimportant parts of learning
phonological awareness, Wow.
Jennifer Ferreira (05:03):
I personally just feel that I learned so much
.
That is very interesting.
So you mentioned the nextskills are unconstrained skills.
Can you share more about thatwith?
Maranda Schoppert (05:11):
us Absolutely so.
Like I said, thoseunconstrained skills are skills
that you're continuing to learnthroughout your life.
We are continuing to learnthese skills, and one of the
first three is print motivation.
So how do I explain this?
A child who is interested in umand enjoys books from an early
(05:34):
age is a child that's likely tospend more time reading.
So really, very simply, um,print motivation is that love of
reading, building a love ofreading, and we know, as adults,
we can always come back to thatlove of reading if we lose it
along the way, right?
The second skill, the secondunconstrained skill that we're
continually learning I'mcontinually learning every day
(05:56):
is vocabulary, and this isbasically knowing the meanings
of words, actions and adjectives, feelings, concepts, ideas, not
just things.
It's much, much easier to reada word you've heard before, read
(06:17):
a word you've heard before.
Children can make sense of whatthey're sounding out when they
were already familiar with wordsand have a context for it.
And then the finalunconstrained skill, that final
skill we are always learning, isbackground knowledge, and this
is basically prior knowledgeabout anything.
So when we know or have thatfoundational knowledge of
something, it's so much easierto build comprehension skills.
(06:40):
You can choose the meaningbetween words when you know what
, when you have that backgroundknowledge.
So, for example, the word partP a RT, is it a part in your
hair or is it a role in a play?
You're going to play your partin a play.
You can make inferences fromtext when you have background
knowledge.
So why would someone's stomachgrowl?
(07:03):
The background knowledge isbecause they're hungry.
Your stomach me noises whenyou're hungry well.
Inette Bolden (07:10):
Thank you for breaking down all of those six
skills.
One of the ones that stuck outto me the most is how kids are
more likely to recognize andread a word they've heard before
, even if it seems like they'renot fully paying attention.
I think that's really importantfor families as well as early
childhood educators in theclassroom.
(07:31):
When a child may not be payingattention during circle time,
but they're hearing it, thatexposure matters.
So why is early literacy socritical for long-term academic
success?
Maranda Schoppert (07:45):
Oh yeah so let's look at a child's brain
development to answer thisquestion.
In the first year of life, achild's brain doubles in size
and then by age three, the brainhas grown to an incredible 80%
of its adult size.
And then by the age of fiveonly two years later the brain
(08:06):
has reached 90% of its fulladult size.
So it's practically full grownby the time a child is five
years old.
So when we think about earlyliteracy and why it's so
critical for long term academicsuccess, it's not really hard to
see that laying that strongfoundation in these early years,
(08:28):
when that child's brain is asponge and able to absorb such
huge amounts of information, isso important.
Inette Bolden (08:37):
Wow, I really love learning all about brain
development.
This really puts things intoperspective.
It's incredible to think abouthow much a child's brain is
already developed by age five.
It really highlights why thoseearly learning experiences
matter so much.
Speaking of early learningexperiences, can you describe
(08:58):
some of the programs or storytimes that you offer at the
libraries?
Maranda Schoppert (09:03):
Oh, yes, now I'm going to get on my soapbox,
right.
So early literacy is just soimportant to libraries.
It's important to me for sure,it's a large part of our 2023 to
2026 strategic plan thatchildren under five are ready to
enter kindergarten.
And to meet this goal we have alot of programming going on.
(09:24):
So let me talk about some ofour system-wide initiatives that
happen at you know, all of ourbranches, or throughout our 21
library system branches.
The first one is our HatchlingsParent Workshop.
So Hatchlings is a three-partseries designed for expectant
parents and parents with babies,zero to four months.
(09:45):
In these series of workshops,parents get to explore ways to
support baby's development withplayful early learning
activities.
So we're actually catching youbefore baby's even born, right
from when you're expecting,building those good habits
through four months with thisworkshop.
It's one that's near and dearto my heart.
(10:07):
Another initiative that we haveat the library is our
longstanding 1000 books beforekindergarten.
This is just a really fun andinteractive way to help prepare
your child for kindergarten bycompleting 1,000 early learning
activities together beforeentering school.
And I know 1,000, it seems likea lot, it seems daunting, but
(10:31):
just think if you read or sharebooks or sing a song, one, two,
three before bed.
How quickly in that first fiveyears of life you can hit 1000.
We have some kiddos that wantto complete it again and again
before they get to five.
Uh, preschool play and learn um, is another initiative that we
do for this early literacy group.
(10:52):
Um, it's a library-led programfor children between three and
five years old, with theircaregivers.
Very important with theircaregivers because this program
it features a variety ofplay-based activities and these
activities are actually designedto help get preschoolers ready
(11:12):
for kindergarten by buildingessential skills across five
early learning domains.
The setting for preschool playand learn is very reminiscent of
like circle time that they'regoing to hit in preschool, being
able to do independentactivities when they get into
kindergarten.
So it's a great foundationalprogram.
And then, of course, our storytime.
(11:34):
You know the bread and butterof libraries, I think, for
children's services.
So story times across oursystem they're generally 25
minutes to 30 minutes.
These programs.
They're designed to delightchildren of all ages.
They're filled with diversestories and activities that
promote those developing thoselanguage skills that we talked
(11:55):
about earlier and imagination.
And we're really just in storytime, encouraging children to
develop that lifelong love ofreading and just introducing
them to the culture of reading.
So those are some of thesystem-wide initiatives, but
there are tons of programshappening at each of our
individual branches.
Several of our libraries, likeGaithersburg and Connie Morella,
(12:18):
have first book clubs, just anexposure to how a book club
works and how reading in a groupmight work.
Noise library for youngchildren has boogie woogie
Wednesdays.
We have play dates at thelibrary, performances by local
performers and, of course, rightnow we have summer reading
happening and summer reading isfor all ages and you can color
(12:42):
your world with art byparticipating.
So if you're not signed up forsummer reading yet, you should
be.
Jennifer Ferreira (12:47):
Wow, miranda.
That was incredibly insightful.
Such great information to sharewith our parents and community.
Many parents often wonder whatthey can do at home to support
their child's literacy.
Your opinion what are somepractical everyday tips you can
share with families?
Maranda Schoppert (13:02):
So this is a really great question.
You know, in the library wepromote five practices of Every
Child Ready to Read 2.
And Every Child Ready to Read 2is a caregiver education
initiative created by the PublicLibrary Association.
Caregiver Education Initiativecreated by the Public Library
Association and the Associationfor Library Services to Children
(13:23):
in order to support parents andcaregivers with early literacy
development for children birthto age five.
So these five practices reallyweave those six skills I talked
about those unconstrained andconstrained skills earlier into
daily activities.
Jennifer Ferreira (13:38):
Amazing, and are there any specific books or
a list of books that can helpincrease literacy for children
in certain age groups?
Maranda Schoppert (13:47):
Yes, there's actually so many ways to find
books and book recommendationsat the library.
We have librarian curated booklists for babies through high
schoolers.
We have databases like Novelist, which can actually provide a
list of award winners orread-alike.
So say your child loves, youknow brave, the picture book
(14:09):
brave.
You can type that in and it'llgive you, you know, similar
titles either about fire trucksor written in the same way that
they might relate to or respondto.
You can get readingrecommendations straight from
our catalog, which is now an appthat you can download.
So download the MCPL catalogapp and also you can even
(14:30):
request specially curatedrecommendations through our Ask
a Librarian service.
Inette Bolden (14:35):
Wow, those all sound like great and fantastic
initiatives.
Could you tell us a bit moreabout the five practices the
library promotes?
Maranda Schoppert (14:44):
Oh sure, absolutely so.
These five practices that wepromote are talking, singing,
reading, writing and playingwith your child every day At the
library.
We actually incorporate thesetips using those practices every
day with your child day at thelibrary.
We actually incorporate thesetips using those practices every
day with your child.
So I'll just give you a coupleexamples of each, though this is
(15:06):
not exhaustive at all.
Um, so let's start with talkingtalking to our child every day.
Why is it so important to talkto our child?
They don't't talk back to me.
Well, so when we do things likeoutlining our day I'm folding
green socks, I'm cutting up ared apple we're actually helping
(15:29):
to build and enlarge ourchild's vocabulary.
Exposing them to new words canhelp with learning
conversational conventions.
We can teach children to beexpressive that way and have
that background knowledge of theway the world works.
But very important, don'tforget to give your child time
to think when talking to yourchild.
(15:51):
It takes a little extra timefor your child to respond to a
question.
A really good tip to keep thisin mind is to count slowly to
seven before repeating yourselfor asking a question, no matter
how hard that is.
I know I'm a culprit of thattoo.
I continuously ask myfour-year-old the same question
(16:12):
over and over.
Jennifer Ferreira (16:14):
I think we all can relate to that.
That is so interesting.
I didn't think of theimportance of giving a child
time to think and I know youmentioned the next one is
singing.
Can you tell us more about that?
Maranda Schoppert (16:42):
voice, because singing actually can
help to slow down language.
It helps children hear thosesmall sounds in words.
Songs break words down intoparts.
It's easy, fun and a great wayto teach simple concepts.
So you know there are songs foreverything out there, like
washing our face this is the waywe wash our face.
Or learning how plants grow.
(17:02):
The green grass grows allaround, all around.
And, of course, adding more inof that vocabulary building.
Another great thing with songsis that you can build songs into
your daily routine so thatchildren know when they hear a
certain song it's time to dosomething.
So if we hear the song, this isthe way we wash our face.
(17:23):
Children automatically willconnect that with it's time to
get ready or it's time to getcleaned up understood.
Jennifer Ferreira (17:30):
Wow, that's great.
Personally, I love singing andwould love to teach any child
through singing.
And the next topic is reading,which I love.
We'd love to hear more aboutthat.
Maranda Schoppert (17:42):
Yes, reading, I mean, it seems like the most
obvious one.
Right, but reading to yourchild not only will instill that
love of reading but will expandtheir vocabulary and build
those comprehension skills.
Storybooks teach children aboutnarrative structure, that a
story has a beginning, a middleand an end.
(18:03):
Reading, or even just sharingbooks with your children not
necessarily reading them frontto back also builds that
familiarity with books.
But don't forget, it is okayagain, it's okay to stop reading
if your child lose interest.
Forcing your child to finish astory, no matter how much we may
(18:25):
want to, could associatenegative feelings with reading
and we only want those positiveones.
Inette Bolden (18:31):
That's a really great reminder for early
childhood educators as well.
When a child loses interest,it's okay to stop.
And I'm also part of an adultbook club and as an adult, we
have to remember that if we loseinterest, it's okay.
We don't have to finish thatbook, it's okay.
So thank you for that reminderuh, we have two more left.
Maranda Schoppert (19:01):
Uh, writing.
Writing is the next one, um,but my baby isn't writing.
My baby can't write.
That's true, very true, um.
But writing actually alsoincludes those small motor
movements like scribbling orgrasping, which help with
writing.
Later on you can incorporatewriting into your daily routine
by tracing the letters on a sign, quote unquote, writing out a
grocery list, even if it's justscribbles, um.
(19:23):
Those are all ways to buildthat concept of writing and show
that written words have meaning.
And the last one is fun.
In in name too, it's playing,um, playing.
Imaginative play encourages youand your child to think
creatively about how we uselanguage.
(19:44):
You can ask questions duringplaytime so that your child can
practice their oral language andnarrative building skills.
Just playing, you know, grocerystore, for example, we're
ringing up those red apples.
What am I ringing up A redapple?
So playing is also just fun,right?
Jennifer Ferreira (20:06):
Oh yeah, it certainly is, and you know, we
really appreciate how you brokeeach of those down, like the
reminder to pause and give kidstime to respond when talking, or
how simple songs can signalroutines.
Those little tips can reallymake a big difference.
Now, what outreach programs doyou offer to families?
Can you share the many waysfamilies and educators can
(20:28):
connect with the libraries?
Maranda Schoppert (20:31):
Oh yeah, there are so many ways to reach
out and stay connected with thelibrary.
The best way, in my opinion, isto sign up for a library card,
because once you sign up, notonly can you check out 100 books
and have access to all the many, many wonderful electronic
resources we have, you areactually automatically enrolled
(20:53):
in our library newsletters,which are just jam-packed full
of upcoming events and resources.
But some other ways you caninteract with the library and
some of our outreach.
We have our wonderful outreachlibrarians and our library staff
that are always connecting withlocal schools, groups and
agencies.
To get out into the community.
There's social media, of course, always media.
(21:16):
You can follow us on any of oursocial media platforms, like
facebook, instagram, youtube,all of the other ones that I'm
not naming right now.
Um and story.
You know, for story timespecifically or for specifically
learning about early literacy,I would check out the library's
resource page for babies,toddlers and preschoolers at
(21:40):
wwwmcpllink slash early literacy.
Inette Bolden (21:45):
Wow, thank you for sharing so much of your time
and expertise with us today,and I've learned a little tidbit
I didn't know you can check outa hundred books at one time.
That's exciting.
So you've given us suchvaluable insight into how
families and educators can buildearly literacy in simple and
meaningful ways, and it has beenan absolute pleasure having you
(22:07):
on the show today.
Maranda Schoppert (22:09):
Thank you so much.
I'm always excited to come andtalk about children early
literacy the library.
It's been so much fun.
Thank you guys, thank you thelibrary.
Inette Bolden (22:17):
It's been so much fun.
Thank you guys.
Thank you, Thank you.
All right.
So listeners, be sure to tunein next time as we explore more
supports and community resourcesavailable to those who nurture
young children.
Stay informed, inspired andconnected to the vibrant
community of early childhoodenthusiasts.
Together, let's build a strongfoundation for the future, one
(22:39):
child at a time.
Jennifer Ferreira (22:41):
And thanks for tuning in to the Elevate
podcast today.
Stay connected and join theconversation by following us on
social media at DHHSCCSS, andwe'll see you next time.
Speaker 4 (22:55):
This podcast is brought to you by County Cable
Montgomery, your source for newsand information from the
Montgomery County government.
Connect with us via cable,facebook, instagram or YouTube
by searching for County CableMoCo Bye.
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