Assessment standards

We know this when the learner:

• Listens attentively to questions, instructions and announcements, and responds appropriately.
• Demonstrates appropriate listening behaviour by listening without interrupting, showing respect for the speaker, and taking turns to speak.
• Listens with enjoyment to oral texts (simple songs, rhymes, short poems and stories), and shows understanding:
• acts out parts of the story, song or rhyme;
• joins in choruses at the appropriate time;
• draws a picture of the story, song or rhyme;
• notes details and gives the main idea of an oral text;
• puts pictures in the right sequence.
• Develops phonic awareness:
• recognises that words are made up of sounds;
• distinguishes between different sounds, especially at the beginning and ends of words;
• segments oral sentences into individual words (using words of one syllable at first);
• segments spoken multi-syllabic words into syllables (e.g. ba-na-na) using clapping or drumbeats;
• recognises some rhyming words in common rhymes and songs such as 'We 're going to the zoo, zoo, zoo; you can come too, too, too'.

Assessment standards

We will know this when the learner:

• Talks about family and friends.
• Expresses own feelings and the feelings of real or imaginary people.
• Sings and recites simple songs and rhymes.
• Uses language imaginatively for fun and fantasy (e.g. to make up rhyming words).
• Asks questions when the learner does not understand or needs more information, and responds clearly to questions asked of the learner.
• Passes on messages.
• Recounts own personal experiences.
• Tells own stories and retells stories of others in own words.
• Participates confidently and fluently in a group.
• Shows sensitivity when speaking to others.
• Role-plays different kinds and manners of speech (e.g. telephone conversation).

Assessment standards

We know this when the learner:

• Uses visual and pictorial cues to make meaning:
• looks carefully at pictures and photographs to recognise common objects and experiences;
• identifies a picture or figure from the background;
• makes sense of picture stories;
• matches pictures and words;
• uses illustrations to understand simple captions in story books.
• Role-plays reading:
• holds a book the right way up, turns pages appropriately, looks at words and pictures and understands the relationship between them, and uses pictures to construct ideas;
• distinguishes pictures from print (e.g. by pointing at words rather than pictures when 'reading').
• Makes meaning of written text:
• understands the purpose of print - that it carries meaning (e.g. that a written word can signify own name);
• 'reads' in a group with the teacher;
• makes links to own experience when reading with the teacher, viewing television or pictures;
• describes and gives opinions of characters in stories or television programmes.
• Starts recognising and making meaning of letters and words:
• recognises that written words refer to spoken words;
• recognises and reads high frequency words such as own name and print in the environment such as 'STOP';
• 'reads' picture books with simple captions or sentences.
• Begins to develop phonic awareness:
• recognises initial consonant and short vowel sounds;
• recognises and names some common letters of the alphabet such as the letter the learner's name begins with;
• recognises some rhyming words in common rhymes and songs such as 'We 're going to the zoo, zoo, zoo; you can come too, too, too'.

Assessment standards

We know this when the learner:

• Experiments with writing:
• creates and uses drawings to convey a message, and as a starting point for writing;
• forms letters in various ways (e.g. by using own body to show the shapes, writing in sand);
• understands that writing and drawing are different;
• 'writes' and asks others to give the meaning of what has been written;
• talks about own drawing and 'writing';
• role-plays 'writing' for a purpose (e.g. telephone message, shopping list);
• uses known letters and numerals (or approximations) to represent written language, especially letters from own name and age;
• 'reads' own emerging writing when asked to do so;
• shows in own writing attempts, beginning awareness of directionality (e.g. starting from left to right, top to bottom);
• copies print from the environment (e.g. labels on household items, advertisements);
• makes attempts at familiar forms of writing, using known letters (e.g. in lists, messages or letters);
• manipulates writing tools like crayons and pencils.

Assessment standards

We know this when the learner:

• Uses language to develop concepts:
• demonstrates developing knowledge of concepts such as quantity, size, shape, direction, colour, speed, time, age, sequence.
• Uses language to think and reason:
• identifies and describes similarities and differences;
• matches things that go together, and compares things that are different;
• classifies things (e.g. puts all toys in box, books on shelves, crayons in tins);
• identifies parts from the whole (e.g. parts of the body).
• Uses language to investigate and explore:
• asks questions and searches for explanations;
• gives explanations and offers solutions;
• offers explanations and solutions;
• solves and completes puzzles.
• Processes information:
• picks out selected information from a description.

Assessment standards

We know this when the learner:

• Relates sounds to letters and words:
• recognises that words are made up of sounds;
• recognises the sounds at the beginnings of some words.
• Works with words:
• groups words (e.g. words which rhyme);
• identifies a word, a letter and a space in print.
• Works with sentences:
• communicates ideas using descriptions and action words.
• Works with texts:
• talks about texts (e.g. stories) using terms like 'beginning', 'middle' and 'end'.
• Uses meta-language (e.g. sound, word, letter, rhyme, beginning, middle, end).