ABSTRACT
There are strong indications from both theory and research regarding the power of the environment and the role of the teacher in children's literacy development. This chapter illustrates studies indicating that community-based environments for preschool-age children have far to go before they can be considered optimal in this regard. It reports on two sets of germane studies focusing on the types of educational environments experienced by many preschool children. The first set of studies look both at common literacy practices in community-based programs and the effect of teacher beliefs about literacy learning on the environment. The second set examines interventions addressing the preparation of staff and the enrichment of the literacy environment in preschool programs. Professional development content needs to emphasize the importance of going beyond reading books to children and focus on how to include literacy practices in everyday life and in play, and how to support language and literacy interactions in all aspects of early childhood programs.
