ABSTRACT
Introduction n Chapter 1 you were introduced to the wonderful world of children’s literature. Beginning with infancy and continuing through the early years with parents and other caregivers, on into preschool and
through the primary grades, literature plays a major role in the linguistic, cognitive, social, and moral development of children. Therefore parents, caregivers, preschool educators, and primary-school teachers must be aware of the significant role that literature can play in the healthy development of a young child. In this chapter we briefly review some of the major theories of child development and relate those theories to language and literacy development in young children.
