THE LITERATE POTENTIALS OF BOOK-RELATED DRAMATIC PLAY

In a 9-month study of 16 preschoolers' classroom literacy behaviors an d a related study of one of the students' literacy activities al home, book-related dramatic play was observed to be an important part of th e children's literacy interactions. Analyses of instances where play w as related to the meanings of the books the children had read indicate d that each instance of book-related dramatic play could be described in terms of six properties including (a) the scope of play, (b) the ty pe of connection constructed bemieen books and playscripts, (c) childr en's purposes for play, (d) the perspective or point of view explored, (e) the sign systems used and their relation to book reading events, and (f) the kinds of social interaction involved. Analyses demonstrate d that the children created direct linkages between their book and pla y experiences. Further, the data supported the hypothesis that book-re lated dramatic play was much more than a context for literacy learning . For the children participating in this study, it appeared to be a pa rt of the process of comprehending books, expressing one's reactions, experiencing books in affective and kinesthetic ways, and participatin g in literacy events. Book-related play also served as a means of inqu iry and as a connecting link between the child's world and the adult o ne represented by books and the book-reading events in which they were embedded. Flay provided a relatively risk-free environment for explor ation of books through an open, child-directed agenda and offered an a rray of possible tools for exploration and expression (e.g., the multi ple sign systems associated with drama).