Book excerpt: How can we build a strong literacy foundation for children? This book appreciates that learning and language development start with the play episodes, oral language practices, wordplay activities, print encounters, reading events, and writing experiences that children engage in during the early years of life. Filled with rich language activities, The Cornerstones to Early Literacy shows teachers how to create active learning experiences that are essential to building early literacy. This comprehensive handbook is organized around the following topics: Play Experiences - Understanding the early stages of learning and all aspects of the play-literacy connection ; Oral Language - Supporting opportunities for child talk with suggested conversation starters and events that involve personal timelines and storytelling ; Language Awareness and Word Play - Creating a balanced approach to language learning using games and activities that involve literature, music, choral speaking, sound games, and more ; Print Encounters - Discovering, reproducing, and creating all forms of environmental print ; Reading Events - Integrating read-aloud and shared book experiences with proven strategies for supporting and observing young readers ; Writing Experiences - Identifying early writing characteristics and techniques for moving children along in their writing.