CHILDREN’S LITERATURE AND PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS: CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE LITERACY PROCESS

Abstract

This article discusses the contribution of children’s literature to literacy education, emphasizing the development of phonological awareness in the first year of elementary school. It assumes that literacy and literacy practices are distinct but articulated processes and that reading and writing should be taught through meaningful language-use situations. The study adopts a qualitative and bibliographic approach, drawing mainly on Magda Soares, Artur Gomes de Morais, Emilia Ferreiro and Ana Teberosky, as well as studies and educational documents related to children’s literature. Based on the literature review, a teaching proposal is presented using the book O gato no telhado, by Mary França and Eliardo França, as a starting point. Key words from the story are used to develop games and recording activities that encourage reflection on words, syllables, phonemes, and sound-letter correspondences. The proposal includes six games articulated with reading and writing activities. The study concludes that children’s literature, when integrated into intentional teaching, can be an important resource for teaching literacy in meaningful, systematic and reflective ways.