Children's Literature and Early Literacy Success: Using the Charlotte Zolotow Award Collection in Early Childhood Teacher Education

Early childhood education (PK-2) has become a site of increasing accountability, with the attempt to normalize instruction through "scientifically based" reading programs. The use of authentic children's literature for early literacy instruction is often pushed aside in lieu of highly scripted commercial programs. As early childhood teacher educators prepare preservice teachers, there is a need to move beyond a one-size-fits-all approach. This article speaks to teacher educators who wish to provide preservice teachers with the theoretical rationale for keeping authentic children's literature as a focus of early reading programs. Drawing on early reading research and sociocultural theories of literacy development, the article provides examples of curriculum and instruction around picture-books that have received the Charlotte Zolotow Award, which is given to children's books with high-quality writing. The article offers numerous book suggestions for use in teacher education classes that demonstrate how language-rich, conceptually challenging children's literature is essential for early reading success.