Children’s Prosperity Week: We support the child at the first opportunity

This school year, 44 Hafnarfjörður students out of 374 first‑graders received support after the literacy screening for first grade was carried out in the autumn term.

We referred sixteen of them for full language development assessments, and fourteen children underwent articulation assessments and were then referred on for speech therapy, says Bjartey Sigurðardóttir, project manager of Lestur er lífsins leikur and a literacy and speech therapist. She says the project makes teachers more aware of the status of their students, which is very important when it comes to supporting language development and literacy.

Providing help after screening

The Early Intervention in First Grade project is one of nearly thirty services available in Hafnarfjörður’s toolbox to support children’s prosperity. The goal is to identify, right at the start of school, students who may need further assessment or support with language development and literacy and to provide suitable intervention.

This is important because language development and literacy are the foundation of all learning, says Bjartey. Children start school with different levels of readiness. Many factors influence this, but we meet them where they are and provide appropriate intervention. Bjartey says cooperation between preschools and compulsory schools in the municipality is strong, and information about each child’s status and previous support moves with them between school levels.

Finding the children and supporting the teachers

“We monitor them in first grade to identify the children who may need further assessment,” she says, adding that teachers are made aware of any earlier assessments their students have undergone and that the guidance previously provided is being followed.

The literacy screening for first grade is carried out in all Hafnarfjörður schools in October. The focus is on aspects related to language development, articulation and foundational literacy skills. Additional screening is conducted when needed.

“The project began in the 2021–2022 school year and has proven its value, because even with strong preschool work, there are always some students who need further assessment and intervention.”

Children’s Prosperity Week in Hafnarfjörður

Children’s Prosperity Week is currently underway in the capital area. Its aim is to draw parents’ attention to the new way municipalities are working for the benefit of children. Professionals from different fields now work together to ensure that each child receives the right support.

“I am very pleased with this approach, the Early Intervention in First Grade initiative, because I think it does a great deal of good,” says Bjartey. The level of intervention varies.

“It is also very important to educate parents about language development and ways to support it. It is wonderful to see parents become more aware of how crucial language development is for all learning, and to give them tools to support this important part of their child’s development.”

See courses related to language development in Hafnarfjörður preschools and compulsory schools

Preschool courses

• Supporting Icelandic language learning for multilingual preschool children
• The youngest children in preschools
• Language development and language stimulation for young children
• Foundations of literacy – effective training in phonological awareness in preschool
• What is developmental language disorder DLD – symptoms and practical guidance
• Parent education on language and literacy fundamentals
• Articulation in preschool children

Primary School Courses

Courses in compulsory schools generally relate to literacy work (literacy is built on language development)

• Developmental language disorder DLD – symptoms and practical guidance
• Strengthening vocabulary and its importance for reading comprehension
• Working with vocabulary in all subjects
• Working with vocabulary frameworks
• Training for support staff on language development and literacy
• Working in language‑stimulation groups
• Strengthening core vocabulary using vocabulary posters
• Language stimulation in after‑school programs