Child/Home Early Language and Literacy Observation (CHELLO) User's Guide

Developed by the nationally respected expert who helped establish Reading First and Early Reading First, ""CHELLO"" is the only observation tool specifically designed to rate the early literacy environment in home-based child care settings. A reliable, field-tested tool derived from the bestselling, classroom-focused ""ELLCO"", ""CHELLO"" has been carefully tailored to assess environments that include children of all different ages, from birth to 5 years. Administrators, program directors, and researchers will use ""CHELLO"" to develop accurate profiles of materials and practices in family/group child care settings, help providers improve their literacy supports and their interactions with children, and measure changes in the quality of environments over time.Shaped by extensive research on effective child care and literacy practices, the CHELLO Tool is easy for professionals with a solid background in early childhood education to use. In less than 2 hours, observers will examine the care provider's methods and interactions. The six-question Provider Interview gives users insight into how care providers interact with children, plan schedules, create learning opportunities, communicate with families, and monitor child progress.Get a quick ""big picture"" view of the environment. With the brief Literacy Environment Checklist, users will evaluate the availability and organization of books, writing materials, toys, and technology.Conduct an in-depth observation. The three-part Group/Family Observation helps users gather detailed information about the physical environment (including cleanliness, furnishings, and the daily schedule), support for learning (such as adult affect and language interactions between care providers and children), and adult teaching strategies (including vocabulary building, verbal encouragement, storytelling, and writing activities).Score the Tool in minutes with the simple two-page Score Form. The complete ""CHELLO"" includes the Tool and a User's Guide with explicit instructions on conducting the observation, photographs that illustrate successful and unsuccessful environments, practical strategies to support literacy development in home-based settings, and the psychometric properties of CHELLO. With this one-of-a-kind tool - also ideal for use in home visiting and family literacy programs - home-based child care providers can make progress toward ensuring high-quality literacy environments that get young children ready for future academic success.