In the preschool example, what does the child demonstrate awareness of when labeling the picture and saying 'this says'?

• A. Writing represents spoken language
• B. Writing is decorative
• C. Writing is purely pictorial
• D. Writing is unrelated to speech

Answer: (A)

Seeing a child label a picture and say “this says” shows they understand that writing carries spoken language. The marks on the page are being used to represent words they would speak, so the print has meaning and readers can access the message through language, not just through pictures or decoration. This reflects an early literacy concept where print is linked to speech, a foundation for reading and writing development. It’s not merely decorative or purely pictorial, and it isn’t unrelated to speech, because the child is clearly connecting the written marks to the spoken words.