A qualitative analysis of the practices of first grade teachers in the preparation period for literacy teaching

In Turkey, pre-school education between the ages of 3-5 is not compulsory and the participation rate is 39%. In classrooms with different age groups, foreign nationals and inclusive students, where the vast majority do not receive pre-school education, students are responsible for acquiring the same outcomes. The purpose of this study is to determine first grade teachers' in-class and out-of-class practices and preparatory activities to ensure that students with different characteristics and levels of readiness for quality literacy just before the beginning of the school year and in the following period. In this study, a case study design, one of the qualitative research methods, was used in a typical school in Ankara province, with 4 public school teachers determined by criterion sampling in the 2022-2023 academic year. The data were collected through interviews, observations and document analysis, and the data were analyzed by content analysis. As a result of the research, it was determined that teachers consider textbooks inadequate, use worksheets from online sources to a great extent, do not enrich their writing activities with different materials, and do not follow national and international publications. Teachers attach great importance to learning basic information about their students before the school starts, pen grip and notebook organization. Teachers do listening, speaking and visual reading activities in lessons other than Turkish lessons and implement activities to improve social emotional development and perception skills. Monitoring activities cannot be carried out due to lack of equipment. The literacy preparation period is finalized by being influenced by students' readiness and the expectations of students and parents. Teachers start this period with anxiety and end it with positive feelings, and are physically and mentally exhausted. It is recommended that textbooks should be made adequate, technological equipment should be increased, materials for study samples should be provided, and most importantly, pre-school education should be made compulsory.