Independent practice: After modeling and guided practice, children can then be expected to produce rhyming words, re-sort pictures in centers or for seatwork, write letters in attempts to spell, and fingerpoint-read short, memorable selections of text. The most important condition for emergent literacy to blossom is the opportunity to practice, and children’s approximations must be encouraged and celebrated. Pretend writing and pretend reading come first, and as they evolve, real reading and real writing will follow.