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By Brittany Schnobrich

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Across all the reading and videos for this week, I kept coming back to one powerful phrase: Talk with children and let them talk with each other! Oral language development is the foundation of literacy, and should be a main focus for both teachers of young children and parents. Tompkins speaks about this when she shares research that finds students learn the letters of the alphabet best when they’re given lots of exposure to “meaningful written language (Tompkins, p. 48-49).” The video called Supporting Oral Language Development in a Language-Rich Environment,” created by Eastern Connecticut State University explains that children ages 3 and older in a language-rich environment should be learning 2,500 new words each year. In order to understand how to use all of their new words, students need to learn three rule systems of language: semantics (the idea that words carry meaning), syntax (grammar/sentence structure), and phonology (the sounds of language). Engaging students in all kinds of activities that encourage them to speak, listen, and respond to both teachers and other children are of the utmost importance. Teachers are encouraged to support oral language development through different forms of talk, including self talk, parallel talk, and child-directed speech.).  Providing these rich opportunities for children to develop their oral language skills gives them a proven advantage as they begin to read and write.

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In the second video, titled Developmental Writing Stages, I reviewed the 7 stages students go through as they develop their ability to write words and sentences. Students entering first grade may easily come to school at any one of these stages. Some students may be in the first few stages – telling stories through drawings, scribbling, or letter-like symbols. More students come to first grade in the next few stages -  strings of letters (no spaces), initial consonants, or initial and final consonant sounds. Students here are experimenting with actual letters and sounds. A few students come to first grade in the final stage of using more vowel sounds and creating readable writing. Again, understanding these stages as students progress helps to guide instruction and encourage growth.

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In the article, titled “Language Acquisition: An Overview,” Kristina Robertson and Karen Ford lay out the Six Stages of Second-Language Acquisition. I often feel challenged when teaching my English language learners. I try my best to assess and most appropriately instruct students at their individual level, however, finding that level can sometimes be tricky. I often ask myself these two questions: If they are not speaking often enough or sharing during individual/small group discussions, do they comprehend any/some of what I am saying? If they are speaking more often, how can they speak fluently to me, yet seem to struggle to comprehend my questions during a guided reading lesson?  Reading through the six stages helped me to better understand the answers to both of my questions. Briefly, the stages are as follows: Pre-Production (taking in language, but not speaking), Early Production (using short words and sentences, still little talking), Speech Emergent (more talking, longer words/sentences, vocab increases), Beginning Fluency (fairly fluent in social settings, academic language still a challenge), Intermediate Fluency (continued improvement), Advanced Fluency (fully fluent in both social and academic settings).  I also learned that the entire process can take between 5-7 years, IF the child is fully developed in his/her first language. If not fully developed, the process can take up to 10 years. I realize I have NOT been patient enough with the process. However, by using the great instructional strategies suggested at the end of the article, I can foster and encourage success as they progress through each of the six stages.

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In connection with Big Idea #1, Tompkins shares the 4 Levels of Word Consciousness, as identified by Papandropoulou and Sinclair (1974). This is the natural progression of students making sense of words and using them when reading, writing, and speaking. In the earliest stages, children are unable to differentiate between words and things. However, as they develop, they find that words can label things; they realize that words carry meaning; and finally, they understand that words are “autonomous elements, having meanings of their own with definite semantic and syntactic relationships (Tompkins, pg. 46).”  It is important to understand this progression, and be able to identify and appropriately teach children, as they move through each level. As a first grade teacher, I don’t usually encounter children in the very beginning levels of word consciousness. However, understanding this progression is key to effective teaching, even in the final stages of fluency.

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In the first video, titled Early Literacy: The Importance of Oral Language, created by the Barbara Bush Houston Literacy Foundation and the Neuhaus Education Center, this quote jumped out at me: “A first grader who is a poor reader at the end of first grade has an 88% chance of remaining a poor reader at the end of fourth grade. Subsequently, there is a 74% probability of a poor reader at the end of fourth grade remaining a poor reader throughout his/her academic career.” This finding reminds me just how crucial the first 6 years of a child’s life are to his/her success in literacy! Fostering growth and development of oral language and reading/written expression should be a top priority for all parents and early childhood teachers. Tompkins also shares this important link in research done by Speece and Cooper (2002): “…children’s ability to orally define words was found to be an important predictor of how well they’d be able to decode words and comprehend text in the primary grades.” Helping children build strong vocabularies at a young age will absolutely give them an advantage as they enter school. Our jobs as early childhood educators are incredibly important. We have an incredible responsibility to set children up for a successful academic career!

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Gail Tompkins explains that "research suggests that children don't learn alphabet letter names in any particular order or by isolating letters from meaningful written language in skill-and-drill activities. She then shares that research, done by McGee and Richgels (2012), concluded that "learning letters of the alphabet requires many, many experiences with meaningful written language and recommend that teachers take these steps encourage alphabet learning." Further, she explains "...children who have been actively involved in literacy activities before first grade know the names of the letters, and they're more likely to begin reading quickly. Simply teaching children to name the letters without the accompanying reading and writing experiences doesn't have this effect."

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Tompkins really got me thinking about class books on page 52. This is something that I do often in my classroom. My students LOVE class books and is probably the number one item checked out of our classroom library. In the beginning of the year we start out with them simply writing their name on a paper and drawing a picture of themselves, which I then bind together to make a book. This is our first class book and we often refer back to it as we build upon that experience. From there I often give my students a prompt and they have to finish the last word in the sentence. I always let them “write” the word on their own. As the year goes on sometimes the written sentences get more complex in the idea that students begin writing their own sentence instead of filling in a blank. Again, I let them “write” it on their own. Tompkins mentioned that in “figure 2-4 the teacher took the children’s dictation because she wanted the book to be written in conventional spelling so that children and their parents could read it”. This really got me thinking about which way is better? Is one way better than the other? In my head I think that my students should enjoy “writing” and with them being in such the early stages of writing, I rarely correct them when they are working on a class book. I guide them in instruction when I sit down to conference with them 1:1 while they are working on their actual writing. I’m interested to see what you all think about this! 

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Tompkins really got me thinking about class books on page 52. This is something that I do often in my classroom. My students LOVE class books and is probably the number one item checked out of our classroom library. In the beginning of the year we start out with them simply writing their name on a paper and drawing a picture of themselves, which I then bind together to make a book. This is our first class book and we often refer back to it as we build upon that experience. From there I often give my students a prompt and they have to finish the last word in the sentence. I always let them “write” the word on their own. As the year goes on sometimes the written sentences get more complex in the idea that students begin writing their own sentence instead of filling in a blank. Again, I let them “write” it on their own. Tompkins mentioned that in “figure 2-4 the teacher took the children’s dictation because she wanted the book to be written in conventional spelling so that children and their parents could read it”. This really got me thinking about which way is better? Is one way better than the other? In my head I think that my students should enjoy “writing” and with them being in such the early stages of writing, I rarely correct them when they are working on a class book. I guide them in instruction when I sit down to conference with them 1:1 while they are working on their actual writing. I’m interested to see what you all think about this! 

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Tompkins stated that teaching students to name the letters without any reading and writing experience will not help them with beginning reading achievement. Teachers need to find ways to incorporate students learning of letter names and sounds into meaningful activities that will also get them actively involved in reading and writing. In my own classroom, a routine that we partake in daily for the first three months of school is to sing a variation of the ABC song while pointing to each letter and saying the letter, name of the picture, and the letter sound on the corresponding linking chart. In the beginning of the year, just as Tompkins noted on page 48, it gives students a strategy and resource to use to identify and a name of an unknown letter. As students progress and gain knowledge within their letters, this chart then becomes a strategy and resources to use in locating and identifying an unknown sound. Another thing I do within my own classroom that Tompkins recommended was the morning message. Again, I only do this for about the first three months of school, but it allows for students to understand the idea that print carries meaning. It is something that only takes us a short time and afterwards allows for students to “hunt” for either a letter, word, digraph, or blend that I might ask them to find.  It is a very interactive, engaging activity that my students really enjoy!

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It is obvious (yet sometimes an unconscious thought) to us as adults that print has meaning and that reading and writing are used for multiple purposes in everyday life. Something interesting that I came across on page 45 was that no matter a child’s social status, they still have exposure to written language. Noticeably, children within different social statuses have different experiences than others in a different social class, but at the end of the day, they all have some sort of experience. Tompkins mentioned that “families use written language in different ways...in some communities, written language is used mainly as a tool for practical purposes such as paying bills, and in others, reading and writing are also used for leisure-time activities” (pg. 45).

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I enjoyed the fact that Tompkins (2014) stated that, “the most valuable activity is the instructional procedure teachers use to read stories and other books aloud that’s known as interactive read alouds” (pg. 41). During read alouds teachers are often modeling more than just reading. Teachers are offering students new vocabulary, background knowledge, and concepts about print. During this time students also experience retelling as well as what Tompkins stated as “grand conversations” (pg. 41), which in turn allows for students to learn new vocabulary and gain a greater background knowledge about certain topics or concepts.

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Between the readings and the videos this week, the biggest idea overall seemed to be the four cueing systems. When I first began to read pages 11-14 I was actually thrown off guard at first because I am only familiar with three of the cueing systems. During my undergrad I remember learning about the three cueing systems and then they came up heavily on the WiFORT exam, however when giving running records I sometimes still have a difficult time deciphering between within which system the student made the error. After this week I again have a deeper understanding of the not only three systems that I typically see, but all four. The first system is the phonological system which is the sounds of a language. The next system is the syntactic system which is when children put words together to make sentences, focusing on the grammar and order of the words. Within this system children in their reading may come to an unfamiliar word and substitute it with a more familiar word that would make sense and still hold meaning to the sentence. The third system is the semantic system which focuses on word meanings that more specifically targets vocabulary. Lastly, is the system I am most unfamiliar with which is the pragmatic system. The pragmatic system is the “social and cultural system that explains how language varies” (Tompkins, 2015, pg. 12).

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The semantic system focuses on meaning. Vocabulary is a very important skill for understanding oral language as well as reading. Researchers estimate that when a student graduates from high school their vocabularies reach 50,000 words. Students are learning words through instruction from their teachers, they also gain words through self discovery. It is important that we expose our students to various vocabulary terms in different subject areas.

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I found the stages of written language development to be fascinating. It was mentioned that parents need to be patient with their child in allowing them to develop their written language. When talking to a lot of young children parents they are impatient and waiting and waiting for their child to start writing sometimes we want to rush them but really when students are drawing on paper that's the first stage of written language development for the child.

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It's important from a young age that parents are developing a strong language-rich environment with their child. They need to be listening and talking to their child. Providing their children with positive attention and interaction. Reading young children's books, nursery rhymes, repletion of words helps children with developing their oral language.

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When reading about second language learners something that stuck out to me was those students who continue to develop their first language proficiency become better English speakers than those who stop learning their native language. This is good information to know and remember so we as educators can encourage our second language learners to continue speaking their native language.

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#1-- While I previously had thought preschool was a place for children just to play and practice social interactions, it was cool to hear all of the strategies that preschool teachers utilize such as child-directed speech, self-talk, and parallel talk.  Self-talk is very common at the elementary level, so I'm not surprised it is used at the preschool level, and parallel talk provides a wonderful opportunity for teachers to describe what a child is doing and have the child hear/understand the words that correspond with their actions.  Self-talk and parallel talk are not things I am familiar with doing in my middle school classroom, but I can see how they could be incorporated.

#2-- I find it interesting that ESL or ELL (not sure what is the proper terminology) students take 5-7 years to become fluent in their non-native language, and that if students have better mastery of their first language, they are more successful at learning English.  This sure makes a case as to why assimilation of language is a bad idea and that students and speakers of different languages should continue speaking their native tongue.

#3--The developmental writing stages (drawing, scribbling, letter-like symbols, string of letters, initial consonants, initial & final sounds, and vowel sounds/sight words) are non-linear and children alternate through the stages.  I wonder if there are definite age or grade level correlations for the developmental writing stages. . . e.g.--by the end of 1st grade, students should master writing the initial and final sounds of words?

#4--Poor readers at the end of 1st grade have an 88% chance of being poor readers at the end of 4th grade. In addition, if achievement has not been made by the end of 4th grade, 74% (I think I remember it being 74%) of students will remain poor readers throughout their educational endeavors. WOW! What a staggering statistic. It almost seems that there is no way for poor readers to ever get better. Now I wonder what are the major factors of students not being successful at reading at such a young age--low exposure to vocabulary, sitting in front of a tv/tablet instead of being read to, lack of literacy-rich environment, parents who don't speak and have conversations with their kids, lack of involvement in Head Start or Pre-K programs?  And what is being done by schools or the community to remedy this?

#5--Oral language is understanding language at the listening and speaking level, and although my little dude isn't here yet, I am already thinking of enriching activities I can offer him to help him have a better understanding and command of oral language such as working on naming items together, categorizing items, and including dialogic reading and discussions when we do read alouds!  :)

#6--Kind of off topic, but I wanted to mention this because it's an area I'm interested in.  It seems that there are correlations between ELL and students whose primary spoken language is Nonstandard English (ebonics, African-American Vernacular, etc). Studies have shown that students are more successful in school and speaking Standard Academic English if teachers better help students understand how their 'first language' correlates to the language that is used in the classroom.  Why isn't this done more and why do schools do so much to help students who speak a different language but don't do enough to help students who speak a dialectical variation of English?

If you are interested, here is a link to an article:  https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2018/04/the-code-switcher/554099/

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I found it interesting that young children learn a lot of words by listening to adults read aloud picture books and watching Blue's Clues, Dora the Explorer, and other TV programs designed for young children. Young children learn words by going to grocery stores, playgrounds, and many other locations where they attend. It doesn't surprise me that children learn words form various read aloud but  I find it interesting that they learn words from educational TV programs designed for younger kids but it makes sense when you watch one of these shows they constantly repeat various words.

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Big Idea #5 Formal and Informal Assessments

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Big Idea #5 Formal and Informal Assessments

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I use informal assessments in my classroom all of the time.  Even though they are middle schoolers, they still  need to practice these skills.  The list of informal assessments is just a good reminder.  The names of the formal assessments are new to me, since I do not have anything like that in middle school.  I hope to learn how to use these assessments!

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Interactive read alouds are an important strategy to use to promote oral language.  I read  aloud to my middle school students every day.  They love it!  This is probably partly because they do not feel like they are actually doing any work, even though they are.  I read them the Fablehaven series, which took two years to complete.  It was a great series because it promoted a lot of critical thinking and we discussed a lot.  Very helpful to me was the booklist.  Since I do not teach the younger grades, I don't know what they are reading.

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There are 4 cueing systems when learning the English language.  They are phonological or sound, syntactic or structural, semantic or meaning and pragmatic or social and cultural use.  Every child goes through these stages.  They go through these in this order, but there is also some overlap.  A child in the semantic stage still may need to sound a word out if it is new.  This would actually be a phonological skill.

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Big Idea #2 - Stages of Language Development

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Big Idea #2 - Stages of Language Development

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There are 4 stages associated with learning to speak.  Stage 1 occurs when a child is 0-11 months, and they can vocalize and smile.  Stage 2 comes during age 1-2.  Here, the child's vocabulary grows to about 100 words.  During stage 3 (ages 3-4) a child develops 300-1500 new words.  That is a very big range!  During stage 4 (ages 5-7) a child learns 3000-5000 more words.  Here, sentences become more complex.  Finally, concrete operational thinking occurs during a child's 7th -11th year.

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I never thought about nursery rhymes being that important to learning.  I just knew my kids loved "I'm a Little Teapot".  I sang this over and over to them.  They would sit on my stomach and we would repeat the same movements and everything.  It is sort of refreshing to know that something simple like that is helpful.  I think sometimes we focus so much on what is new and buying the best technology.

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Big Idea #5: Model Rather than Correct (Alysson Bowden)

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Big Idea #5: Model Rather than Correct (Alysson Bowden)

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It is important to model rather than correct.  As Roberta Schomburg pointed out, if a student says, “I builded a big building,” the teacher should respond with, “Yes, you built a great building.”  This models the proper way to structure the sentence without making the student feel they made a mistake, which could possibly lead him/her to be more reluctant to speak in the future.  In the Wisconsin Model Early Learning Standards, they provide sample strategies for adults.  One of these states, “If child says ‘My foots are cold,’ say, ‘Your feet are cold; let’s get some socks.’  Similarly, when working with ELLs, it is important to not over correct the students.  They are already unsure of and nervous about using their new language skills.  Overcorrecting could have detrimental results.

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Big Idea #4: Language-Rich Environments (Alysson Bowden)

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Big Idea #4: Language-Rich Environments (Alysson Bowden)

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Providing language-rich environments is crucial.  Students need to engage in conversation to further develop their oral language.  Social interaction promotes both speaking and listening skills, not to mention learning social cues.  When students talk with one another they are exposed to new vocabulary and are afforded the opportunity to practice their developing skills.

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Big Idea #3: Early Development (Alysson Bowden)

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Big Idea #3: Early Development (Alysson Bowden)

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As stated in the Wisconsin Model Early Learning Standards, language has an essential impact on the rapid development of a child’s brain.  Children who haven’t developed strong oral language by first grade will have difficulty keeping up with their peers.  These facts accentuate the need for early intervention.  As listed in the Wisconsin Early Childhood Collaboration Partners Guiding Principles, parents are children’s primary and most important caregivers.

On a personal note, I noticed by three-year-old daughter was behind in her language development when compared to other kids her age.  I received pushback from some extended family members when I wanted to get her evaluated.  Nonetheless, I pursued the evaluation and learned she was below the first percentile in speech.  She is now receiving services to assist her.  This experience showed me that some people still have a negative view on seeking assistance, which greatly concerns me as an educator.

After completing this week's reading, I can further identify her difficulties with bound morphemes, especially the plural maker -s.

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Big Idea #2: English Learners (Alysson Bowden)

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Big Idea #2: English Learners (Alysson Bowden)

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It is important for English learners to continue to develop their first language proficiency.  Those who stop learning their native language have more difficulty learning English.  The ease or difficulty related to acquiring a second language depends greatly on how strong a person is with their first language.  For example, it usually takes 5-7 years for someone who has strong language and literacy skills in their first language to acquire a second language.  It often takes 7-10 years to acquire a second language if an individual does not possess strong first language and literacy skills.

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Big Idea #1 - Understanding the Four Cueing Systems (Alysson Bowden)

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Big Idea #1 - Understanding the Four Cueing Systems (Alysson Bowden)

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The Four Cueing Systems are interrelated and make communication possible.  It is important to be familiar with these systems to better understand language development.

Phonology - the sounds of language

Syntax - sentence structure of oral and written development/grammar and the order of words in sentences

Semantics - the development of the meaning of language (word meaning)

Pragmatics - use of social language in the context of different situations

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I was amazed of the power nursery rhymes have at a young age.  Nursery rhymes help with phonemic awareness and help create rhythm for a child to understand.

Going along with that I also learned the word Intonation which means tone of voice.

This was a very interesting week for me. I enjoyed the videos of the kids at the end of the Prezi. I was trying to pick out which oral language stage they were at! :)

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One amazing thing that I learned today was the importance of Environmental Print.  Environmental print is the print of everyday life. It appears on signs, labels, logos, street signs, candy wrappers, store labels, etc. I thought the statistic that 60% or three year olds and 80% of five year olds could read environmental print in context was incredible. This all relates back to activating prior knowledge and connecting education to a child's background.

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I really enjoyed the link you posted, "My favorite writing stage reference."  It was a great visual for me to see the progression of writing.  Reading about it was one thing but to actually see it was great!

1. Drawing

2. Scribbles- express ideas

3. Letter like symbols

4. Actual letters and match sounds- no spaces

5. Initial consonants

6. Initial and final sounds-conventionally

7. Vowel sounds- readable!

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“Children who are surrounded by print flourish in literacy development.”

(Children Write Their World:Environmental Print as a Teaching Tool. Giles and Tunks.)

Loved this quote!

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A lot of today's information was new to me.  I remember somewhat learning about this in college but I feel I can apply/understand it way better now.  One thing that stood out to me was Michael Halliday’s 7 functions of Oral Language Heuristic.  I kept thinking of my friend's daughter and what stages she has gone through.  I went on a walk with her today and she could not stop asking question!  Made me laugh and glad I was able to connect it to Heuristic function.

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Sara Beschta - Language Development Big Ideas

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Sara Beschta - Language Development Big Ideas

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1. Oral Language Development: Preproduction, Early production, Speech emergent, Intermediate fluency, Advanced fluency.  Children move through these stages at their own pace.
2. EL/2nd Language Learners: their social skills develop more easily/quickly, but academic language takes more time and specific instruction.  In order to be successful in school, EL learners need to acquire that academic vocabulary.
3. Written Language: I usually see students around the 4th or 5th stage of written language development.  Students typically start first grade by writing a string of letters or initial consonants (phonetic spelling).  Throughout the year, they tend to move into stages 6 (initial/final sounds) and even 7.
4. Early Literacy Programs: They use WMELS as standards which include physical health, social/emotional, language/communication, and cognition/general knowledge.  These ensure that children are in an environment that cares about their well-rounded wellbeing.
5. One of the first videos I watched mentioned that poor readers coming out of first grade tend to be poor readers throughout the rest of their education and lives. This really hit home because I teach first grade. I try to communicate the importance of good reading habits to both parents and students.

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Regarding the developmental writing stages (drawing, scribbling, letter like symbols, string of letters, initial consonants, initial and final sounds, and vowel sounds), I was better able to understand that these stages are not always consistent in order and that young learners may go back and forth or incorporate multiple at once.

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I never realized the importance of nursery rhymes in relation to phonemic awareness. Nursery rhymes allow for patterning which is vital for phonemic awareness. This was a huge AHA for me! Even with my own child!

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At our building, we do not have a high ELL population, however, we had a new student enroll this past school year from Nicaragua that came with no English language experience. Our ELL teacher often reached out for suggestions for resources around word consciousness, semantic and syntactic relationships. As I read and learned more about EL learners this week, BICS and CALP stood out to me.  Basic Interpersonal Communicative Skills can be learned by ELL students in 2 years or less but Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency isn't reached for approximately 7-8 years.

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In connection to my "Big Idea #3", something that was also new learning for me was that EL learners who continue to develop their first language proficiently become better English speakers than those who stop learning their native language. This is important when thinking about learners that come to us with a first language different than English, to not abandon their first language but to use it as a foundation to build English speaking skills.

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#1

Developmental Writing Stages:

1. Scribbling - at first the scribbling is random, but eventually it is made to look like writing with the lines starting on the left and moving right and going down the page.

2. Letter-like symbols - Some letters start to emerge with numbers

3. String of letters - Similar to the previous stage except the children are starting to become more aware of the letters and what they represent

4. Beginning Sounds Emerge - They are more solid in letter and sound representation, but they have not gotten spacing or spelling down.

5. Consonants Represent Words - The child continues to grow in letter sound representation and they are adding spacing and know a few words.

6. Initial, Middle and Final Sounds - They are starting to add final sounds and some middle sounds when writing words.

7. Transitional Phase - Writing is becoming more readable and they are able to spell many sight words and names.

8. Standard Spelling - Children can spell most words correctly.

Every stage should be celebrated and responded to as meaningful communication.

#2

Oral Language Functions

Oral language functions are important so people can connect with other people, build relationships and share thoughts and feelings.  Oral language helps develop literacy skills and they can be embedded across curriculum.  There are seven functions of oral language.

1. Instrumental - Child uses language to express wants or needs.

2. Regulatory - This is language used to tell others what to do.

3. Interactional - This function is the forming of relationships.

4. Personal - This is language used to give opinions, tell feelings and give a person individuality.

5. Heuristic - This is language used to gain knowledge.  For example, “How do you do that?”

6. Imaginative - This language function is used when children are telling stories, creating new words and when they have an imaginary friend.

7. Informative - This language function is to communicate information by telling actual facts or describing things or ideas.

The best way to improve oral language in a classroom is to provide a language-rich environment.  Language-rich means that there is a lot of talking and the children are engaged in learning.  A teacher can ask a student to explain things like a show and tell item brought in from home.

Child directed Speech - This is modeling more advanced vocabulary and using correct syntax slightly above the child’s level.

Self-talk - This is a teacher or parent talking and describing what they are doing as they are doing it.

Parallel- talk - This is a parent or teacher talking and describing what the child is doing as they are doing it.

#3

Stages of Language Development

1. Birth - 11 mo - During this stage we see crying, vocalizations, babbling, cooing and smiles.  Between 6-11 months sound imitations are starting.

2. 1 - 2 years - In this stage the child will respond to requests, name pictures with words, have conversations and develop intonation in communication.  They will have about 100 words by age 2.

3. 3 - 4 years - In this stage the child’s vocabulary will increase to 300-1500 words.  They will be able to respond to two or three step requests.  They will have clearer pronunciation and form simple sentences.

4. 5 - 7 years - In this stage a child’s vocabulary will increase to 3,000 - 5,000 words.  The child will be able to hold a conversation about a topic for a short while.  They will have more complex sentence structure with eight or more words per sentence.

5. 7 - 11 years - Children form concrete-operational thinking.  They begin to classify hierarchical relationships.  For example, birds and fish are both animals.  The children start to explore objects visually rather than manually.  They can use abstract thinking if they have directly experienced the topic at hand.

By the time a student leaves high school it is expected that they will have a vocabulary of about 50,000 plus words.

#4

Cueing Systems

Phonological - This is the components of sounds in the English language.  There are approximately 44 sounds (phonemes and graphemes).  This system also includes components of pitch and intonation, stress and volume

Syntactic - This is sentence structure in oral and written language.  This is grammar.  Grammar are the rules governing how words are combined.  Children with strong oral syntax will most likely become strong readers because they will go back and self correct when something doesn’t sound right.

Semantic - This is the development of meaning and how words are combined into sentences.  This also includes knowing that many words have multiple meanings, the study of synonyms, antonyms and homonyms.

Pragmatic - This is the use of social language.  We have standard English that is used in textbooks and on TV, but there are several variations of the English language known as dialects.  An example of a dialect is a Texan asking his friends, “How y’all doin’?” or a Wisconsinite asking the same question but saying, “How are you(s) guys doing?”

#5

Predictions of Written Language Success

Expressive Language - This is how well children express their wants and needs.

Receptive Language - This is how well children understand what others say to them.

Listening Comprehension - This is how well children understand stories that are read or told to them.  It is also how well they do with songs that are sung together in the classroom.

Unusual Vocabulary or Rare Words - This is how many words does the child know that are not typical in daily conversations.

Resources

(n.d.). Retrieved from https://moodle.viterbo.edu/course/view.php?id=44056&sesskey=QqlyO670XT#section-4

Adapted from the work of Richard Gentry & the Conventions of Writing Developmental Scale, The Wright Group

Baxter, M. (2014, October 17). Halliday's Functions of Oral Language. Retrieved from https://prezi.com/9u0rkkjkdqrp/hallidays-functions-of-oral-language/

(n.d.). Retrieved June 17, 2018, from https://moodle.viterbo.edu/mod/assign/view.php?id=557221

Retrieved from:

https://ensemble.viterbo.edu/hapi/v1/contents/permalinks/d7CFp95L/view

Tompkins, G. E. (2015). Literacy in the early grades: A successful start for PreK-4 readers and writers. Boston: Pearson.

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1. In the article, “Children Write Their World: Environmental Print as a Teaching Tool,” Giles and Tunks state, “children typically read print from their environment before reading print in book” (2010). As a kindergarten teacher, this was great proof that the Lucy Calkins resource our school district uses begins teaching our students the foundational skills before attempting to read print in books. I have visuals printed of different environmental symbols to begin our school year during our beginning reading lessons. This provides students with great excitement as they see that there are already things in our world that they can read, and that they are already on their way to becoming readers. We then take a “field trip” through the school so they can explore things around our school that they can already read. This also helps gauge student’s prior knowledge and experiences. Giles and Tunks also state that “all children benefit from exposure to print in their environment” (2010).

2. Giles and Tunks found that through recent research, print from the environment gives young children confidence to experiment and use print resources to improve their writing (2010). They gave an example to build a connection between school and home and have students bring in familiar print from home. For example, wrappers of familiar food items or labels from toys. I would extend this activity to create a class book for students to explore.

3. Word walls are important to display in kindergarten and primary classrooms. Examples of words to include on word walls are children’s names and sight vocabulary (Giles and Tunks, 2010). In my classroom I have a word wall displayed that is in sight of all students while sitting at their desks. I begin the school year by first displaying their names on the board, after we practice and participate in several name games for students to recognize their names and those of their classmates. Then throughout the school year, as we learn new “snap” words, I display them on the word wall. Students use this as a resource when writing. To take it one step further, I have made mini word walls which are displayed in a table sign at each table, and students have a word wall in their writing workshop folders. This has been very powerful in the classroom to assist students in learning and writing words we are learning in class.

4. In the video “Supporting Oral Language Development in a Language-Rich Environment,” the big idea I took from this were the three strategies to support a rich environment. These include child-directed speech (listen to what the child says and then respond with language that is slightly above the child’s level of speaking), self-talk (describe what you are doing while doing it), and parallel-talk (you narrate children’s actions). These are very important strategies to keep in mind when engaging with students to help support their oral language development.

5. In the “Developmental Writing Stages-Whiteboard Animation” video, the big idea I took away from watching this was the identification of the seven writing stages: drawing, scribbling, letter-like symbols, strings of letters, initial consonants, initial and final sounds, and vowel sounds. Also remember to celebrate what the students can do at each stage. During my first year of teaching kindergarten, I was just following my resources and lessons to teach my students how to read and write. During my second year of teaching is when I began understanding fully the developmental stages of writing and used this to help support my writers. I believe having this knowledge, understanding the steps, celebrating where students are at, and knowing where to take them next has made significant impacts on my students’ growth as writers.

*I live and breathe the foundations of learning to read and write as a kindergarten teacher, so I enjoyed reading and watching this week's information on language development.

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Motherese is a thing?! I had no idea it had a name! I often find myself overemphasizing as a mother and sometimes think that I am being a wack-o mom - glad to know that I am not.  It is actually a good thing to do to help children identify where words begin and end which will help them become successful in their own language skills.

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1. I didn't realize the importance of connecting actions to oral language through the use or self talk and parallel talk. (Supporting Oral Language Development Video)

2. Prior to these resources, I had never heard of Michael Halliday's 7 Functions of Oral Language. McKenna Baxter did a great job or providing definitions for each of the functions and ways to promote development within a classroom setting. (McKenna Baxter's Prezi)

3. I had no idea that children ages 3+ should be learning about 2,500 new words each year! That seems like so many words but it's so crucial to their development! (Supporting Oral Language Development Video)

4. The last time I worked specifically with vocabulary words related to the four different cueing systems (phonological, syntactic, semantic, and pragmatic) was studying for the Foundations of Reading Test during my undergrad. It was a great to refresh my memory of the definitions and the importance of each of those pieces of language development. (Literacy in the Early Grades)

5. Being a third grade teacher and not having kids of my own, I don't typically get to see the early stages of writing development. It was very interesting to read about the different stages and have visuals on the chart to clearly see what each of those stages would look like. The earliest stage I believe I have seen in third grade would be stage 10: Early Inventive Spelling. (Stages of Writing Development Video & HeidiSongs' Chart)

*The last thing I wanted to add that stuck with me was that we should celebrate each stage of the writer's development. Being a third grade teacher, most students come into my class already at a transitional writing stage, however, some are at the inventive spelling stage still. I definitely take for granted the tremendous amount of progress each of my students makes in their writing development and I agree that it should be celebrated!