© 2009 Era Publications, Australia BroAschehoug Literacy Workshop From pre-school to formal...

© 2009 Era Publications, Australia

BroAschehougBroAschehougLiteracy WorkshopLiteracy Workshop

From pre-school toFrom pre-school toformal literacy instructionformal literacy instruction

Rodney MartinRodney MartinDipT(Adv), BEd, MBA, FEADipT(Adv), BEd, MBA, FEA

The pre-school stageThe pre-school stage

It is common for Australian children today to be in childcare centres from a very young age. One state school in Adelaide begins with babies (6 months).

Childcare centres cannot be just ‘child minders’. They must offer a program of educational activities – including constructive play with various materials.

© 2009 Era Publications

The pre-school stageThe pre-school stage

At age 4, a child can move from childcare to a state run or private kindergarten.

This means slightly more formality in the activity program, including:

• the variety and amount of experience with texts: listening, singing, hand-play

• development of fine motor skills

• development of spoken vocabulary

• group experience with text – big books© 2009 Era Publications

School entrySchool entry

At age 5, a child is entitled to be enrolled in a school...this is compulsory at age 6.

School entry is called ‘Reception’, ‘Kindergarten’ or ‘Prep’ depending on the state. At this stage, teachers:

• continue the experience found in kindergarten, and

• look for a child’s readiness for more formal instruction in reading


Reading readinessReading readiness

At ages 5-6, children invariably reach a stage when they are able to begin a more formal program of reading.

Children will reach this at different ages and stages, and progress at different rates – but managed in groups.

Instruction is through whole class (shared reading), small group (guided and independent activities) and individual (e.g., assessment) activities.


Formal literacy skillsFormal literacy skills

In a very simple way, we might list three main elements of formal reading instruction.

1. the way letters sound and words look (phonographic knowledge – mainly the early years of school)

2. the way words go together to make meaning (syntactic knowledge)

3. the way texts and images express meaning (semantic knowledge)


PhonographicsPhonographics

Phonographics in reading includes:

• letters of the alphabet (recognising them by shape)

• letters of the alphabet (recognising sound-letter correspondence of letters, blends, digraphs and diphthongs.)

• high frequency words (the 100-200 words that make up 50% of what students read – also called ‘sight words’)


Copyright © 2009 Era Publications

Using manipulativesUsing manipulatives

Various tools are used.

• Enlarged picture and letter blocks for small hands

• Colour coding

Red = vowel letters

Blue = consonants

• Games with letter and word cards


Letters and soundsLetters and sounds

Matching letters to initial sound pictures:• Vowels

• Consonants

• Capitals and lower case

a

s

B b.


Letter names and shapesLetter names and shapesMatching capitals with lower-case letters• Sort and join the letters from a pile of blocks.• Play the bingo game.• Play ‘Find your partner’ – each child has a block (upper or lower case); children find person who matches them and then say “We are the letter ...”.

A a

B b.


Confusing lettersConfusing lettersReversals

b d

p q

Inversions

n u

m w

Games to help:

Bingo, matching capitals & lower case; pictures

b.

m

d.

p. q.

w

u. n.


Letter soundsLetter sounds

Theme scenes (vocabulary - words in common settings)

In the classroom

Cc clock, cupboard

Dd desk, door

Pp pencil, pen, pin, paper

At the zoo

Gg gorilla, gate

Say it – move it

c

a

t

c a tc a tc a t

Letter sounds – making wordsLetter sounds – making words


Sample activity typesSample activity types

Word building from single letters (CVC)

How many CVC words can you make with these letters?

a d de p i o t

Did you get all these words?

pat pet pit pottap tip top

a


Letters and wordsLetters and words

Short vowel words

The simplest word constructions involve two elements – a beginning sound (onset) and a final sound (rime). These can be colour coded.

Simple CVC words have:• initial consonant(s) (onset)• vowel + consonant (rime)

d og

tr ap

str

ap

r ap

High Frequency WordsHigh Frequency Words

It is these 100-200 words that give children confidence in their ability to succeed in reading.

They can be taught with flash cards, manipulatives, computer software, etc.

A list of English HF words (regular, irregular and alphabetical can be downloaded from ‘professional articles’ at www.erapublications.com.


http://www.erapublications.com/

Syntactic knowledge Syntactic knowledge

Children explore how words are distinct units of meaning and grammar (function).

Activity: Word tiles

Use these word cards to make a sentence.


dog cat a my chased

A dog chased my cat. My dog chased a cat.

My cat chased a dog. A cat chased my dog.

Syntactic knowledge Syntactic knowledge

Activity: Cloze technique

Use these words to fit the spaces.


big cat a my chased

A _____ dog chased my cat.

My dog chased a _____.

My cat _______ a dog.

___ _____ cat chased my dog.


Students ‘at risk’Students ‘at risk’If students are having difficulty in their progress with reading by age 6-7, they may be classed as being ‘at risk’.

Research by Dr Marie Clay showed that if children’s problems can be given attention at this stage, they are more likely to become successful readers.

This research led to the development of levelled texts – to allow children to have success through very gradual steps.

Levelled textsLevelled texts

Levelled texts are now commonly used to introduce most children to reading text. It involves very gradual stages of difficulty in texts.Levelling rules or formulae often result in texts that are true to the levels but are meaningless or boring.Texts that lack literary merit do not give the possibility for exploring different levels of comprehension.


Text written to a formulaText written to a formulaHere are Fluff and Nip.

Pam says, “Run Fluff run.”

Fluff comes here.

Dick says, “Run Nip run.”

Nip comes here.

Pam is here.

Dick is here.

Dick, Pam, Nip, Fluff.

I just read it backwards.

Here is the real text:

Fluff, Nip, Pam, Dick.

Here is Dick.

Here is Pam.

Here comes Nip.

“Run Nip run,” says Dick.

Here comes Fluff.

“Run Fluff run,” says Pam.

Nip and Fluff are here.



The simplest of texts This level 1 text has:• Less than 60 words• 1 sentence per page• 1 new word per page• New words at the end of

sentences• Vocabulary within the

likely experience of the reader

• An entertaining ending.


Max jumps over a flower.


Max jumps over a stick.


Max jumps over a rock.


Max jumps over a log.


Max jumps over a bush.


Max jumps over a fence.


Max jumps over a hedge.



What makes a text work?What makes a text work?In this case:• The author relied on the illustrator to create a

character with personality.• The text shows Max as energetic,

adventurous, confident – but not perfect.• The pictures and events show Max’s growing

confidence and adventure – he shows off.• The character’s imperfection and the setting

lead to the funny twist at the end.• The ending gives something for discussion – a

theme (look before you leap).

ComprehensionComprehension

Comprehension is the main reason for reading – understanding and enjoying a text shows there is value in the effort. Reading should inform, excite, amaze and/or entertain the reader. This is what brings children back to reading. Let’s looks at simple explanations for different ways to understand text – literal, inferential, creative and critical comprehension.

Copyright (c) 2007, Rodney Martin


ComprehensionLiteral (explicit)

What was the first thing Max jumped over?

Inferential (implicit)

Why did Max jump bigger and bigger things?

Creative

What else could Max have jumped over?

Critical

What lesson is the author teaching you?

Visual

What shows you Max will be in trouble at the end?

(c) 2009, Era Publications35

How texts workHow texts workJust as students need to enjoy reading and see a purpose in it, they also need to experience excitement in learning about their language.

Children learn if you encourage them to explore words, phrases and clauses to make meaning. The key is ‘explore’.

We learn it when we earn it.


Technique: “Word tiles”Technique: “Word tiles”Task

• Move these letter and word tiles to create a sentence that makes the most sense to you.

• Use all the words.

• You cannot “break” a tile to separate words within that tile.

• Use any capital letters and punctuation you wish.


I wish I could find

with a quick little squirm

worm

chick

a fat little

the first little

said

, .”“


Sentence structure & meaningSentence structure & meaning

What possibilities did you discover for sentences with different meanings?“I wish I could find a fat little chick,” said the first little worm with a quick little squirm.“I wish I could find a fat little worm,” said the first little chick with a quick little squirm.You may have discovered others.


Sentence structureSentence structure

Which is the best way to construct the following sentence? Alter it to find a style that works best for you.

“I wish I could find a fat little worm,” said the first little chick with a quick little squirm.

The first little chick with a quick little squirm said, “I wish I could find a fat little worm.”

With a quick little squirm, the first little chick said, “I wish I could find a fat little worm.”


Writing in contextWriting in context

The sentence comes from a verse. The author decided the most appropriate expression for the circumstance

…considering audience and purpose.

So now we give the students a context for the language activity…


The sentence was borrowed from a children’s book called “Six Little Chicks”.

You can borrow text from books to suit your objectives, then share the book afterwards.



Writing: audience, purpose, styleWriting: audience, purpose, style

What was the author’s purpose?

To amuse or entertain the reader.

What text style did the author choose?

Verse – rhyme, rhythm & repetition

The repeated words make it a song.

What letters / sounds form the rhymes?

worm, squirm chick, quick


Vocabulary/phonics studyVocabulary/phonics studyWe can take lessons about spelling beyond the early learning stages.

List other words you know like worm that use the letters or to make an /er/ sound.

world, worse, worst, work, word, worship, worth

What pattern do you notice with these words?

They all begin with the letter w.


Multimodal textsMultimodal texts

Young children now use technology to write – this includes both tools for, and ways of, writing and presenting text.• Create a slideshow for your report on ‘Pond life’. (Use voice, text and photos.)• Write an article for the school website newsletter about your study of ‘Fast foods’.• Contribute to the class blog story ‘The time machine’.• Write 1 entry for our online ‘Food dictionary’.


Session summarySession summary

• In Australia and New Zealand, early learning begins informally at childcare centres, then pre-school or kindergarten. Formal learning begins around age 5-6.

• The texts we use must have literary value not just for reading, but also for comprehension at a number of levels.

• Understanding how texts work leads to understanding writing.



Australian teachers have the disadvantages of:

•a complex spelling system

•second-language learners from many different cultures

•students with behaviour difficulties and various disabilities

•children from homes with a variety of values towards education and schools



Australian teachers have the advantages of:

• A strong state & private education system

• A strong research community in education

• A stable political, social and economic base

• A system that allows freedom to teachers to choose techniques and materials

• Advanced use of technology

• A willingness to explore new pedagogies

Copyright NoticeCopyright NoticeCreated by Rodney Martin of Era Publications, South Australia, 2009.

The contents of this presentation are protected by Copyright Law and may not be copied beyond the agreed use for this product. The contents of this work may be printed and distributed to workshop/ conference/lecture participants. The contents may not be modified in any way without the prior consent in writing of the Copyright owner.

Further articles and information can be found at www.erapublications.com.

For interactive digital content, see www.in2era.com.au.

http://www.erapublications.com/

http://www.in2era.com.au/

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