Asking Questions
Basic Conjunctions
Because - why (asking for more) (Sub-ord)
Give the stem - children finish the sentence.
Tēnā koutou e te whānau. Ko Rovena Jackson ahau. He kaiako ahau ki Te Māhuri Mānuka, Hornby Primary School ki Ōtautahi, Aotearoa. Ko te piko o te Māhuri, tērā te tipu o te rakau! Some background - A polynesian teacher, working in an akomanga reorua (a bilingual environment), contributing to a digitally savvy school, within an ultimately pakeha education system. Aue! This is my space to mull over education from a possibly not so common perspective.
Practice makes permanent!
REVLOC = trumping system
For something to be orthographically mapped - it might take 4-14 exposures. If the child is a neurodivergent learner, could be 200 exposures needed!
Structured Literacy i te reo Māori
Module 1 : Laying the Foundation
Module 2 : Transcription skills
Handwriting - cursive is good for kids who struggle to handwrite.
We want the bottom 2 to be at a level of automaticity.
Keyboarding could become an independent activity during your reading rotation: https://www.typingclub.com
Module 3 - Text Generation - Building blocks of writing
Syntax - ...the system and arrangements of words, phrases, and clauses that make up a sentence....
Background Knowledge - facts, concepts etc…
Students’ knowledge of words and the world.
Prior knowledge helps make connections to the text.
Explicit teaching of background knowledge - link to prior knowledge, explicitly teach new knowledge that you want everyone to have.
Knowledge organizer - you can add background knowledge you have acquired the day before!
1 text = 4 sessions
‘Stretch text’ - a text that is pitched to the higher end of your class.
The text needs to do the heavy lifting - critical thinking, content knowledge, vocab, engagement!
Cool facts!
Vocabulary
Knowledge of a word, not only it’s definition but how it fits in the world.
Which vocab to teach? Tier 1 = high frequency words, Tier 2 - High freq in text, low in spoken conversation, Tier 3 - Academic vocab. We want to select words from Tier 2 - academic vocabulary used across curriculum areas, language of learning.
Word families - eg. Gleam, gleaming, gleamed.
Opportunity to look at nuances. Eg. gleam = a cat’s eyes.
Word associations - I choose … because …
Language Structure
Turning words into a sentence, how words are put together to make the sentence.
Colourful semantics! Subject + predicate.
Do it orally in junior classes - eg “This workshop is beneficial because…” and “This workshop was beneficial but…”
Syntax activity - is it a fragment or a sentence? Follow up task - finish the fragment!
Activities using practise of conjunctions - eg. because, but, so.
Think about the main idea you want to get across, rather than pulling out a sentence.Verbal Reasoning
How a person works with words to get the real meaning.
Verbal reasoning skills will depend on a student’s background knowledge and vocabulary knowledge.
Inference, idioms, similes.
Local inference - eg ability to link subject to pronoun + global inference. “Katy dropped the vase. Se ran for the broom.”
Figurative language - don’t teach in isolation.
Pause points - purposeful questions and prompts that will activate prior knowledge, build subject knowledge, and encourage deeper understanding. Select points in the text.
Literacy Knowledge
Includes print awareness and knowledge of genres.
Investigate text features of non-fiction texts.
“This is a non-fiction article. I know this because…”
A Quick recap
Plan A - Impose a solution. Tell tale signs, "I've decided that..." Solutions arrived at using this plan are usually uninformed, are based on adult solutions, and are not a partnership. Might be used in emergent situations involving safety.
There are no skills taught here. No problems are solved durably. It can increase the chance of more challenging behaviours.
Plan C - This involves setting aside the problem temporarily and prioritising what needs to be dealt with. It is ok to let go of some lower expectations so that adult + child are not overwhelmed by the number of issues that need 'fixing.'
Plan B - The problem is solved collaboratively. The child is helped to understand the concerns the adult has. The child and adult work together as partners towards a mutual solution.
There are 2 ways to use Plan B - emergency and proactive. We are aiming for Proactive! We're aiming to identify concerns, solve problems, teaching skills, reducing challenging behaviours.
Step 1. Empathy
Step 2. Define the adult concerns
Step 3. Invitation
Interesting points
Bumps in the Road
It won't be easy!
Why - we revert back to Plan A because we get stuck. It can be hard to clarify a child's concerns.
Be a reflective listener!
Many adults have had their own conerns ignored or dismissed as kids - we perpetuate the cycle!
Don't rush the empathy step - problems 'solved' in moments usually are not solved at all. If empathy is skipped, the child won't engage.
If adults make proposals , remember they are just that - proposals! If they're imposed, you're doing Plan A!
Duelling solutions - negotiating/meeting in the middle won't cut it either.
'Restraints and seclusions wont solve problems, they just tell us we missed something.' This was an interesting statement for me given where we are with some of our top tier cherubs. I would love to hear some thoughts on what to do with 2-3 of these dears. I can absolutely see that a good relationship (empathy, empathy, empathy) is essential with these kids.
When a child says they don't care - don't lose it! They long term answer is to care more! It's playing the long game, which I see working with some.
Recap - sequence of session
V=Vowel teams
Two or more sounds joined together to make a vowel.REVLOC
These are the 6 different syllable types children will learn.
84% of words fit a spelling pattern. Use Etymonline for explanation.
C = Closed syllables
Are the most common.
Closed - is there a consonant to the right of the vowel? YeS? It’s trapped/closed in, so can only make the short sound
O = Open syllables
Open - is there a letter to the right? No? It's free to shout it's own name!
FLOSS (This is a closed rule pattern)
Is it 1 syllable
Is it a short vowel
Does it end in f, l, s, or z
If there's 3 ticks then you double to last sound!
Eg hill