Friday 9 February 2018

Language in Abundance

What language offers a person's Learning? How learning offer language capability.

Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org

When language is in abundance it provides opportunities for students to develop, learn and grow. What does it do for us when we are given language. Knowledge is not a word we use a lot in education at the moment, we tend of focuses learners find out things for themselves. But knowledge does matter and it comes primarily from language both oral and written.

Exposure to language can affect the amount we learn. Imagine you are watching this and you have no knowledge of kites, the materials or the words to express what they are.

Learning Condition One-Demo Only 

What would you learn from this: When students don't have to words for what the materials are or what is going know how can they access the learning, describe the experience. 
Students might name the material thing this still does not allow them to access the learning. 

Learning Condition Two-Demo, Spoken and Written Language. 

Students are given a context for what they are doing. They can access words about the material. They can see written words. There is also the ability to slow the language down.

The Point:

  • Language availability means that we can take it further, tease it  out, clarification meaning and develop understanding.  
  • A mixture of spoken, written and body language offers people more opportunity to learn. 
  • Often in classrooms we watch a movie as a way to connect to big ideas, but we don't slow down to focus on the language and notice and understand it in a meaningful way. 

So how can we give children language in abundance?


  • If we want quantity of talk we need to gift them language and scaffold it. 
  • We as teachers can elaborate on learners responses.
  • We need to develop and culture that honours language and thinking from everyone in the classroom.  This allows students to feel safe. 
  • Talk accompanied action, this is when we talk as you play, do. 
  • We should away believe "Unless you have definitive proof that they can't, assume that they can"-Donna Ryan. 
  • Making sure that talk is allowed and encouraged in the classroom. 
  • Talk needs to accompany action, we need to create a dialogue that accompanies learning. 
  • We need to make it normal from a young age to explain their actions, feelings and ideas. 
  • It is also about being able to explain your understanding of the word. 

We need to think about what other sources of language we are providing for learners. When people including adults are exposed to a range of sources of language voices their vocabulary grows. 

We can not just hope the children will come across words we need to provide the, and notice them!

We need to think of ways to not just surround children with language but involve them with language. 

Our Place is the perfect place to start this language journey. 
Some way:
-Our beach
-Gardening
-Storytelling
-Seashore ecology 
-Winds
-Marine reserves

I am excited to read this book "What every primary school teacher should know about vocabulary." by  Dr Jannie van Hees and Prof Paul Nation 


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