LANGUAGE LEARNING STRATEGIES Chamot et al. (2004)

Learning strategies here come from: Chamot et al. (2004). The Elementary Immersion Learning Strategies Resource Guide. Department of Education, Washington. http://www.nclrc.org/eils/ Chamot et al. (2004). Sailing the 5 Cs with learning strategies: A resource guide for secondary foreign language educators. Department of Education, Washington, DC. http://www.nclrc.org/sailing/pdfs/sfle.pdf

WHAT ARE LEARNING STRATEGIES? Definition: The thoughts and/or actions that students use to complete a learning task. They are used for problem-solving during language learning. Strategies can be learned. Using Learning Strategies improves language learning.

WHY TEACH LEARNING STRATEGIES? The goal is for students to become independent learners with the ability to use strategies correctly in a variety of context. Strategies improves student´s acquisition of a foreign language. Students discover how and when to apply them.

HOW DO WE ORGANIZE THEM? METACOGNITIVE STRATEGIES General learning strategies. Students begin to think consciously about their own learning. TASK-BASED STRATEGIES They focus on how students can use their own resources to learn most effectively.

METACOGNITVE STRATEGIES Organize/plan: Organization of what they need to do. Manage: Regulation of their own learning Monitor: Students check their progress on the task. Evaluate: Students reflect on their work.

TASK-BASED STRATEGIES Strategies that use what you know Strategies that use your imagination Strategies that use your organizational skills. Strategies that use a variety of resources.

Strategies that use what you know Make predictions: It happens when a student anticipates information and makes logical guesses about what will happen. They can only be used when students have enough relevant background knowledge.

Strategies that use your imagination Use real objects / Role play: Students imagine themselves in different roles in the target language. It can be used with concrete or abstract concepts to make them more concrete.

Strategies that use your organizational skills Find-apply patterns: Students use a rule they already know or create a new one. It is useful in situations where students can generalize about a language structure. Use graphic organizers / take notes. Use or create visual representations of important relationships between concepts. Write down important words and ideas.

Strategies that use a variety of resources Cooperate By working together students gain confidence, share their strengths and complete tasks more easily. Talk yourself through it Students tell themselves they are doing a good job and they are capable of completing a task. “I know I can do it!”

Training proposal for paper reading Strategies may be applied to any language learning skill, including reading Now we are going to describe a proposal for paper reading Chamot’s materials are for other languages than English, but can be adapted without effort as the English translation always appears somewhere.

WHAT PROCEDURE SHOULD I USE TO TEACH STRATEGIES? Preparation Presentation Practice Self-evaluation Expansion

1. PREPARATION Activate the background knowledge of the presented strategy. Ex (making inferences): When you see a text, is there any clue to help you what the text will be about?

Example: Preparation Ask the students to tell you about the weather today. Ask them to describe the weather in the summertime, the wintertime, etc. Explain that sometimes we understand things in a story because of what we know already. Show the students a picture from the story “Froggy gets dressed” and ask them: (What kind of weather is Froggy preparing for?) Write their responses on the board.

2. PRESENTATION We introduce the new concept or strategy. There are five steps: Name the strategy: Make inferences Explain how to use it Tell when to use it Model it Explain its importance

(a) Name the strategy Give the strategy a name: “This strategy is called Make Inferences.” Use an illustration, this way it will be easier for students to understand and remember the strategy. Knowing a strategy's name enables students to carry on discussions about strategy use and to differentiate between strategies. You will want to select an ageappropriate, target language equivalent for Make Inferences. Y 17

(b) Explain how to use the strategy Tell students what the strategy means and how to use it. For example: “This strategy is called Make Inferences. Make Inferences can help us figure out the meaning of a story by using clues such as the content, pictures or specific words in the story. If you do not know what a word means, try to read other sentences to figure it out.” Knowing a strategy's name enables students to carry on discussions about strategy use and to differentiate between strategies. You will want to select an ageappropriate, target language equivalent for Make Inferences. Y 18

(c) Tell students when to use a particular strategy Make it clear to students what situations call for the use of the strategy. For example, you can explain to students that Make Inferences is an appropriate strategy to use when they do not understand every word they hear or read; they can use what they do understand to help them figure out the rest. If you have emphasized in your explanations one skill, like reading, make sure to emphasize that the strategy can be used with other skills as well, such as listening or writing. Knowing a strategy's name enables students to carry on discussions about strategy use and to differentiate between strategies. You will want to select an ageappropriate, target language equivalent for Make Inferences. Y 19

(d) Model the strategy If students are learning to Make Inferences when reading a story, then you can model the strategy on a part of the story. When reading aloud, you can stop where a point is unclear and think aloud while trying to figure out the meanings of words or phrases from the context. (think-aloud technique) Knowing a strategy's name enables students to carry on discussions about strategy use and to differentiate between strategies. You will want to select an ageappropriate, target language equivalent for Make Inferences. Y 20

Example: Presentation You/students read “Froggy gets dressed” Ask students again: “What kind of weather is Froggy preparing for? “ Ask students if they were right before. Tell students that they are learning to guess what a story is about using a picture and information that they already know. “Using the pictures to guess what a story is about is a strategy called Make Inferences. Using this strategy can help you understand a story that you are reading or listening.” Model the strategy by thinking aloud. Say, for example, “In this picture the frog is putting on his socks. I think it is a going out.”

3. PRACTICE The content and strategies taught, serve as material to practise. Think carefully about your students' abilities. Success with learning strategies depends on whether students find them useful. While introducing new strategies, coach students with reminders to use previously learned ones, which should be gradually eliminated. In the early stages, students also need feedback.

Example: Practice 1 Have the children dress up and act out/retell the story. Show picture cue cards that depict children modeling several different types of clothing. Ask them which picture would be appropriate for them accompanying Froggy on his walk. Have the students draw an animal friend to go with Froggy. Have them draw the appropriate clothing for the animals’ walk. Have them describe the articles of clothing in their pictures.

Example: Presentation 2: Reintroduce the strategy: “You can use what you know about weather and seasons to figure out what month of the year the story takes place in even though the book does not say. This is another way to use the strategy Make Inferences.” Show the students the picture again, and have them guess which season and month it might be. Ask them how they know. Remind students that they are using the strategy Make Inferences.

Practice 2: Show pictures of children dressed for various weather conditions. Have the students guess what season and month it is. Remind them that they are using the picture to help them understand.

4. EVALUATION It focuses on student self-evaluation of the effectiveness of the strategies they use in accomplishing specific tasks. Students need to find out which learning strategies work best for them on certain tasks and why. There are several methods: Class discussions Learning strategies checklists

Example: Evaluation: Ask students to raise their hands if they guessed what kind of weather Froggy was preparing for. Ask them to raise their hands if they guessed what season the children in the pictures were dressed for. Ask the students to raise their hands if making guesses before reading a story helps them understand it more easily. Ask them if they are going to make guesses about other stories from pictures. Students retell the story using pictures and short sentences.

EXPANSION Students learn to relate and transfer strategy use to other task, subjects areas or aspects of their lives. If they have used Make Inferences while reading a story, you might model how to Make Inferences while watching a movie. It is important to recognize and seek occasions when learning strategies instruction can be reviewed and reinforced.

Example: Expansion Make Inferences to talk about the temperature. Using the same pictures, have the children guess if it is cold, cool, warm or hot outside. Tell students that Make Inferences is also a helpful strategy to use while reading. Have students make guesses from cover pictures about stories they are going to read.

(e) Explain the importance of the strategy Point out to students how they benefit from using the strategy: “As I listen to this story, there are parts that I do not understand. I can understand better by making inferences.” Knowing a strategy's name enables students to carry on discussions about strategy use and to differentiate between strategies. You will want to select an ageappropriate, target language equivalent for Make Inferences. Y 30