ORAL LANGUAGE AND COMMUNICATION

ORAL LANGUAGE INCLUDES:  Listening Skills  Speaking Skills  Listening and Speaking vocabulary Growth  Structural elements of oral stories, or oral dramatic activities

ORAL LANGUAGE  Involves communicating with others  Provides the foundation for literacy development  Is included in all content areas  Is learned before written language and understanding  When written language is learned, it mirrors oral language

COMMUNICATION INCLUDES:  Oral Communication Skills – to inform, explain, persuade, entertain, express creatively  Communication verbally and nonverbally  Communication in various settings – group activities, oral presentations, etc.

EXAMPLES OF ASSESSMENT TOOLS AND METHODS  Initial formal assessments  ongoing formative assessments  summative assessments  Uses appropriate volume and tone of voice knows how to take turns when speaking  stays on topic questions  to pay attention when another person is speaking

WAYS TO ASSESS/WHAT THEY SHOULD BE ABLE TO DO  Can name colors, numbers, and familiar objects uses vocabulary appropriately for purpose  Retell parts or all of a story read aloud  Understands and uses prepositions such as over, under, in, out, beside, etc  Understands directions

ACTIVITIES TO ASSESS  Book talks  Group discussions  Giving directions/instructions  Draw pictures and explain what’s in picture  Tell a group story  Cookbook/instructions

STRATEGIES FOR TEACHING ORAL LANGUAGE  Provide regular opportunities for listening and speaking (formally and informally)  Use visual cues: pictures, demonstrations, videos, interactive websites.  Daily conversations: news, daily events, the media

STRATEGIES  Incorporate oral language into all lessons.  Design activities that include an oral language component  Be aware of teaching “pace”

ACTIVITIES TO TEACH  Discussion  partners  small group  informal debate  whole class  Social Settings: communication, problem solving  Formal presentations  Role play, circle stories, character interviews  Whisper phones

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION  Order of development of oral language Babbling and cooing native language sounds words creative grammar adult speech

ELL  ELL students learn English in stages just as native speakers do  They listen before speaking or writing  Understand meaning before mechanics  First must learn their own language before learning English

SOURCES  classrooms-a classrooms-a86092   Dr murrill’s slides