1. LEARNING TO READ READING TO LEARN Wendy Arnold Ramallah, Palestine 20 – 22nd August 2013

2. A recent survey in schools in Palestine showed that: 70% of children cannot read!

3. Order of literacy skills
WRITE READ SAY HEAR
You need to …. a word before you can … it

4. WHY?
You need to HEAR a word before you can SAY it You need to SAY a word before you can READ it You need to READ a word before you can WRITE it

5. b – o – c – a p – e – l – o o – j – o - s
THEORY INTO PRACTICE
b – o – c – a p – e – l – o o – j – o - s

6. WORKSHOP 1

7. What’s reading?
JABBERWOCKY Lewis Carroll (from Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There, 1872) `Twas brillig, and the slithy toves Did gyre and gimble in the wabe: All mimsy were the borogoves, And the mome raths outgrabe.

8. "Beware the Jabberwock, my son
"Beware the Jabberwock, my son! The jaws that bite, the claws that catch! Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun The frumious Bandersnatch!”
He took his vorpal sword in hand: Long time the manxome foe he sought -- So rested he by the Tumtum tree,
 And stood awhile in thought.
And, as in uffish thought he stood, The Jabberwock, with eyes of flame, Came whiffling through the tulgey wood, And burbled as it came!

9. One, two! One, two! And through and through The vorpal blade went snicker-snack! He left it dead, and with its head He went galumphing back.
"And, has thou slain the Jabberwock? Come to my arms, my beamish boy! O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!’ He chortled in his joy.
`Twas brillig, and the slithy toves  Did gyre and gimble in the wabe; All mimsy were the borogoves,
And the mome raths outgrabe.

11. How do you learn to read in Arabic?
Typical 1st grade Arabic programs will focus on teaching students to break up a word into individual letters they can recognize, and to sound the word out piece by piece. 

12. Arabic letters can look very different in the beginning/middle/end of a sentence – so learning to do this is a great accomplishment for young readers.
 1st graders should continue to work on correct pencil control, writing out the alphabet correctly, proper spacing, and can begin learning to write short easy words that contain letters with which they have become very familiar.

13. 2nd grade brings the introduction of basic diacritical marks (harakat), it is helpful to take your time learning the difference between a ‘fat-ha’ and the letter Alif, a ‘thamma’ and the letter Waw, a ‘kasra’ and the letter Yaa.
On average, 2nd graders will learn to recognize and read 150 common words by sight, and will learn to write short sentences using basic vocabulary.

14. How do you learn to read in English?
Emerging pre-reader = listening to the language
Novice reader = linking letters and sounds (phonological awareness). Native-English children will have a vocabulary of 2,500 – 5,000 words.

15. Decoding reader = blending sounds together, reading and re-reading text to understand it. In this phase the child is learning to read and a further 3,000 words are added.
Fluent, comprehending reader = moving from learning to read to reading to learn. Building up a substantial background of knowledge of spelling

16. What is alphabetic principle?
‘ … in order to be able to decode print in English, children need to understand the alphabetic principle… the connection needs to be made that speech can be turned into print and that print can be turned into speech. The concept that has to be grasped is that letter (graphemes) represent the sounds (phonemes) of the language … key understanding is the reversibility of these two processes …’

17. READING STRATEGIES
graphophonic (letters, sounds, blending, segmenting, decoding)
semantic (encoding – making sense, visual and textual literacy)
syntactic (grammar!)

18. Blending sounds BUT you need to know your sounds first!

19. Aa Bb Cc Dd Ee Ff Gg Hh Ii ce ge ci gi ch gh Jj Kk Ll Mm Nn Oo Pp
Qu/qu Rr rh ph Ss Tt Uu Vv Ww wh Xx Yy Zz sh th

20. Segmenting

21. Sound talk strategy - segmenting
Say the word and get young learners to identify sounds

22. Rationale for decoding symbols
Blending is for reading Segmenting is for spelling/writing

23. High frequency words in English and the TRICKY words

24. Understanding the high frequency words that need to be learnt
not
look
put
and
with
them
don’t
could a
all
were
come
house to we go
will
old
said
can
little
Into
too in
are as
back by he up no
from
day I
had
mum
children
made of my
one
him
time it
her
then
Mr.
I’m

25. High frequency words was what do get if you there me just help they
down
now
Mrs. on
this
dad
came
called
she
have
big oh
here is
went
when
about
off
for be
It’s
got
asked at
like
see
their
saw
his
some
looked
people
make
but so
very
your an
Masterson, J Stuart, M Dixon M Lovejoy S (2003) Children’s Printed Word Database: Economic & Social Research Council funded project R Primary National Strategy UK

26. WORKSHOP 2

27. Developmental process in New English for Palestine
Grade 1-2 – linking letters and sounds; reading lower case letters and then upper case letters, writing lower case letters and then uppers case letters; writing numbers 1 – 10 and 11-20
Grade 3 – 4 language building = using word cards to read and order simple to complex questions and sentences; key grammatical structures; building core vocabulary of high frequency words

28. Grade 5 – 6 language development = simple and increasingly more complex key grammatical structures; high frequency words
Grade 7 – 8 focus on reading skills by having two reading texts; pre-while-after reading activities

29. The approach to reading in New English for Palestine
FROM
decoding (blending) sounds for reading by:
introducing sounds through games
blending 2 and 3 letter words (vowel
+consonant and consonant-vowel-
consonant)

30. TO
encoding (making sense) words for reading and writing by:
having an interesting context in each unit
basing all the activities in the unit on the context

31. Visual literacy Reading pictures
Making sense (encoding) by predicting the story using the visual cues

32. Textual literacy
Linking the visual cues to the textual cues to understand the context
Knowing that it is not necessary to understand every single word to make meaning

33. Constructing sentences
Using word cards to construct language
Seeing word order visually and kinesthetically

34. WORKSHOP 3

35. Development from Grades 6 to 8

36. Grade 7
- 4 periods for:
2 vocabulary inputs (period 1&2, 7 or 8)
2 reading texts
Reading skills
Vocabulary development
Grade 8
6 periods for:
2 vocabulary inputs (period 1&2, 7 or 8)
2 reading texts
Pre/while/after reading activities

37. Grade 7:
1 period for language input
1 period for listening, speaking activities
2 periods for dictionary and writing activities
Unit task
Grade 8:
3 periods for language inputs
1 period for listening, speaking activities
2 periods for dictionary and writing activities
Unit task

38. Similarities and differences
Grade 7 is about 80% the same in style to Grade 6
Grade 7 unit format changed to give space for longer texts
Dialogue and narratives separated
Grade 7 has 2 periods to practice reading (aloud and silent) and different reading skills

39. Period
Grade 6
Grade 7
Grade 8 1
1.Listen and repeat
2.Listen and answer the questions
3.Listen and say
4.Listen and answer the questions
Everyday English
1.Listen and repeat the words.
2.Look at the pictures and answer the questions.
3.Listen and answer the questions.
4.Listen and read. Underline the words from activity 1.
5.Work in groups. Act out the conversations in activity 4.
Everyday English.
1.Listen and repeat.
2.Look at the pictures on the next page. Describe them.
4.Listen and read. Find the words and phrases from activity 1. 2
1.Listen and circle the words you hear. Match them to the pictures
2.Listen and repeat the passage
3.Work in groups of 4 or 5. Read the passage aloud.
4.Read. Then work in pairs and circle the correct words.
1.Listen and circle the words you hear.
2.Read and circle the correct words.
3.Complete the sentences with words from activity 1. Then match the sentences with the pictures.
4.Listen and check the sentences.
5.Read the passage on page 4 again and answer the questions.
1.Listen. Add new words from period 1. Make any changes needed.
2.Listen and check. Then practise in pairs.
3.Read again and a
answer the questions.
4.Work in pairs. Listen again and practise the conversation.

40. Time to reflect 3…2…1… 3 things I remember 2 ideas I could adapt
1 question I have
Ps work in pairs, discussand make a note. Question can be kept for a workshop.

41. THANK YOU FOR LISTENING Facebook ELT Consultants Primary English Teachers in Palestine