Ch 6 and 7 Flashcards
Literacy development for multilingual learners is a
complex process that
- Takes place over an extended period
– Learners gradually approximate mature versions of
reading and writing
Two important factors in development for multilingual
learners:
– English proficiency
– Ability to read and write in the home language
Historically, three key perspectives about how young
children should be taught to read and write
Reading readiness perspective
▪ Typically, delayed literacy instruction until first grade
▪ Students had to master a set of specific subskills that correlated with reading achievement
Emergent literacy perspective
▪ Assumes oral and written language acquisitions are essentially similar
▪ Children are immersed in social environments where people read and write and children gradually construct literacy knowledge
Comprehensive literacy perspective
▪ Integrates emergent literacy practices with explicit skills instruction
▪ Array of skills involved in mature decoding and comprehension
Digital Literacies and Multilingual
Learners (1 of 2)
* Recommendations
Acknowledge that all children bring literacy knowledge to school, including digital literacy
– Immerse children in a variety of functional reading and writing experiences using both print and digital formats
– In primary grades, enrich learning centers with functional print
– Create opportunities for children to explore digital tools
Celebrate children’s progress in their gradual path to
conventional literacy
– Encourage children to read and write at home and to
talk with their families
– Provide explicit instruction on phonemic awareness,
phonics, and spelling patterns
– Offer explicit instruction to promote vocabulary development and reading comprehension
Concepts of writing Children Develop in the Emergent Literacy Phase
the period when children develop the skills and knowledge that lead to reading and writing
- Print conveys the message
- Spoken words can be written down
- Written words can be spoken
- In English, words are read from left to right, top to bottom
- The speech stream can be divided into sounds, and
these sounds are represented by letters or groups of
letters (i.e., the alphabetic principle) - Speech and corresponding written language have a
linear sequence in time and on the page - There are many exceptions to sound/symbol
correspondences in English
Children experiment with the written forms:
- Scribble writing
▪ Pseudo letters
▪ Letters
▪ Pseudo words
▪ Copied words
▪ Self-generated words
▪ Self-generated sentences
Multilingual students gradually connect…
the visual symbols with the speech sounds they represent to make
their written messages decipherable
Temporary spellings:
Provide a window into students’ early understandings
of print and the alphabetic principle
Temporary sound spellings that can be read by others demonstrate
substantial awareness of phonics and
sound/symbol knowledge
Families promote literacy development through:
- Modeling the forms and functions of print in everyday interactions
– Answering children’s questions about print
– Providing materials for writing
– Engaging children in functional literacy activities
– Promoting cultural traditions
Effective ways to assess students’ early literacy
development:
– Keep a portfolio of students’ reading and writing work
– Formal screening, diagnostic, and progress monitoring assessments
Developmental descriptors for reading and writing:
– Follow student progress over time
– Documentation of performance to set goals and track
progress
Spelling can be assessed within four developmental stages:
- Prephonetic: letters or letter-like forms that do not
represent speech sounds (‘mll’ for ‘dog’)
– Phonetic: letters to represent speech sounds without conventional spelling (‘frum’ for ‘from’)
– Transitional: mix of phonetic and conventional spellings
– Conventional: spelling of almost all words is standard
integrated strategies:
Literacy events that require application of literacy skills, such as sight word knowledge
Key instructional strategies:
– Learning centers
– Classroom library and alphabet books
– Morning message
– Word wall dictionary
– Interactive read-alouds
– Language experience approach
– Dialogue journals
– Direct instruction in sight words, phonics, letter
patterns, and spelling
Effective vocabulary instruction occurs:
– When students actively participate
– When students monitor vocabulary understanding
– There are effective supports (e.g., scaffolding, cognates)
Students’ vocabulary knowledge encompasses:
– Receptive and productive vocabulary
– Oral and written vocabulary
Receptive oral vocab- speaking
productive oral vocab- listening
Receptive written vocab- reading
productive written vocab- writing
Three types of words students need to learn:
- High-frequency words: Occur most frequently in texts and conversations; are often function words; also called Tier 1 words
▪ E.g., the, said, of, and to—not usually selected for instruction - General academic words: Occur across different content areas; important for school success; also
called Tier 2 words
▪ E.g., analyze, summarize, examine, and endure— often the focus of instruction - Domain-specific, academic content-area words:
Occur within domains such as math, science, history, and literature; important for content-area success;
also called Tier 3 words
▪ E.g., molecule, integer, and protagonist—best
learned in specific content areas
Full vocabulary knowledge includes:
– Breadth: Knowing its varied uses and meanings in
different contexts
– Depth: Fully understanding the concept represented
Key guidelines for teaching vocabulary:
– prior knowledge
– Repetitions
– Opportunities for deep processing
– Engaging in use of new words
– Explicit instruction in strategies students use independently
▪ Help students develop word consciousness
During independent reading:
Match texts to:
▪ Students’ English language proficiency
▪ Students’ English reading ability
– Teachers can provide support for more difficult texts
To differentiate vocabulary assessment and instruction
for multilingual learners, consider:
– Age and grade
– English language proficiency
– Primary language proficiency
– Educational experiences, including potentially limited
or interrupted schooling
Characteristics of multilingual learners at beginning levels:
A basic understanding of English vocabulary
– Benefit from instruction in high-frequency words
- Effective instructional activities:
– Total Physical Response (TPR)
– Web tools
– Read-alouds
– Word cards
– Word wall dictionary
– Working with idioms
Characteristics of multilingual learners at intermediate
levels:
– Competent readers of many texts
– Knowledge of most of the first 2,000 English high-
frequency words
* Effective instructional activities:
– Word wheels
– Language wheels
– Vocabulary self-collection strategy
– Word wizard
