Connecting the Dots: Oral Language Blog Posts

What Does Good Listening Look Like? // April 28, 2012

Students often hear the command listen. Listen for what? If I listened but don’t understand what I heard, what should I do? What if I disagree with what I heard, what could I say? What if I agree but have another idea or would like to add on to what was said? I think these were the questions I never thought my students who were listening might have much less support those who seem to not know how to pay attention. Read more...

Generating Norms // April 15, 2012

“Central to developing classroom contexts where rich oral language development occurs, is the establishment of a norm that promotes listening.”  (Mason & Gallaway, IRA, Reading Today Feb/Mar 2012) If I’m going to teach students how to have a conversation, which involves listening and speaking, the classroom rules did not suffice to support behavior management. Read more...