Interesting, part 2

it takes forever to transcribe a 6 minute conversation!)  But it is going well so far.  This project, although it has taken a different twist than what I thought I was going to be doing, is interesting!

Interesting...

I  was excited- to say the least that my student that I selected for this project spoke three languages- and has a very rich cultural background!  When I sat down with him last week to begin my part of Task 3 that had to be transcribed...  I was shocked to find that he is not fluent in L2 as I had been told he was.  I did leave the recorder going past one minute, hoping that he would begin to read at least a few words at some point.  I really am glad that I left it on- because he began giving me an extensive background of the Muslim religion!  Anyhow, I am excited about it now- and wound up with a LONG recording- (it takes forever to transcribe a  

Warning - mostly groans

I am completely overwhelmed by the amount of work required for this class and balancing it with the amount of work I have keeping my classroom up and running.  I feel like there aren't enough hours in the day to get all of anything done.  I feel like I'm just scraping by, especially at home.  Here it is, Sunday, and I've spent 12 hours working on either my lesson plans and grading, or working on Task 2.  I got to spend almost no time today with my husband or son, aside from just being in the same room with them.  I feel like I'm building the plane while I'm flying it (to borrow a phrase from a GCPS head honcho), and my plane is going down, fast!  May day!  May day!

On the somewhat up side, I did get my recording done, and I got a good start on Task 2 this morning.

Task 2 and Task 3

I am feeling so overwhelmed by the amount of things on my plate. However, I do feel better after having read Lisa's new email about Thursday nights class. I can't seem to find a quiet time during the day to get my students recording done. We have begun several times but always get interrupted. My children seem to be more demanding at this point in the school year than in years past. I may have to keep my little one with me during the first part of specials tomorrow to get a clear recording. To be honest about task 3 I haven't even looked at what all we need to have done. I do however know that I completed one part which I thought went in task 1 so that is now done for task 3. I just need more time in the day with work, toddler, normal household duties, homework for staff development classes, and lesson planning I feel I'm not putting my all into this class. To top it all on Wednesday night my home computer dumped it physical memory so I have to say I'm just a groaner  this week and don't have any glows.

Glows and Groans

I made a post earlier today glowing about my experience recording my student this week. We actually had fun! I used a flip camera and recorded him in the little room where our school does the announcements in the morning. He thought it was so cool! Made me smile to see him so excited.  I also said that I felt this past week’s task was helpful with giving me information for task 2.  My groan was that there just never seems to be enough hours in the day for everything: homework, “fabulous” lesson plans, RBES, FBA’s, SST’s, PLC’s, teaching, 2 young children and a husband at home…  My new groan is that I’m having to redo this post because when I went on again this afternoon to see if anyone commented, the one I typed this morning wasn’t there!

Trying not too be too much of a groaner but. . .

I guess my glow this week is that I love that so much of what we are learning in our class is so easy to put to work in my class. As we are bombarded with so much Common Core Best Practices in staff development, I find myself saying, “Cool! This goes right along with what I read about last night in my Linguistics book,” or “This ties in well with what we learned in class last week!” It just seems to come together so well. Now let me vent my groans. So much to do and not enough close to enough time! GTES conference this week that I am stressed about, reflections and Task 2, normal work for school -papers to grade, tests to create, lesson plans, and it goes on and on. Somewhere in there I am supposed to be a great mom and wife. Task 2 WILL get done, though.

Glows and Groan

I actually had some unplanned fun with my student this week when getting my recording. I  asked to borrow one of the school's flip cameras, and the media specialist set it up in the little room where they record the announcements each day. We even sat at the little table in front of the backdrop they use. My kindergartener thought that was the coolest thing! I did a running record with him, then recorded our conversation of the book at the end. We pretended that we were doing it on the announcements. When we finished, I let him watch it back. My student was so excited, it made my day! This past week's assignment, I think, was helpful in giving me information I can use with task 2 this week. My groan is the usual too much to do and not enough time to do it all... homework, "fabulous" lesson plans, RBES, FBA's, data for SST's, two small children and one husband!

I have transcribed my student's sample. Very interesting.  Think there may be something else going on. 
I had pulled some articles to use for references over Christmas.  Just have to pull it all together to get task 2 done.  I think the assingment due yesterday will help with both 2 and 3. 

I AM A GROANER!!

Overwhelmed to say the least! I am having trouble with transfering my knowledge from only observations in general education specials because I am a special education teacher in a self contained class with no ELL's. But not just my circumstances, but the load!  This weeks assignment really took the breath out of me because I thought I would be able to get work done this week on Task #2 but it took me most of the week to complete this weeks assignment and read the PDF material. Now I am STRESSING...

Update on Task Two and Three

I have to admit I am having a little trouble with this. I know I will get there, but am struggling right now. Trying to do all of this while our RBES is due and posting reading, writing and math has made for a stressful week. My sweet student really gets the quiet on when we talk. I have recorded once with just some conversation, but I think after tonight, I will pull out some pictures and we can talk about those. If I could only be a fly on the wall when she talks to her friends - in English - I could get lots! All the technical information has me frazzled and I will have to buckle down this weekend and really get on it. Hope you are all doing well on your assignments.

Kristin Neely- warning- this is mostly groans!

Not to be a Debby Downer, but I've had a crappy week!  My grandma passed away, my students were out of control, we had the reflection 4 due for this class (which I may or may not have understood completely), plus a ton of stuff going on at my school.  I'm very stressed!  I have done my recording and transcribing with my student, but hoping to work on the tasks when I get back in town from the funeral.  I hope that all of you are farther along than I am and can send some positive vibes my way. :)

Task #2 & #3 update - Ellis

Honestly, I don't feel like I have accomplished much with these assignments yet. I was overwhelmed with the work on the one we just completed for today. I have been able to record a conversation with my student and transcribe it. I have also found some resources comparing Japanese to English that will be helpful. I plan to start focusing on these tasks now and hope they aren't that difficult!

Task Two: How is it going?

Task Two:  The Impact of L1 on L2 Acquisition - Comparing and Contrasting L1 and L2

Post an update on your Task Two.  Let us know how it is going.  Tell us the positives and share any concerns.  Give us the glows and groans.  Then comment on three of your classmates'  Task Two postings.  Give them some feedback, advice, and support.

Better Late Than Never!

Kimberly Massie

Linguistics

Reflection #3

January 18, 2013

 

Review ~ What did you learn?

This chapter continued the debate between the learning and acquisition perspectives.  Those in the learning camp argue that parts of language can be taught in context or directly, and students will develop their skills through a variety of exercises.  The acquisition theorists feel that meaning is king, that students develop language control while learning to communicate.

The English language has approximately 39 phonemes, which are perceptual units.  Phonemes are not always pronounced the same way; the pronunciation depends on their position within a word and what sounds surround them.  Phonemes assimilate with their neighbors.  In the phrase “keep cool,” the /k/ phoneme is not pronounced the same for both words.  And while the /k/ phoneme has two allophones, there are six for /t/!  Depending upon where it is located within a given word, there are distinct pronunciation differences (top, pot, kitten, letter, train, stop).

Dialect, basically, is a variation of any given language.  They are marked by choices in pronunciation, vocabulary, and syntax.  It does not propose a problem if one subscribes to the acquisition view, but has potential issues for the word recognition camp.

Language differences have impact because there are phonological differences between languages and each language uses different sounds.  Problems can be minimized by focusing on making meaning.

Reflect ~ What did it mean to you?

I learned that it’s no wonder our EL students struggle so much with writing!  Very little in the English language is as it seems!  Imagine the frustration these students feel when trying to learn how to represent the long /a/ sound (hey/hay, ate/eight, made/maid, lay/lei, nay/neigh, wait/weight).  Our written language is a conundrum to native speakers/readers/writers, so I can only imagine it’s a complete nightmare for our EL students.

Reading this chapter made me realize how much harder I need to work to assist these students with their acquisition of writing skills.  I need to make sure that while I’m teaching strategies for spelling, those strategies are grounded firmly in meaning making.  If I ignore context I will be doing my EL students a huge disservice. 

Refine ~ How will you use the information in your classroom?

            This past week we were working on short /o/ word families, specifically –ob, -ot, -op and –ock.  We created anchor charts together and brainstormed where the words should go.  Here is an example of one of the charts:

Short /o/
-ot blot cot clot dot got hot jot knot lot not pot rot tot	Other caught haughty naught taught bought brought fought sought wrought squat yacht

As we added words to the chart, we talked about if they followed the –ot pattern, or belonged under the “other” spelling category.  We discussed the homophone partners, their meanings, and drew pictures next to the unknown/unfamiliar words to help construct meaning.  We talked about how many different ways we’d discovered for spelling this one sound.  The students decided that they needed to be careful when trying to write a word with the –ot sound, since we’d found at least 5 different spellings for it!

            On another day we worked on the –ob family.  Here is an example of what our chart looked like:

Short /o/
-ob blob Bob cob fob glob gobble hobby Hobby Lobby job knob lob lobby mob Rob/rob sob wobble	other Saab

We went through the same process as we had with the –ot anchor chart.  This time the children came to the conclusion that it would be a little easier to write words with the –ob sound, as it appears the spelling is almost always –ob.

            With any of our word family studies, the kids create their own visual representations of the words in their Word Study notebooks.  For unfamiliar words, I help by giving them context and examples.  We also discuss how some of the words we came up with aren’t necessarily ones they’ll need to use very often in their own writing (at least at this point – 1^st grade!).

Works Cited

Freeman, D. E., & Freeman, Y. S. (2004). Essential linguistics, what you need to know to teach reading, esl, spelling, phonics, and grammar. Portsmouth: Heinemann Educational Books.

Journal 3

Journal 3 Chapter 4 Implications from Phonology for Teaching Reading and Teaching a Second Language Margaret Byrne Review – What did I learn? In developing proficiency in a second language there are three linguistic factors that should be taken into account. The first is that English phonemes occur in variant forms called allophones. The second is that speakers from different dialect regions use different phonemes and the third is that phonemes vary across languages. Phonemes are sounds that make a difference in meaning in English. Phonemes are not always pronounced the same way. The phonemes in a sound reflect on tongue placement and how a sound is heard. Some sounds in different words have different placement of the tongue. The author talks about saying “keep cool”. The same K sound is heard but it has different tongue placement due to the other sounds in the words. The phonemes have lots to do with the other sounds around it. Try it, say keep cool. The letter “t” has six variations which involve physical differences due to where the letter is placed in a word and which phonemes are around it. Phonemes can be very complex. Dialect differences can be regional or social or both. People in different parts of a country speak differently but even one geographical area can speak differently. The social classes within an area can also speak differently. In learning or acquiring a second language students will generally acquire the dialect of their teachers. Many different dialects rely not only sounds but on the context. Dialect can mean deletion of some sounds or substitutions of sounds. The differences in languages and how phonemes and sounds are used and heard can make it more difficult to learn a second language. Sometimes two sounds may seem the same to an ELL when they are really different. Different languages may have different phonemes for a letter. This can make it difficult when learning a new language. Reflect – What did it mean to me? This chapter was difficult for me. While reading it, I was continually brought back to conversations I have had with our SLP’s at school. When I have a student in kindergarten who I have questions about their speech and I talk to an SLP, we seem to go into conversation about tongue placement and how sounds are heard and what the children hear. In reality, I guess this is very much the same for an English language learner. When I listen to people who may be speaking in their native language, you hear some languages which seem more guttural than others or have a lilt to them. This chapter helped me realize that is all in the phonemes and variations of phonemes in their language. It is really fascinating when I thought about it. I grew up in Chicago, moved to New England after I was married and then to Georgia fifteen years ago – wow, talk about different dialects! That part of the chapter was spot on in what I have personally learned over the years. This chapter also helped me to realize that as a classroom teacher with ELL students I need to give more care and attention to these students and help them in trying to solve the riddle of phonemes. I am drawn again to the use of visuals and trying to find good pictures which may help them learn vocabulary easier. I feel even using pictures almost as flash cards could be a help to these students who are having a more difficult time with their language acquisition. Refine – How will I use the information in my classroom? After class last week I came back to school and grabbed one of our SLP’s for some conversation. Our discussions in class were very interesting about how sounds and phonemes are made and it got me thinking about all of this with our ELL learners. I was interested in the speech aspect of it also and how do we help these babies. The SLP I talked to is fabulous. She can talk about all this tongue placement and how sounds are made and where they are made and make it easy to understand. We also talked about all of in relationship to our ELL students. She reminded me about dialect and just like the differences in the United States don’t forget about the dialect differences in Spanish. Different countries, different dialects – the same language! I have noticed that but did not put much thought into it. I thought about the differences that I hear between my children whose families are from Mexico in relationship to those who are from South America. I am pulling back to literature again. Right now we are doing a unit on winter and I have so many books about it, both fiction and non-fiction. Showing all of these babies lots of pictures and letting them hear stories about snow and ice is fun but also a learning experience because even here in Georgia we do not experience it. I am trying to find some different books which may have some words in them which will show that dialect difference. Off to the Media Center for me. One of the ideas which we talked about in class which I am anxious to try is where you fold up the paper and write one word in the middle and have the children draw a picture or write a word in each section to go along with the main word. I think this can be a great activity for my students. Doing some work with them one word at a time should really help with sound formation and making sure they are hearing and saying the sounds correctly. I still feel one of the best things to do with my ELL students is to talk to them and listen to them when they do feel like talking. Hopefully building their confidence can help them be more successful learners.

Jennifer Worley Journal Reflection 3

Review – What did you learn?

            This chapter was full of information that was new to me. Each section had me thinking about the way I speak, the way my students speak, and especially the way my three year old daughter speaks. Some important information that I extracted from the chapter:

Allophones

The English language consists of approximately thirty-nine phonemes. Each phoneme is made up of several sounds called phones. The phones that make up a specific phoneme are called its allophones. Phonemes can make different sounds depending on where they are in a word (D.E. Freeman & Y.S. Freeman, 2004).  This is because of a process called assimilation, which occurs when the brain tells the vocal tract to prepare for the next sound before it has even made the first sound.  The Acquisition View proposes that teachers should focus on making meaning with language, and students will acquire the phonemes as they try to make meaning. On the other hand, the Learning Perspective promotes dividing up language learning into the individual parts, and teaching them, such as letters and sounds before making words and sentences.

Allophones of /t/

            There are six different /t/ allophones. They are all dependent on their location in the word and their neighboring phonemes. In order to pronounce these different sounds, the tongue moves to different areas of the vocal tract, and air is either being blocked, partially blocked, or aspirated, all pronouncing different sounds. All of these distinctions can cause some real confusion for an EL.

Dialect Differences

            Dialectical differences can be problematic for students learning language through a Word Recognition View or Learning Perspective. When a teacher is expecting students to identify the vowel sounds in words, for example, a southern child may have difficulty with the words pen and pin. In the south, people distinguish between these two words based on how they are used (D.E. Freeman & Y.S. Freeman, 2004). From an Acquisition View, students taught content will acquire language. These students will acquire the dialect of their teachers, classmates, and other English-Speakers whom which they spend time.

Language Differences

            Another challenge that ELs may have to overcome is that their first language and English probably have differences in phonemes. Students who are learning English while learning content are able to use their schema for the topic, along with syntactic and semantic cues to assist them with words in order to make meaning. In contrast, students who are in classes dedicated specifically to language learning are often completing isolated word tasks. Without the ability to crosscheck all of the cue sources, especially using picture clues, these students may be unable to identify words. This challenge extends into oral and written language. For example, in Spanish the English word that is pronounced dat because there is no distinction in Spanish between the th sound or d sound. Students may have difficulty reading the word and writing it correctly.

Additional Concerns

            Although there may be value in phonemic awareness activities, caution should be taken to make sure that teachers are not spending so much time doing these activities that they are not allowing students to participate in other reading experiences of value. Also, use of nonsense words to teach sounds in words should be limited because often children do not realize they are nonsense words, and this can be very confusing to them. From an Acquisition View, authentic reading activities promote language acquisition, not isolated language activities.

Reflect   - What did it mean to you?

             The main idea that I took away from this chapter is that although learning the different aspects of language, such as phonology and semantics, is important, this knowledge is best acquired through the process of making meaning. I’m not sure what that means to our Word Study and Grammar lessons. If this way of acquiring language is effective for ELs, shouldn’t it be a practice in all classrooms for all students? In the primary grades specifically, aren’t all students trying to acquire the English language?

Also, it’s obvious to me that the English language is possibly the most complex language in the world. The differences between English and other languages, particularly Spanish, for my Case Study brought to my mind that special lessons must occur to explain the differences so that my students can overcome these challenges.

Refine – How will you use the information in your classroom?

·         Word Study activities using authentic texts – poetry, mentor sentences, books during Guided Reading, Read Aloud book

·         Grammar lessons using mentor sentences and content-related texts

·         Being aware of the language differences between English and my ELs first languages, and using Small Group Time to teach how it all works in English – Use Cuisenaire rods with Listening, Listening Discrimination, Repetition, Transformation, Guided/Independent Practice.

*This week I used the acrostic poem activity in my class. Our topic was the sun. The children read through books about the sun with partners, I read a book about the sun to them, and we created a “Word Forms” chart for words we collected from the books. Then, we brainstormed “Sun” words and phrases using the letters n, s, and u, and used both charts to write an acrostic poem together called “SUN”. Next, I gave them partners and instructed them to create acrostic poems about the sun and illustrate. For the first time doing it, it went pretty well. I would have liked to have seen a little more variety in their poems, but I think the next time they’ll be familiar with the activity, and will do better. I told them that next time they would have to write the poem by themselves.

References

Freeman, D. E., &. Freeman Y.S.(2004). Essential Linguistics: What you need to know to teach reading, ESL, spelling, phonics, and grammar. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Thank you

I have read over your postings and your email cries for help.  I really appreciate all you have done tonight.  I realize that with technology, things happen.  And those "things" are not always the "things" we want to happen.  Just know that I understand. All I ask is that you do your best.  Please remember to email me your reflection so I can grade it for you.

I will email you the article and assignment for next week. 

apeevy_journal3

apeevy_journal3

Chapter 4

Review- What did I learn?

Chapter 4 discusses the importance of phonological knowledge in learning to read.  It further explores various theories supporting this idea.  Phonemic awareness is crucial to word recognition, according to the word recognition view of reading.  Phonemic awareness is the ability to use the sounds that make up sounds in oral language; however phonemic awareness fits under the much broader umbrella of phonological awareness- which is the ability to distinguish larger units, such as words. 

There are two views of phonemic awareness:  the word recognition view, and the sociopsycholinguistic view.  In the word recognition view, it is believed that the ability to perceive and manipulate sounds that make up words is the meaning of phonemic awareness.  But to sociopsycholinguistics; phonemic awareness is said to be subconscious, it is thought to be a natural part of oral language development.  There has been a great deal of research done to support both of these views.

Just as there are phonological factors that influence your view of reading and second language teaching; there are factors from linguistics that educators must consider when deciding which of these views they believe in.  The three linguistic factors that have influence are that phonemes occur in allophones; phonemes vary with dialect regions; and phonemes vary across languages.

There are about 39 phonemes or groups of sounds in the English language.  Phonemes are groups of sounds that are known as allophones.  The pronunciation of phonemes varies with the placement of the phoneme in a word:  initial placement, medial placement, or final placement.  A phoneme with many variants is /t/.  Depending on which word you are pronouncing, the /t/ is pronounced differently.  These differences involve physical differences. 

Any speaker of a language is said to speak dialect of that language.  Dialects are sometimes regional; sometimes social; and sometimes they are both. The sociopsycholinguistic view does not see dialects as a problem when learning to read.  However; if given a test of phonemic awareness, ELLs may have some difficulties due to differences in phonemes based on dialect.   Often, ELLs have developed the phonology of their L1- and that knowledge may influence how they hear and pronounce certain sounds in the English language (pen vs. pin, caught vs. cot)          

The last factor that should be remembered is that phonemes vary among languages.   There are like sounds in the English language that are formed from different letters.      Examples of this include:  den/ then, breed/ breathe, chair/ share, and t- shirt/ teacher.      A Spanish speaker does not usually have a problem with this as far as meaning is concerned; however when pronunciation or spelling is concerned, it is usually an issue.                                                           

Reflect- What did it mean to you?

I have, while teaching been able to hear the small parts of speech that make up words, and now I understand that they are allophones and play an important part in speech.

I was surprised to learn about all of the allophones of t- I had never really thought about them, although I do hear them!  I find it easier to understand how that can really affect a person’s speech if they have difficulty with the t sound in the English language, although when learning the English language, this chapter states that phonics should not always be the area of emphasis.  I really put the emphasis on a child writing whatever sounds they hear- even if the spelling is not correct. 

I try to constantly stress phonemic awareness, because I believe that that is extremely important for all in my class (I have 17 ESOL students).  We have writers workshop and guided reading, as well as integrating various phonemic activities through math, technology, social studies, and science. 

Refine- How will I use this information with my students?

Just as I emphasize to my students writing the sounds that they hear in a word, I realize that they may not get the correct spelling with this.  I do think the new spelling program that Gwinnett adopted last year will wind up being very beneficial to students (even though it has not been met with too many oohs and ahhs!)  because this spelling program exposes children to the spelling patterns, just as in the early years of school children are being exposed to the consonant sounds that they hear.

Through this class, I learned many new activities that I will use in my class, I will continue to play the “I have, who has?” game, and the “making words” game- although the Scrabble twist on that game is one that I currently do not use, I can’t wait to try it!  I also want to try the Headbanz game.

I also use PebbleGo readers with my ESOL students- they are texts that are very low level- and they are available through eClass.  They allow a student to sit at a computer while the text is read to them, highlighting the words as they are read, and offering meanings of any unknown words.  These readers are very easy to follow.

RWatson - Journal 3 - Chapter 4

1. Review – What did I learn?

            Phonology is the study of how sounds are organized and used in language.  It is very complex and includes many topics that I have never heard of or thought about.  I am not saying that I don’t find the subject interesting but I do find that it is a bit overwhelming.  I believe that it is one of those subjects that you just have to digest a little at a time and not expect to grasp all at once.

            While phonology as a science is the focus of the author on one level, the author also strives to make the reader more informed when it comes to the two major philosophies associated with learning a second language: sociopsycholinguistic and word recognition. This theme is not new to this chapter but the knowledge gained from the study of phonology can help as we decide which model will work best in our own situation.

            Because phonology is so technical, I appreciate the fact that we zoomed in on same main ideas in class last Thursday.  There is an immense amount of information and knowledge regarding phonology and as a result of our group effort I have a better understanding of phonemes, allophones, dialect, language building and phonemic awareness. The following list includes some of the ideas that were summarized by the wonderful and articulate members of our Thursday class:

Allophones

·         A phoneme is the smallest unit of speech distinguishing one word from another

·         Phonemes are not always pronounced in the same way

·         Phonemes assimilate to neighboring sounds

·         Allophones are the sounds that make up a phoneme

Dialects

·         Dialects are variations in language, marked by certain ways of pronouncing words

·         Dialects are variations in particular choices of vocabulary and syntax

·         ELL’s have already developed the phonology of one language and that knowledge may influence their perception of English sounds

 

Language Building

·         English includes the same sounds from different languages

·         English has different meanings for the same sounds

·         A Hispanic student might not distinguish the difference between the d and the t sound

·         Teachers should focus on meaning and not spelling

Additional concerns about phonemic awareness

·         Teach in context – word recognition view

·         Use sounds, poems, rhymes, language games

·         Do not teach in isolation

 

2. Reflect – What did it mean to me?

I think the authors make a good case for focusing instruction on meaning construction.  Both sides of each philosophy are always presented but the research seems to favor the sociopsycholinguistic model over the word recognition view.  The word recognition view seems to be the more traditional approach and the language acquisition philosophy appears to be more research based.   If I were to make a prediction, I think that public education will slowly but steadily adopt the sociopsycholinguistic model and the word recognition view will fade in popularity.

As I said before, I am overwhelmed by the size and scope of phonology as a science.  As a math teacher, I have very little understanding or formal education in this field.  That being said, I do find the ideas very interesting and potentially useful.  My hope is to understand a few of the ideas that have been presented and use them to become a better teacher.  At the very least, I have a heightened awareness of the challenges that a second language learner has in my classroom.  Not only must a student learn a second language for everyday use, they must also learn academic language and at the same time overcome the barriers that different phonologies present.

 

3. Refine – How will I use the information in my classroom?

            I certainly buy into the idea that teaching vocabulary in context is important.  The author’s statement on page 92, “The potential problems caused by differences between languages are minimized when the focus of instruction is on meaning construction” makes sense.  By teaching vocabulary within a context students are able to tap into background knowledge which can provide cues that help overcome other phonological issues. I really want to pay special attention at the beginning of each unit when introducing new vocabulary My hope is that I will consistently present the words in some sort of context rather than in an isolated fashion. 

 

            I think that metaphors also build context.  For example, when I was teaching the idea of "mean" or "average" I presented the class with similar words that captured the same meaning of being in the center.  I included words such as: brain, heart, Washington DC, nucleus, peach pit, eye of a hurricane. I used as many examples as I could because I felt like at least a few of those examples would be familiar to most students.

           In addition to strategies I think I can benefit by just being more sensitive to language acquisition challenges. My hope is to teach with a heightened awareness to the difficulties of learning vocabulary.  When I see students struggling with new words, I will be more likely to question my own methods, to locate weaknesses and to choose a more effective approach.

References.

 

Freeman, D & Freeman, Y. (2004). Developing Multicultural Educators.  Portsmouth, NH:  Heinemann.

C. Evans-Linguistics Journal 3, Chapter 4

Review – What did you learn?

            This week’s section compares the beliefs of two methods of teaching reading and second language acquisition: the learning perspective and the acquisition perspective. The first method, the learning perspective, breaks language down into its basic components and students are taught through exercises emphasizing phonology. Once they’ve mastered these basic rules, then they can understand written or second language. The second method, the acquisition perspective, focuses on constructing meaning when learning to communicate through writing or a second language because it is believed that the phonology of a language is too complex to break down and try to teach as individual skills. Instead, students acquire phonology skills subconsciously while they are focusing on trying to communicate.

            Three linguistic insights were then provided to aid in the comparison of the above perspectives. The first insight discussed referred to allophones. There are approximately 39 phonemes, or sounds that create a difference in meaning, in the English language. “The phones that make up one phoneme are called its allophones (“all the phones”)” (Freeman & Freeman, 2004). Some phonemes, such as /k/ and /t/, can have several allophones depending on the sounds that come before and after them. These variations can make it difficult to learn phonetics in isolation.

            The second insight discussed referred to dialectal differences. Within any language there are variations in pronunciation, vocabulary, and syntax depending on factors such as the social background of the speaker and what region the speaker comes from. When teaching a language phonetically, these variations must be taken into account. For example, two words that may sound like homonyms to one person could sound very different to someone else who speaks the same language.

            The third insight given dealt with the many phonological differences between languages. The English language may have certain phonetic sounds that are the same as those of another language, but other phonemes may be different. This can be a problem for learners who already have phonemic awareness in one language. They may not be able to perceive the differences in sounds within the new language, especially if the words are presented in isolation and not in context.

            Finally, the authors brought up the point that often in schools so much time is spent teaching phonemic awareness that there ends up being little time left for authentic reading activities. From a sociopsycholinguistic point of view, it is the authentic experiences that allow for written and second language acquisition.

Reflect – What did it mean to you?

            This part of linguistics fascinates me. I have always enjoyed playing around with words and how they are pronounced. I was born in Connecticut, and most of my New England relatives have the accent described in the chapter where they drop the /r/ at the end of words like “car,” or add it to the ends of words like “soda.” When I was eight, my family moved to rural south Georgia. Aside from being a culture shock, it was a real language shock as well. I could relate to the section in the chapter that described second language learners complaining that native speakers often speak too fast. It wasn’t that my new neighbors were speaking too fast (even though it seemed like it), I just couldn’t keep up with what they were saying because it sounded so different from what I was used to. My family had to learn a lot of new vocabulary and pronunciations before we felt like we fit in, but by the time I graduated from high school, I could speak southern like a native!

            I had never heard of allophones before reading this chapter and while I knew that some letters, like vowels and the letters “c” and “g” make multiple sounds, I never realized or really thought about how many different sounds so many other letters can make. This section, in particular, was a real eye opener for me when I began to think about my kindergartners just learning how to write and my EL students who are trying to figure out what all these letters in words are supposed to sound like. With so many allophones in the English language, it’s a wonder any of us figure it out.

            In comparing the two methods of teaching reading and second language acquisition, I think I tend to lean more toward the acquisition or sociopsycholinguistic model. With so many phonetic variations to consider in the English language, we cannot expect a student to learn to read or speak the language by teaching phonemes in isolation. I think there needs to be a balance between authentic reading and writing experiences with phonetic instruction in the mix.    

Refine: How will you use the information in your classroom?

            I think at my school, we do a pretty good job of providing students with this good balance between phonetic instruction and meaningful literacy experiences through the reading and writing workshop model. The majority of time in both blocks is spent by the students doing independent reading and writing activities. A smaller portion of time is spent on “word work” when students might be playing word family games, making words with magnetic letters, or practicing sight words.

            I also like to use poetry to teach a number of skills. My kindergartners have a poetry notebook to which we add a new poem each week. We begin the week by reading and enjoying the poem together and discussing any new vocabulary. The next day the students actually add the poem to their notebook, and I have them do some sort of response activity. Right now we are learning about vowels, so we might look and listen for certain vowel sounds in the poem on another day. Each lesson is only about 10 or 15 minutes, but by the end of the week, the students can all read the poem, including my EL's and struggling readers and they love sharing what they’ve learned and can do with their 2^nd grade book buddies.

            I think the most important element that I am going to take from this week’s reading and use in my classroom is more consideration for the number of allophones there are in the words we use, and how difficult this can make learning for my EL's and my young students just beginning to read and write.

References

Freeman, D. E., & Freeman, Y. S. (2004). Essential linguistics, what you need to know to teach     reading, ESL, spelling, phonics, and grammar. Portsmouth: Heinemann Educational         Books.