Overview of CKLA for PreK: Session 2 – Language Strategies

Sequence of Sessions

Overarching Objectives of this February 2013 Network Team Institute

This session is the first training for CKLA-PreK. At the conclusion of this session,

1.All participants will be able to accurately identify the instructional and support materials (e.g., cards, posters) required for implementation of Preschool CKLA.

2.Participants will be able to identify areas of the daily routine employed by CKLA-PreK.

a. Preschool educators will be able to identify adjustments / shifts that can be made to their current practices, routines, and schedules to support Preschool CKLA.

b. Administrators will consider additional program level shift that will support classroom educators as they make adjustments / shifts at the classroom level.

3.All participants will learn and practice language stimulation and support strategies to support high-quality adult-child interactions within implementation of Preschool CKLA.

High-Level Purpose of this Session

  • The purpose of this session is to orient partcipants to the CKLA-PreK materials, portions of the day, and best practices for implementation.

Related Learning Experiences

  • This is the first PD for the CKLA-PreK program. Participants can prepare for this session by viewing the CKLA-PreK Overview Webinar.

Session Outcomes

What do we want participants to be able to do as a result of this session? / How will we know that they are able to do this?
Session Objective(s): Teachers
  1. Participants will gain familiarity with the research-based support for a language rich preschool environment.
  2. Participants will be introduced to and gain experience using language stimulation and support techniques that support high-quality teacher-child interactions and can be integrated with the CKLA-PreKprogram.
  3. Participants will gain familiarity with language supports built into the CKLA-PreKprogram.
Session Description: Participants will become familiar with the key reasons for and elements of oral language support within CKLA. Participants will learn and practice a variety of Language Stimulation and Support Techniques. / In-session activities

Session Overview

Section / Time / Overview / Prepared Resources / Facilitator Preparation
Framing / 10 m / In this section, you will frame what we all do and take for granted to keep a conversation going. / LanguageStimulation&SupportStrategies.ppt
Language Stimulation and Support Strategies / 35 m / In this section, you will present and provide participants an opportunity to practice the comments, open questions, and expansion strategies. / LanguageStimulation&SupportStrategies.ppt
LanguageStimulation&SupportStrategies.zip
RolePlayCards.pdf
Additional Strategies / 10 m / In this section, you will quickly present a few additional strategies and direct participants to where they can find more about these. / LanguageStimulation&SupportStrategies.ppt

Session Roadmap

Section: / Time:
[10 minutes] In this section, you will frame what we all do and take for granted to keep a conversation going. / Materials used include:
LanguageStimulation&SupportStrategies.ppt
Time / Slide #/ Pic of Slide / Script/ Activity directions / GROUP

/ / Key Points:
  1. Select a partner and take 3 minutes to have a conversation about anything you like (e.g., the weather, the other person’s outfit, a movie you just saw, etc.).
  2. Allow partners to converse, then call time after 3 minutes.

/ / Key Points:
  1. Ask participants to raise their hands if…
•You were able to talk for 3 minutes.
•There were lulls in the conversation.
•You were able to get the conversation moving.
During the conversation:
•You asked a yes / no question.
•You asked an open question.
•You made a comment.
•You repeated or clarified what your partner said.
•You paused after questions.
•You added information from your own experience.
/ Key Points:
  1. Developing strong oral language skills is one of the most important goals of the early childhood period.
  2. Teachers play a direct role in students’ language development in preschool as they model sophisticated language and assist children who are developing language skills.
  3. Having a few “tools in the toolbox” will help educators take advantage of and create additional opportunities to support children’s developing language skills.
  4. Naming the techniques is not about memorizing strategies to use; rather, the purpose of giving name to them is so that we can discuss them.
  5. Many of you will already do some of these techniques. Our purpose in discussing them is to shed light on something you may already do subconsciously to consider how we can make these frequent and intentional supports.

Section: / Time:
[35 minutes] In this section, you will present and provide participants an opportunity to practice the comments, open questions, and expansion strategies. / Materials used include:
LanguageStimulation&SupportStrategies.ppt
LanguageStimulation&SupportStrategies.zip
RolePlayCards.PDF
Time / Slide #/ Pic of Slide / Script/ Activity directions / GROUP
/ Key Points:
  1. Comments provide:
•An effective conversation starter,
•An opportunity for the child to follow his/her own interests and excitement, and
•A low pressure opportunity for participation.
  1. Using comments provides children with an opening to initiate conversation and the freedom to talk about their own interests.
Microsoft Clip Art MP900439281
/ Key Points:
  1. Open Questions:
•Have a variety of possible answers,
•Support a sense of autonomy, inviting un-prescribed responses, and
•Require more expressive language.
  1. Do any of you have students who can’t answer open questions, perhaps at the beginning of the year?
  2. Remember, the strategies are meant to be used and combined based on your knowledge of your students.
shutterstock_1962235
/ Key Points:
  1. Expansion and Expansion Plus:
•Model language skills – just beyond child’s abilities,
•Maintain the idea of the child’s utterance, and
•With “plus,” help to further develop conceptual understanding.
  1. Expansion and expansion plus are especially effective for modeling new language for English Language Learners.
shutterstock_1997113
/ / Key Points:
You could put the teachers in groups of four or 7 - with two teachers on each role because they might need to talk with a partner:
Roles
Presenter - shares child's comment
Teachers - offer a comment or ask a question
1. Offers a comment to repeat and expand the comment
2. Ask and open ended question
3. Ask a clarifying question (just an idea)
Round=
1. Presenter takes a card and shares the child's comments,
2. Teachers ask questions and offer comments,
3. Presenter responds to just one question or comment.
(Repeat changing roles with each new card)
Section: / Time:
[10 minutes] In this section, you will quickly present a few additional strategies and direct participants to where they can find more about these. / Materials used include:
LanguageStimulation&SupportStrategies.ppt
Time / Slide #/ Pic of Slide / Script/ Activity directions / GROUP
/ Key Points:
  1. Using the self-talk strategy, effective teachers describe what they are doing, seeing, or hearing. Effective teachers use self-talk to model for children language and vocabulary that go with specific actions.
  2. Similarly, using the parallel talk strategy, effective teachers describe what children are doing. Effective teachers use parallel talk to model for children language and vocabulary that go with specific actions.
  3. There is no expectation that children respond. Through exposure to this language, children will build their own vocabularies.

/ Key Points:
  1. Similarly, using the parallel talk strategy, effective teachers describe what children are doing. Effective teachers use parallel talk to model for children language and vocabulary that go with specific actions.

/ Key Points:
  1. Children don’t always have the vocabulary for the names of objects around them. Effective teachers label objects in the children’s environment and images they may encounter during the day.
  2. Teachers use descriptive words to describe the attributes of those objects.
  3. We often use this technique during CKLA-PreK read-alouds.

/ Key Points:
  1. Using repetition, effectively model correct articulation, pronunciation, syntax, and grammar while acknowledging children’s communication attempts in a positive manner.
  2. Additionally, because some young children speak softly, repetition is a great technique to use in a whole group setting to ensure other children hear the message!
  3. There is no expectation that children respond to these four strategies. As you will see later today, exposure is important for helping children to build language and vocabulary.

/ / Key Points:
  1. Display the teacher doing a puzzle with the students. How might she self-talk or parallel talk?
  2. <Click> Display the child getting the puppet. How might the teacher label or parallel talk?
  3. <Click> Display the teacher writing with the boys. How might she label and describe or self-talk as she is writing?

/ Key Points
  1. Also included with CKLA-PreK are sets of transition cards.
  2. Transition Cards are content and skills-related materials that are used to provide learning opportunities as students move between activities.
  3. You can use the cards in a variety of ways to reinforce or assess content or vocabulary as you transition students from one activity to another.
  4. We will be using these cards (displayed on the PPT) to transition to our breaks during this workshop.

/ Key Points:
  1. If you are wearing this color, you may go to break.

/ Key Points:
  1. Raise your hand if you can tell me what color this is.
  2. Call on someone: What color is this?
  3. For efficiency during training, dismiss everyone who raised their hand.

/ Key Points:
  1. Does anyone know what these are?
  2. Call on someone: What are these? Can you tell me what color they are?
  3. Dismiss those who answered.

/ Key Points:
  1. My duckie can swim.
  2. He’s a smart little fellow.
  3. It’s time for break if you know his color is…
  4. Dismiss the remainder of the participants when they respond with, “yellow.”

Use the following icons in the script to indicate different learning modes.

Video / Reflect on a prompt / Active learning / Turn and talk

Turnkey Materials Provided

  • See handouts

Additional Suggested Resources

  • Prekindergarten ELA General Overview found on EngageNY