"Reading and writing are complex processes that grow from oral language and are built on listening and speaking" (Cooper, 2012). Being able to read and write hinges on one's ability to identify and manipulate the sounds and letters of a language. The English language consists of 26 letters, 44 sounds, and 98 representations of these sounds. In order for one to read a text or create their own text, one must be knowledgeable on several aspects of the language including: phonological awareness, letter/sound segmentation and blending, knowledge of syllables, spelling patterns, grammar, sentence structure and syntax, as well as being able to coherently organize one's thoughts into words (Birsh, 2011, Savage, 1998, Cooper 2012).
Oral language (speaking and listening) is hard wired into our brain; it's instinctual, natural. On the other hand, written language (reading and writing) has to be acquired through instruction. We have to be taught how to read and write (Birsh, 2011). Children do not learn language passively; they actually construct, or reconstruct, language as they learn. Children build underlying rules as they figure out how language, any language, works. They aren't simply repeating what they hear (Freeman, 2004). According to Noam Chomsky, a leading American linguist, humans have an innate capacity for language. This innate knowledge allows children to understand and produce sentences, but it doesn't allow them to explain how they do it (Freeman, 2004).
Certain literacy skills, such as phonemic awareness, phonics, alphabetic principles, concepts of print, vocabulary development, fluency, and comprehension, provide a foundation from which learning can be built. Similarly to a structural foundation, if a literacy foundation is weak, the learning structure will surely crumble and fall. However, if the literacy foundation is solid and complete, the possibilities for this learning structure are endless.
Megan, I especially connected with your final paragraph... many ELL's come into our classrooms with gaps in these certain basic literacy skills.
ReplyDeleteAre these learning gaps being addressed effectively in your school?
I believe we are trying to address and fill in these gaps. I am currently part of a committee trying to streamline our literacy interventions (with assessments and progress monitoring tools) with our current resources in the building. We are also looking at language interventions for our ELLs.
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