Focus on LANGUAGE in kindergarten and pre-K

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Should we really worry about reading in kindergarten and pre-K?  I feel so strongly that we need to focus on language at that level…and on social communication skills.  The Alliance for Childhood and Defending the Early Years put out a marvelous call for action that we all should read.  Please refer to. https://deyproject.files.wordpress.com/2015/01/readinginkindergarten_online-1.pdf

Remember Robert Fulghum’s  “all I needed to know I learned in kindergarten”?

1. Share everything.
2. Play fair.
3. Don’t hit people.
4. Put thngs back where you found them.
5. CLEAN UP YOUR OWN MESS…. and so on. If you don’t remember this, you should read the whole list.

Robert Fulghum, All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten

Should we really worry about reading about farms and animals and plants and trees when many children have not experienced these things first hand or have the vocabulary with which to express these concepts?

Play-based education is support by years of research.  The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) were developed with no appreciation of developmental readiness. In fact, I was shocked to learn that there were NO early-childhood professionals or K-3 teachers on the committee that developed the CCSS. In preschool and in kindergarten, we need to focus on developing ORAL language as a pre-cursor for written language.  The article also tells us that by the end of third grade, early readers have no advantage over later readers.

In fact, teaching reading too early can result in stress and in dis-engagement from learning. “When children have educational experiences that are not geared to their developmental level or in tune with their learning needs and cultures, it can cause them great harm, including feelings of inadequacy, anxiety and confusion.”

Push back!  Advocate for age-appropriate learning experiences.  I would love to hear from reading professionals about this.  My bias is language development.  Please share your opinion and your expertise!

 

Word Finding Cue for Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. vocabulary

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Remember to teach word finding cues before your students need to retrieve the words in their classrooms or in conversations with their friends.  Teach phonological cues to help kids remember tough multi-syllable words like “discriminate.”   I used a picture of a CD (“disc”) and an arrow pointing to the “rim,”  followed by the digit 8. ” disc/rim/8″.  Reinforce all 4 syllables and help your student “use the easy words to remember the hard word.”  Refer back to my post of November 4 to read about the entire process.

This is a good time to remember that vocabulary that is familiar to us as adults may not be the vocabulary that is most familiar to our students.  I was taken aback by a comment made by one of my 4th graders when I presented a lesson on Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  The story told about Dr. King and his followers. To me that was perfectly clear.  But my young friend exclaimed, “I didn’t know they had Twitter then.”  Huh?  Then I realized “followers” had a different meaning to her than it did to me.  A quick mini-vocabulary lesson on “followers” got us back on track.  Likewise, when I first used the “disc” cue, I was talking about floppy discs.  Vocabulary changes!!

And for anyone with a state inauguration this week, here’s a cue for “inaugurate.”

 

discriminate

Speech Room News offers an amazing resource

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Do you follow “Speech Room News”?  Jenna Rayburn is an amazing SLP who posts great content.  She published a very comprehensive list of speech path websites and blogs in a recent post: http://thespeechroomnews.com/slp-blog-resource-list.  Be sure to check it out!

I’ve mentioned a number of times that one thing I love about the field of speech/language pathology is the willingness of professionals to share ideas.   Jenna’s blog  is a wonderful resource.  Thank you, Jenna!

 

 

Nonverbal signs of retrieval difficulties

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Word finding, word retrieval, expressive language difficulties.  Whatever you call it, it’s  time to WARM UP our ideas about word finding therapy.  Brrr!  The wind chill is 30 below in the Midwest, schools are cancelled, and my furnace is running nonstop.  Good day to stay inside and blog!

When we talk about word finding difficulties, we think of the kids who say, “Um, uh, uh” or “I know what it is, but I can’t think of it.”  But what are some of the nonverbal behaviors we see in our students with retrieval problems?

Facial expressions and body language can offer clues about what a child is experiencing.  Watch for snapping/tapping fingers, pounding a fist on his thigh, looking up at the ceiling, or squeezing his eyes shut.  One of my students used to always bite her lip when she was stuck on a word.  Sometimes kids will act out an action or activity, like gesturing to shoot an arrow or pound a hammer.  So don’t always focus on what you are hearing.  Also pay attention to what you are seeing.

 

A quick recap of word retrieval ideas

One of my readers asked for a quick review of my posts from the last couple of months.  So this is for you!  Tired of trying to remember to check back on this blog?  Please subscribe to email alerts, and you will get a notice of new posts (“Subscribe” in the right hand column).  Look at old posts and scroll through them in chronological order for more detailed info.

In A Nutshell Graphic

1.  Assess carefully!  Use the Test of Word Finding – 3, Test of Word Finding in Discourse (both by Dr. Diane German), and my word finding observation checklists (see the Resource and Materials page) to look at BOTH word retrieval in single words and word finding in conversational speech.  A child may be able to respond promptly and accurately when asked for single words but have a great deal of difficulty expressing herself in the classroom or in conversation.  Both are important.  Be sure to get input from teachers, parents, and (when age-appropriate) the child herself.  Trust your instincts! For more info, look at posts published on October, 14, 20, and 21.

2.  Work on AWARENESS.  Your students need to understand WHY they are in speech/language therapy and WHY it will help them communicate better.  By extension, that will also help them get better grades in school.  PARENTS and TEACHERS need to be onboard. Posts on October 2 and 6 focused on awareness.

3.  Your careful assessment should give you excellent information about the types of strategies that will work best for each individual child.  I strongly believe in phonemic mnemonic cues, as described in my post of November 4 (“using an easy word to remember a hard word”), but your students also need strategies to deal with those unanticipated  blips in a conversation.  Give them the confidence to ask their conversation partner for help :

For example “I know what it is, but I’m stuck on the word.  What do you call those things that you use in P.E. class that you hand off  during a relay race?” or “It’s on the tip of my tongue.  What’s the word for the disease when you cough a lot and have trouble      catching your breath?”  Teach them to describe objects and events succinctly.

Does the student need to slow down and respond more accurately?  Or does she need to practice responding more quickly?  Does hearing the beginning sound help trigger the target word?

Teach a variety of strategies and help your students become aware of which help them the most.  The acronym FAVOR-C and “Silly Sally Always Draws Fuzzy Pandas” are 2 ways to help them remember several ways to help themselves retrieve words. Posts during November suggested a variety of strategies.

4.  Self-advocacy is the next step.  I haven’t posted much about this yet. But a well-informed and confident student can learn how to advocate for himself or herself with teachers, coaches, friends, and family members.

I would love to hear from you!  Please share your successes in dealing with children with word finding difficulties.  We all benefit when we share ideas.

 

 

Word retrieval during January’s snows

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If you work in the schools, your word retrieval therapy will probably get rolling again Monday morning. Here’s a “building a snowman” dialog to get you started.  Depending on the age of your students, you can demonstrate it for them, video older students acting it out, or have them read it themselves.  Working on awareness? Have them identify the retrieval problems they notice. Working on strategies?  Have them identify how they could help themselves come up with the word.  Kids love to watch themselves on video.  Record their own “presentation,” then ask them to analyze it

Dan: Hey, Sara! It snowed last night! Do you want to make a scarecrow?

Sara: A scarecrow? How do we make a scarecrow in the snow?

Dan: Oh, you know…one of those thingies…

Sara: Thingies?

Dan: Yeah, those thingies with the 3 white balls…

Sara: Do you mean a snowman?

Dan: Oh, of course,   a SNOWMAN! We can roll the balls in the snow, then add a face with whatchamacallit…the black stuff from                   the barbecue grill.

Sara: You mean charcoal?

Dan: Yeah, charcoal! And for the nose, we can use one of those green, I mean orange, vegetables…not lettuce, they’re called uh, uh, uh, you know, the long pointie things that rabbits eat.

Sara: Do you mean carrots?

Dan: Carrots! We can make a face with charcoal and carrots, and put a mitten around his neck.

Sara: I don’t think you mean a mitten. Do you mean a scarf?

Dan: Of course, a scarf! We can borrow one from my dad, I mean, my mom.

Sara: Before we go outside, though, let’s really bundle up! It’s really cold out.

Jan: Good idea.   First, I’ll put on my …those warm pants that keep you dry in the snow…

Sara: Snowpants?

Dan: Yeah, snowpants. And I’ll zip up my coat, I mean, jacket, then put on my hat and scarf, and last of all, I’ll put on my gloves,           er,  mittens.

Sara: I’m glad you’ll dress warmly. We’ll have fun making our scarecrow…I mean, snowman.

 

 

 

 

The Snowman

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Thanks to the Huffington Post for posting the beautiful video of “The Snowman.”    You may need to copy/paste the link.  It will be worth the effort.

Use this great video to elicit excellent language.  And what a lesson in nonverbal communication!  Use it to point out facial expressions and gestures.  For word finders, make a note of any words that are difficult to retrieve.   Then ask for a “word finding 5”: Have your child say the word 5 times, ask him to create an original sentence using the word, then earn a “high 5.”

 

For parents: Language disabilities don’t take winter break!

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Expressive language problems like word finding don’t go on vacation.  Are you on winter break?  I certainly have been!  Decorating, cards, gifts, family in town, parties….who has time to blog?  But that’s my point – kids who have difficulty retrieving words don’t get a break.  They continue to struggle to express themselves regardless of the calendar.

The break they do get is from the curriculum.  Most of the vocabulary children use when they are home and away from school is familiar and frequently used. Remember that the two things that impact retrieval most are frequency of use and recency of use.  Therefore, they may not experience as much frustration finding the words they need when they are home and participating in routine activities.   But help them prepare for the social situations that are so much a part of the holidays.

Parents can help their children by priming them in advance with the language they need.   Try to have them use the names of aunts, uncles, and cousins they only see a few times each year.  Perhaps New Year’s Eve will present them with experiences like watching the crystal ball drop (maybe on TV) and the Rose Bowl parade.  Does your family make New Year’s resolutions?  If you are lucky enough to be taking a family vacation, anticipate the specific vocabulary they will be using. Using these words in a conversation will help your child retrieve them when they are needed.  Create a context which will elicit those specific vocabulary words.  It’s not enough to understand their meaning.  A child also needs to practice saying them aloud.

Holiday time is family time.  Enjoy communicating with your children about their experiences!

 

 

 

 

mnemonic cue for “resolution”

Teach a word finding cue for “resolution” today!resolution

 

Before you know it, winter break will be upon us and you won’t see your school-based speech kids until after the New Year. “Resolution” is a tough word for many word finders to retrieve.  Associate “res” with “red,” and “sol” with “sold” or “salt.”  The tiny picture in the upper right shows “red salt.”  Use whichever cue is more meaningful to your students.

Make the syllables explicit.  Tap or clap them out.  Remind the kids to think the cue but say the target word aloud.  Say the word 5 times, use it in a sentence, and get a high 5.  For a review of Dr. Diane German’s 5-step process, please scroll down to my post of November 4.

Multi-sensory input to promote word retrieval

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As I sat watching the heart-warming Christmas pageant presented at our church this morning, I was struck by the example it was providing in support of using multi-sensory input to promote word retrieval.

The 3 to 10 year olds inadvertently provided me with today’s post.  With apologies to Rodgers and Hammerstein, they presented”The Sound of Christmas.”  As “Maria” told the children about her favorite things and they all sang the Do Re Mi of Christmas,  it was apparent that remembering lines of dialog was tough.  Remembering words of songs with their rhythm and rhyme was easier.  Easiest yet was remembering the words of songs that were accompanied by gestures. When they acted out “The Lonely Goatherd,” they could belt out the words.  The kids may not rival The Von Trapp family singers, but they were certainly entertaining!

If someone asks you to name the notes of the scale, don’t you sub-consciously sing “Do Re Mi”?  And how many 5 year olds recite “elemenooopee” in the middle of the alphabet?  Think of the language concepts preschoolers learn with fingerplays and gestures.  Use songs and gestures to promote new vocabulary and retrieval.  Make up your own words to familiar tunes.  It’s fun and effective!