Transcript Language Rich Learning Environments

Communication &
Language Rich Learning
Environments
Workshop for Inclusion Conference in
Southampton January 2015
Presented by:
Jan Stevens ELC/SLT
DIRECTED ACTIVITY
Feedback:
How did that make you feel?
Was the activity successful?
What made it difficult for you?
How could things have been improved?
Agenda
• Evidence Base
• Sharing the audit tools currently available in Southampton for
Schools & Early Years staff
• What makes an effective language-rich learning environment?
• High quality interactions
Why Are You Here?
To enable you to create & maintain a
Language Rich Learning Environment to be
able to support ALL children in high quality
universal provision
Communication Rich
Learning Environment
Specialist
Targeted
Universal
Evidence Base
Around 10% of all children have SLCN which may be specific or complex &
long-term (ICAN Talk Series Issue 2 2006)
Up to 50% of children from areas of social-economic depravation start school
with transient language difficulties which may impact on their learning in
school if not addressed (Bercow Review 2007)
Low income children lag behind their high income counterparts at school
entry by 16 months in vocabulary. The gap in language is much larger than
gaps in other cognitive skills (Waldfogel & Washbrook 2010)
After controlling for a range of other factors, children who had normal nonverbal skills but poor vocabulary at age 5, are at age 34 almost twice as likely
to have mental health problems or to be unemployed than children who had
normally developing language at 5 (Law et al 2010)
Does Your Learning Environment …??
1. Encourage independence?
2. Support children in planning & making choices?
3. Ensure that learning opportunities are relevant to the children because
they occur in meaningful contexts?
4. Offer opportunities to children to interact or be alone?
5. Encourage a balance between action & calm, noise & quiet?
6. Celebrate through documentation & display, the learning that is taking
place?
WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME THAT YOU CRITICALLY OBSERVED THE
ENVIRONMENT THAT THE CHILDREN SPEND TIME IN?
Elizabeth Jarman Communication
Friendly Spaces
 www.elizabethjarmanltd.co.uk
An APPROACH that can be used to benefit children in
all key stages & to support transition into KS1 & KS 2
Considering impact of PHYSICAL & EMOTIONAL
environment on communication skills
Audit Toolkit
oCommunication Supporting Classrooms
Observation Checklist (CSC)
oECaT Environmental Audits: Enabling
Environment/ Learning & Development/ Positive
Relationship
Communication Supporting
Classrooms
This tool considers 3 parameters:
• Physical Environment
•Structured/Planned Language Learning
Opportunities
• Adult Interaction Style
Physical Space
Taken from: Communication Friendly Spaces – Elizabeth Jarman
Noise levels
Lighting
Colour
Clutter
Texture
ECaT Audit Tool: Enabling Environments
CSC Observation Tool: Language Learning Environment
(Parameter 1)
Structured Language Learning
Opportunities
 Holistic approach: combination of individual/small group work/whole class


reinforcement – importance of opportunities for GENERALISATION
Planning vocabulary: books/topics/themes/early words for EAL
Dialogic book sharing: strategy that turns story sharing into a language learning
opportunity by planning vocabulary & open-ended questions
 ECaT Audit Tool: Learning & Development & Positive Relationships
 CSC Observation Tool: Language Learning Opportunities (Parameter 2)
Language Learning Interactions
How do adults in the setting talk with children?
Do all adults consistently use ALL Top Tips for Talking with ALL
children?
Are adults able to adapt their own interaction style to suit the
communication & language levels of individual children?
ECaT Audit Tool: Positive Relationships
CSC Observation Tool: Language Learning Interactions
(Parameter 3)
High Quality Interactions
EPPE study recently found that a particular
kind of interaction was MORE FREQUENT
in the most effective school/settings
This was SUSTAINED SHARED THINKING
What is SST?
 “An episode in which two or more individuals ‘work together’ in an
intellectual way to solve a problem, clarify a concept, evaluate activities,
extend a narrative etc. Both parties must contribute to the thinking and it
must develop and extend” (Siraj-Blatchford et al 2004)
To successfully engage in SST with a child, the practitioner requires a clear
understanding of the child’s current development, their cultural heritage
and achievements, their feelings, behaviours and responses to learning;
they need to be able to recognise when they are thinking and sensitively
extend periods of concentration and support perseverance
Thinking about Interactions
• Interactions can be verbal or non-verbal
• Meaningful interactions should be at least 4 turns
• Interactions can be well-supported by
signs/gestures
• Good quality interactions depend on wide range of
adult interaction styles/strategies
DVD CLIP ACTIVITY
Clip 1 : Preschool Sticking Activity
Clip 2 : Children’s Centre Block Play
Watch both clips & complete tally chart for
adult interaction styles observed
What do GOOD QUALITY adult/child interactions
look like?
From Child’s perspective:
• Do children appear to be generally content,
happy and enjoying themselves?
• Do children appear relaxed, able to ask for
help and willing to initiate conversations with
adults and children?
Top Tips for Adults
• Adult uses child’s name to draw attention
• Adult gets down to child’s physical level
• Adult uses some natural gestures & signing
• Adult uses some real objects, photos, symbols to teach
•
•
•
•
•
•
new words
Adult uses slow pace during conversations
Adult pauses expectantly & frequently during
conversations
Adult confirms understanding of child’s intentions
Adult imitates what child says (more or less = recasting)
Adult comments on what child is doing
Adult extends on what child has said adding extra
information
The Effects of Weaknesses in Oral Language
on Reading Comprehension Growth (Hirsch, 1996)
16
High Oral
Language in
Kindergarten
Reading Age Level
15
14
5.2 years difference
13
12
11
10
9
Low Oral Language
in Kindergarten
8
7
6
5
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
Chronological Age
13
14
15
16
How can you achieve high quality
interactions consistently??-
oECaT Positive Relationships Audit: looks
principally at QUANTITY of meaningful
adult/child interactions
oCommunication Supporting Classrooms
Checklist (3rd parameter): looks at QUALITY
of adult interactions
Remember it’s the ADULTS who can make
changes to their interaction styles not the children