Learning Through Talk in the Early Years
Practical Activities for the Classroom
- Elizabeth Sharp - Literacy Consultant, Milton Keynes
'This book is written in a straightforward, unfussy style directly addressed to the busy classroom. The activities have obviously been tried successfully in real lessons, and the involvement and enjoyment of the children as a result is quite clear.'
-Geoff Dean
School Improvement Advisor
Milton Keynes Local Education Authority
Packed with ideas and activities, this book is a lively, practical guide to encouraging young children to develop their verbal reasoning skills and communicate more effectively.
Activities include:
- setting up a talk corner
- using story bags and story boxes
- using Circle Time and playing games to encourage talk
There is advice on linking the activities to the various curriculum subjects and a selection of photocopiable material is included. All the suggestions and ideas in the book have been tried and tested by the author in her own classroom. The focus is on children aged 5 to 8, but the activities can be adapted to suit younger and older children.
Class teachers, Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator (SENCOs), Newly Qualified Teachers (NQT) and Teaching Assistants will find this book supportive, clear and rooted in good practice.
Elizabeth Sharp has been a Literacy Co-ordinator and Leading Literacy Teacher (demonstrating lessons for other teachers in her area. She is now a literacy Consultant and freelance illustrator.
`This book is aimed at class teachers of Reception to Year 3 seeking ideas to develop their pupils' speaking and listening skills. The author describes each activity in an easy-to-follow format with links to the relevant curriculum targets... This book may be helpful to both new teachers and those who are more experienced with the curriculum for older pupils... The most valuable part of the book is the commentary from the author's own teaching experience. This provides some useful insights, such as the fact that the flow of children's ideas was improved while they had a discussion while engaged in drawing. The book is easy to read. It… provide[s] a practical guide to some tried and tested speaking and listening activities which may be useful for the beginning Foundation or Key Stage 1 teacher' - Special!
There were some valuable ideas that could be adpoted as starting points for school led practice however the book was not current enough to be used in a significant way.
It gives good strategies and resources for teachers in order to implement the oral language as learning methodology.
