Transcript Welcome Harris County Head Start Teachers!

Say What???
Indirect Language Stimulation
In Early Childhood
First Annual
SFA Life-Long Learner Conference
April 28, 2012
Dr. Jannah Nerren and Dr. Carolyn Abel
Stephen F. Austin State University
James I. Perkins College of Education
Department of Elementary Education
Early Childhood Education Program
Research funded by the
Margaret Hoover Perkins Professorship
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What do you already know?
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Let’s find out what you don’t know!
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Let’s practice what you just learned!
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Let’s find out what you now know!
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First look: Public School Pre-Kindergarten
Second look: Rural Head Start
Present look: Large Urban Head Start
In each of the three studies, the teachers
significantly gained knowledge of the
strategies through our training, and
YOU CAN TOO!
Good Talking With You
Educational Productions, Inc.
Beaverton, OR
1.800.950.4949
www.edpro.com
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Receptive Language
Expressive Language
Direct Language Stimulation
Indirect Language Stimulation
Parallel Talk
Descriptive Talk
Self-Talk
Receptive
Expressive
Time concepts: tomorrow, tonight
3-4 word sentences: agent-actionobject or agent-action-location
Size comparisons: small, smallest
Tells about past experiences.
Relationships: if…then, because
Adds “s” for plurals.
Carries out multiple step directions Adds “ed” for past tense.
Understands “Let’s pretend”
Uses “I” and “ME.”
Can say rhymes and songs.
Is mostly understandable.
It is more important for an adult
who works with children to know
how language develops than to
speak the child’s language!
Understanding what they need
makes us more able to help a
child further their language skills.
Strategic Ways of Talking
With Children:
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Parallel Talk – child centered
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Descriptive Talk – object centered
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Self-Talk – adult centered
Strategic Ways To
Encourage Language:
Step 1 – Show interest
 Step 2 – Information Talk (parallel,
description, self)
 Step 3 – Limit closed questions
 Step 4 – Indirect correction
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Specific Methods of
Communication:
 Expansion
◦ Recast the child’s words with added information
 Expansion
Plus
◦ Recast simple sentences with an added sentence.
 Open
Ended Question
◦ Questions with no “correct” answer
Supporting Conversation
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Question: Why are conversations important?
Children need help in attending.
Children need help establishing and
maintaining a topic.
Adults should support conversation by
referring questions and comments.
Sometimes interpretation is important.
Environment is Critical
 Two
types of environments: social
and physical
 Consider the environment of your
current classroom:
◦ Are there areas that allow children opportunities
to talk to each other?
◦ Are there areas that allow you to interact with
children?
◦ Does the social environment promote
conversation?
Axe ‘Em Jacks!