How to teach oral language skills to young readers
At this stage, children are ready for more sophisticated oral language development. They will need it as they progress in reading because they will likely encounter new and challenging words and language structures in what they read. There are many fun ways to develop new vocabulary and language skills.
Vocabulary
What is important
- Learn sophisticated vocabulary words typically used in written text. Example: actually, frequent, or eager.
How to help children develop these concepts and skills
- Provide child-friendly definitions
- Practice the word together in a variety of situations
- Give guided practice for the new word. Play an oral language game where you give two choices for usage and the child chooses the one that is a correct use of the word.
Sentence Structure
What is important
- Prepositions
- More sophisticated conjunctions
- Ordinal numbers and sequencing words
- Comparison constructions such as similes or metaphors
How to help children develop these concepts and skills
- Practice retelling a story or event together. Retell it a few times, each time adding more details.
- Play games with the prepositions to learn what they mean and practice using them. (example: beneath, between, above)
- Practice using sophisticated conjunctions such as however, in case, or so that.
- Make a game of comparison constructions. For example, make similes comparing two things.
Comprehension Skills
What is important
- Making connections
- Asking questions
- Synthesizing ideas
How to help children develop these concepts and skills
- Explicitly teach these skills and practice them directly.
- Use the technique Dialogic Reading. Dialogic Reading is a great technique for expanding language through retelling stories. Click on the link to learn more and to see some example videos.
To see all of the skills in the Early reading and writing stage, click on the links below
Phonics
Sight Words
Writing
Concepts About Print
Phonemic Awareness
