Categorizing with Word Clouds

One of the important skills we teach children is categorization.  Many people don't realize how necessary categorization is to everyday life.  Think about when you go to the grocery store.  How do you know where to look for flour?  The thought process might go something like this:

What do we do with flour?
We use it for baking.
So, the flour might be located with other baking items.
Therefore, head to the aisle with all the cake mixes to find the flour.

Bet you didn't realize all that thinking went into grocery shopping!  Now what about when you get home to unpack those groceries?  You probably have a place where every item goes.  Maybe you store the poptarts next to the cereal in the cabinet because they both are breakfast items.  Or the apples and oranges you bought maybe go in the same refrigerator drawer with other fruit items.  You are more organized than you think because you are able to categorize, or sort items that go together.

Sometimes children who struggle with language concepts have difficulty learning to categorize.  Teaching them how to figure out where to find items in the grocery store is a great way to help them with this skill.  Then letting them help you unpack those items at home is extra practice!

Building language in natural conversations

If you have noticed that your child isn't speaking with as many words as other children of the same age, you might be looking for ways to help them build their language skills.  You might look at google or visit the pediatrician and get some great advice like "name objects for your child."  Don't doubt it, that's good advice.  Kids need to learn the names for things, but here's the catch.  You can't start walking around naming things that your child's attention wasn't drawn to in the first place.  It won't help and you will make yourself nuts trying to do that all day.  So let's talk about how to naturally work on language skills during the day.  It's easy.  Just follow your child's lead.

Instead of thinking up ways to create a scenario that will get them talking, use the opportunities that are already presenting themselves.  For instance, you take your child to the bathroom to wash their hands after a splendid dinner of spaghettio's where more spaghetti is on your kid than in your kid.  You turn the water on and your child sticks their hand in the water and says, "hot!"  Now's your chance!  This is an opportunity to expand their language by modeling the word they already know and using it in a sentence for them.  So you might say, "Yes, the water is hot.  Too hot.  Ouch!" Then you can adjust the water temperature and say "Is it hot?"  Let your child test the water.  They might say "No" and you can test the water too and expand their language by saying "No, it's not hot."  As you wash hands, you can repeat the phrase "it's not hot, not hot, not hot" or some variation of that to the tune of your favorite song.  I know that part sounds ridiculous, but really, you will be surprised when they start singing the song to you next time you wash their hands.  Kids remember stuff like that you know?  When your child says a word, just add to it.  At the store and your child sees an apple and says "apple?"  You say, "A red apple.  Apples are yummy.  Do you want an apple?" The lesson here is to use what you are doing and what your child is already saying to build on their skills.  

Besides expanding language by adding to what they have said, you can also model for your child during playtime with parallel talk.  This is when you simply say what you are doing as you are doing it. Putting socks and shoes on your toddler?  Talk about it.  As you are putting the socks on you might say in a long drawn out voice, "One sock, twooooooooo socks.  One shoe, twoooooo shoes."  Now you have demonstrated for your child counting skills and plural nouns (sock/socks, shoe/shoes).  You have also tied the vocabulary words (socks, shoes) to the activity it matches (getting dressed).  Having a tea party with the dolls?  Instead of just passing out the dinnerware, talk it out as you set the table.  "You get a plate, and you get a plate, and you get a plate.  Now you get a fork, and you get a fork, and you get a fork.  And you get a cup, and you get a cup, and you get a cup."  Get the idea?  You are modeling the vocabulary (forks, plates, cups) in sentences (You get a cup.) during a natural activity when those words will be used over and over again in life.  Then next time you play tea party, prompt your child by starting to pass out things (you get a cup, etc) and see if they will say it with you this time. As your child gets the hang of it and can do it with you, see if she can then do it by herself.  

The lesson here is to use what you have.  You aren't a school teacher and you don't have to sit up at night planning lessons on building language.  You also shouldn't stress or feel guilty about not setting aside 20 minutes each night to think up and teach a new SAT word.  You are a loving parent who is busy building a life with your family.  It's busy and crazy and messy.  No one needs to add extra work to that.  Use what you are already doing as a springboard for life lessons in language at the grocery store, the zoo, McDonalds, or the minivan.  The nice thing about language is that it happens everywhere all the time and it's free.  

Expanding Vocabulary in Daily Conversations

Learning new words is a big, important deal.  Teaching them doesn't have to be.  After a long day at school for kids and a busy day full of adult responsibilities for parents, the last thing anyone wants at the end of the day is a structured lesson on word usage.  Parents often ask how they can help their kids at home, and get answers like timed readings, memorizing spelling words, and monotonous practice activities.  Supporting your child's vocabulary learning doesn't have to be this way.  Relax.  It's a lot easier than you think.

Why is vocabulary so important?  Based on lots of dazzling research by big researcher names (Ehri, Justice, Rosenthal, Beck, McKeown, etc) we know that good vocabulary leads to good comprehension and to be a good learner, you need to be able to understand, right?  The better your child's vocabulary is in preschool, the more likely they are to be awesome readers and comprehenders later on.  Starting early is key.  Basically, a good vocabulary is the foundation for literacy which leads to all sorts of success!  

Now, how to squeeze vocabulary learning in between dinner, bath time, and bed?  There are lots of different ways to teach vocabulary and I am going to add just one way to your skill set today.  It's as easy as synonyms.  So, let's pretend you are at the grocery store with your 6 year old.  I know, but don't panic, it's just an example.  Instead of saying, "Jimmy, go get a cart for mom," you might say "Jimmy, get a cart, you know, a basket, for mom."  There, was that so awful?  You have now connected two words together for your child and started down the path of growing their vocabulary.  Here's another..."put that pan in the cabinet" might turn into "put that pan, that skillet, in the cabinet."  Easy!  How about when your kids have turned the upstairs into a battleground and they are shouting at the top of their lungs at each other?  Yep, even breaking up sibling rivalries can be a vocabulary opportunity with words like "stop," "halt," and "cease your bickering, your arguing!"  See what I did there?  Not only did I use words for stop, but also taught them some synonyms for argue.  

Adding a few synonyms for common words your child already knows can make a big difference in the long run.  By connecting a new word (skillet) to an already familiar word (pan) you are building connections in the brain, multiple pathways to expressing meaning in an interesting way.  By using these synonym pairs often (like connecting cart and basket every time you shop) you build those words into their permanent vocabulary.  Your child might not start using these words all the time, but they will be there and ready when writing instruction begins in school and a large emphasis in writing instruction is on using "spicy" or interesting words instead of using boring, tired words.  

So, go get started, begin, commence with the synonyms!

Nicole Power is a speech-language pathologist and reading specialist in Edmond, OK.  If you suspect your child may have a language or literacy disorder and would like to seek an evaluation, you can contact her at educationalinspiration.com

Language/Literacy screenings vs. evaluations

I hear the two terms 'screenings' and 'evaluations' used interchangeably all the time.  It leads to a lot of confusion about what has and hasn't been done for a child.

First, let's discuss screenings.  A screening is a quick snapshot of language or literacy skills.  These screens take about 5-15 minutes.  They look at key concepts and whether your child does or does not exhibit risk factors for those skills.  A screening is a fast way to determine if a child appears to be developing typically when compared with peers.  Screens do NOT diagnose.  They can't be used to determine whether a child is eligible for special education services.  Screenings don't look at every skill, just a few important ones and because of this, screenings can sometimes miss kids who actually do have language or literacy problems.

If you have concerns about your child, tell the speech-language pathologist about them so she can consider those concerns while she does the screen.  Your concerns may change the type of screening that is provided for your child.  A screening just tells us whether we should investigate things further using an evaluation.

Now, let's talk evaluations.  Evaluations are lengthier and comprehensive.  They look at many specific skills related to language and literacy.  Your child may be given formal standardized tests, informal tests, and even be observed during their play or classroom time.  The speech language pathologist may also want to look at examples of work, like writing or drawings, completed independently by your child.  An evaluation may also include a family history.  At the end of an evaluation you will be told either that your child's skills are typical or you will receive a diagnosis.  We use a diagnosis to help us explain the patterns of strengths and weaknesses found in the testing.  An evaluation is sometimes used to help determine eligibility for services in schools.  The information gathered will then be used as the basis for a treatment plan that is developed with you to help your child succeed.  

If you have concerns, it is possible to obtain screenings and basic evaluations for your child at your local public school free of charge.  If you prefer a private and comprehensive language-literacy evaluation, you can contact Educational Inspiration at educationalinspiration.com.

When RTI goes wrong

Response to Intervention (RTI) has been a hot topic in Oklahoma since about 2005, when the first schools began utilizing this method. If your child has been identified as requiring an intervention through RTI, you may have done some googling and found some rather unpleasant things written about RTI by other parents.  Now you are wondering if this is something you should let the school continue doing with your child or whether you should insist on the good old fashioned evaluation that used to be done when a child was suspected of having a disability.  The answer?  It depends.

The theory of RTI is based on a medical model and has excellent research behind it.  The idea is that if a child is showing signs of difficulty, we want to try to find what level of support he needs to be successful.  So, your child may struggle, but may not require a self-contained classroom setting with other special education children.  Maybe they just need a little help, not the whole enchilada.  So RTI begins with the least restrictive amount of help, say 15 minutes twice a week.  The teachers take data on whether this amount of help is successful.  If it is, then your child may continue to get that amount of help and catch up to peers. Success story, over and out.

If this small amount of help doesn't give us the results we want, we may increase the amount of extra help to more times a week.  We will add something more and continue to take data until we find the amount of help that your child needs.  Often, a child is successful with minimal extra help and the needs certainly don't rise to the level of needing special education.  Hooray and everyone is happy.

This is a grand idea in theory, but there are many variables that can make it very unsuccessful in schools.

Sometimes there is a lack of training for teachers and administrators regarding how RTI is supposed to work.  If you don't know why you are doing something, how do you know you are doing it right?  This is a problem.  Find out who on the staff was trained in the tenets of RTI.  If the teachers were trained on site that is a good way to get everyone up to speed, but at least a handful of teachers or administrators should have had in-depth training from a reputable person who is an expert in RTI.  There are many opportunities for RTI training in Oklahoma through the SDE.  If this hasn't happened at your child's school, this could be a sign that it is an unsuccessful RTI program setup.

Another problem is the belief that tutoring is the same as RTI.  Tutoring provides repetitive practice in order to gain proficiency.  Information may be presented in the same way it was presented in the classroom.  In contrast, RTI is supposed to use assessment to find the missing pieces a child doesn't have, zero in on them, and provide a specific, tailored intervention to fill in the missing pieces.  If the belief in your school is that RTI is the same as tutoring, this is a sign that it is not the program for your child.  RTI is an investigation into your child's needs.  It helps them while determining what methods are required for success and which ones don't work well.

Next, there should be good research supporting the methods used to help your child.  I see lots of use of Guided Reading and Leveled Literacy kits.  These are grounded in the Whole Language approach to reading.  They support the idea that exposure will teach them to read instead of explicit instruction in the rules of reading.  Teachers are often taught to use guided reading at their university programs, but it is not useful for struggling students.  Additionally, schools have fallen prey to the big companies peddling a shiny "reading cure in a box."  They plastered a sticker on it that says, "Great for RTI!" and the schools bought it because the sticker said it was what they needed and the teachers didn't receive the training to differentiate good help from not-so-good help.  If you speak to your child's teacher and they utter the words "guided reading," this is a sign that your child may not be getting instruction that is helpful for struggling readers. 

Another problem is trying to RTI an entire school.  This happens when the screening reveals that the majority of students aren't reading at grade level. If a school does not have at least 80% of their students reading on grade level, the problem is not the kids. The problem is the curriculum and methods being used.  Find out what percentage of the students are not at grade level.  If more than 20% are not at grade level, this is a problem.  It is a sign that curriculum in place at that school is not meeting the needs of most of the students.  This is a problem.

Finally, we have a problem with personnel chosen to provide interventions.  In schools with limited funds and/or staff, administrators sometimes turn to paraprofessionals or teacher aides for help.  Paraprofessionals and aides can be enormous support, but providing interventions should not be one of their duties.  If your child is struggling to read when provided with instruction from a certified teacher, how is providing more help from someone less qualified supposed to make things better?  The children struggling the most should be receiving help from the most highly qualified people in the building.  If your child is not receiving interventions from a certified teacher or specialist, request a change.

RTI is an excellent theory.  I have seen good schools make excellent strides in helping children when provided the right supports from administration and continued training over the years.  I have also seen what happens when training and administration support are not in place.  RTI quickly devolves into a tutoring program helping some, but not usually the children with the most significant difficulties.  The point of all of this is that RTI is a good idea and if done right, can be a great tool for helping your child.  Give it a chance.  Investigate the program the school has, asking the questions and checking into the points outlined in this article.  If the RTI program that your child is getting does not check out, make a written request outlining your concerns and asking that your child receive an in-depth evaluation for a reading disability.  The schools in Oklahoma are required to respond to your request in some manner within 10 school days.

Nicole Power received RTI training from a university professor in Oklahoma who has researched and published on the topic of RTI.  She has presented trainings in RTI across the state for many school districts and for the State Department of Education.  Ms. Power was an elementary RTI Coordinator in a public school for ten years.  

Questions to ask about your child's reading intervention

Last week we visited about DIBELS reading screens and what happens after the screening.  Typically some kind of intervention is put into place after it is determined that reading skills are below grade level.  So now you have met with the teachers and discussed the screening.  Then you and the school worked together to put a plan into place to improve reading.  But what if that plan has been in place for a month or so and things don't seem to be getting any better?  Now what?

You aren't alone.  Many parents are asking the same thing.  Here are some questions you can ask about your child's intervention.  These are very basic, but it is a good place to start to make sure things are beginning on the right track.

As with all things, presentation is everything. We want to build a partnership with the school and teachers. Most teachers and schools want to help.  Yes, there are horror stories out there about terrible schools and teachers.  It definitely happens and I have seen it happen.  But mostly there are incredible stories of caring teachers and parents working together to do what's best for kids.  So let's start with the assumption that everybody wants to do the right thing. Keep documentation of every phone call, letter, and conversation you have with anyone at the school.

• Is the reading intervention in addition to regular classroom reading instruction?  Your child should not be pulled out of regular reading instruction to get intervention.  They should get regular reading instruction and then get more reading intervention at a different time. Never allow the school to remove your child's recess, music, gym or other special time to provide academic supports. This turns help into punishment.  Things that your child may be particularly gifted at doing, such as music, are removed to spend more time on things that are very difficult.  Talk about a lack of motivation and a way to create anger issues.  It teaches the child to equate reading with missing out and this is never a good way to build motivation or trust in a child.  

• Who is providing the intervention?  Last week we talked about making sure your child is receiving reading intervention from certified or highly qualified personnel.  An aide or peer tutor should not be providing intervention, even if they are being "supervised" by more qualified personnel.  If the classroom teacher is providing good classroom instruction and your child is still struggling, how would a less qualified person make things better?  Some questions you might politely ask are...
• When was the last time you attended a training for reading instruction?  This gives you a great clue about how up to date their reading approach might be.  If they haven't attended any professional development except what they receive at their school site, they may not be ready to teach your child.
• Do you have any certifications specific to reading?  In Oklahoma a person can be a Title I reading teacher without any additional training.  A regular education teacher is qualified to teach Title I in Oklahoma, but that doesn't mean they have the skills to teach your child.  Ask them.
• Have you worked with children with this severity of reading difficulty before? If your child has a significant reading problem and the teacher doesn't have much experience, she may be unsure of how to best help your child.  Find out.
• Now, let me stress this next point as well.  If you find out that the person assigned to help your child is certified, but may not have a lot of experience or they haven't had tons of professional development, don't count them out quite yet.  If this person is driven to help your child succeed and wants to partner with you to seek out appropriate teaching strategies for  your child, they might turn out to be the best person to have on your side.  However, if they have no experience and they don't seem particularly enthused about getting any support or training, trust your gut and politely inquire whether there are other teachers with specific reading training.  

• Is the intervention frequent enough to be effective?  The more serious the reading difficulty, the more frequent the intervention should be.  So if the reading skills are a year or more behind, they may require interventions 4-5 times a week.  There isn't a rule of thumb for this and it depends on the skills being targeted, but if they don't seem to be improving, consider increasing the number of intervention sessions per week.

• Is the group too big to focus on your child's needs?  Your child may need more individualized help and the more kids in the group, the less likely this is to happen.  Research shows us that often times, instruction with a group of 3 is just as effective as 1 to 1 instruction.  Large groups happen when there aren't enough personnel to see all the children in small groups.  If you aren't seeing progress and your child is in a group larger than 3, consider requesting that your child be seen in a smaller group.

• Are the other children in the group having the same difficulties as your child?  If your child needs help learning the sounds of the alphabet and the other students are simply working on building reading speed, it will be more difficult for the teacher to take on those different needs effectively.  Make sure the other students in the group have similar goals.

• Is the intervention a good match for your child's needs?  This may be the most important question of them all.  For instance, if your child does not know all the letter sounds, the intervention goal shouldn't be to increase fluency (speed).  The goal should be to learn the sounds.  Often, a school has pre-selected programs for children who are struggling.  The problem with a boxed program is that it may or may not meet the needs of your child.  Make sure the program is addressing the specific areas of difficulty you found in the reading assessments.  The program should be phonics based, Orton Gillingham based, or a Structured Literacy program.  The program should not be based in whole language, like a Leveled Literacy or Guided Reading program because these programs do not explicitly teach rules of reading and phonics instruction is the weakest part of these programs.  Working on things that your child doesn't need or that they are not yet ready for will not result in progress.  

These questions make some good starting points for investigating why interventions are not working. If the answers to all of these questions were positive, there are many more reasons why intervention is not working.  There is more to come.  In the meantime, if you are concerned about your child and feel they may have a reading disability, or dyslexia, get help.  If your gut says something is wrong, follow your gut and make a written request for an evaluation by the school.  If you can't get help from your school, look at the possibility of getting a private evaluation.  If you have been patient with your school and your child has participated in at least 6 to 8 weeks of intervention sessions with little to no progress, then don't wait any more.  Seek help.  As always, if you decide to get a private literacy evaluation and are in the Edmond/Oklahoma City area, contact me at Educational Inspiration at www.educationalinspiration.com

Wordless books teach valuable literacy skills

I recently composed a short video about my favorite wordless book, Flora and the Flamingo.  It got me thinking about all the great wordless books out there not being recognized enough as tools for reading.  Most people think that wordless books are for babies.  The truth is, these books are amazing tools for teaching important literacy skills to children of all ages such as vocabulary, sequencing, and comprehension.  Plus, they are super fun.  So let's talk a bit about wordless books and what to do with them.

If you are using wordless books with very young children, these books are a great way to begin modeling correct handling of books and the different parts of a book.  For instance, you can point out and name the cover, the title of the book, and the spine of the book.  Show your child the title of the book and where the author's name is located.  Before you start the book, explain that you will start at the beginning, then read the middle, and finally you will read the end of the book.

Take a picture walk before "reading" the book.  Look at the cover and just a few of the pictures inside the book and consider asking your child what they see in the pictures and what they think the story will be about.  Will this be a happy book?  A funny book?

I love these books because there really isn't a right or wrong way to tell the story.  While the author provides us with picture prompts hinting at what is going on, it is up to the reader to interpret the story and weave the events together.  You can help guide your child through ways we tell a story by using words like, "in the beginning," "next," "and then," "after that," and other words we use to sequence events in a story.  This helps your child build a foundation for understanding the structure of stories and that stories have a clear sequence with a beginning, middle, and an end.

Wordless books also offer an excellent opportunity to build thinking skills.  When we look at wordless picture books we are in charge of building the story and this takes some thought.  Who are the characters?  What are the clues in the pictures telling me?  What do I think will happen next?  These are all very important skills especially as children enter older elementary years and beyond.  As you go through a story make sure to point out some key elements like...

a.  who are the characters or who are the important people in the story?
b.  where the story is happening
c.  what is the problem in the story?  what are the characters trying to accomplish?
d.  how do the characters feel about the problem?
e.  what is the plan for solving the problem?
f.  did they solve the problem in the end?  Was everybody happy with how things worked out?

This is like a checklist for story telling.  As you model these components of a story and explain them to your child, let them take a turn telling the story to you.  Listening to you tell a story and then having your child teach the story to another friend or even stuffed animals is a great way to reinforce these skills.

Older children can get lots of enjoyment from wordless books as well.  There are some great wordless books for this group with complex story plots requiring higher level critical thinking skills and attention to detail.  Children who read these books might be encouraged to write their own story down to go with the pictures.  Kids who are artistically inclined might create their own wordless picture book and then tell you the story.  All of these activities reinforce comprehension skills, word choice and vocabulary, and send the message that reading is important.  Check below for some of my favorite wordless picture books for kids.

The Flower Man by Mark Ludy
Goodnight Gorilla by Peggy Rathmann
Tuesday by David Wiesner
Sidewalk Circus by Paul Fleischman and Kevin Hawkes
The Grey Lady and the Strawberry Snatcher by Molly Bang
You Can't Take a Balloon into the Metropolitan Museum by Jacqueline Preiss Weitzman
Flora and the Flamingo by Molly Idle
The Farmer and the Clown by Marla Frazee
Unspoken:  A Story from the Underground Railroad by Henry Cole
The Arrival by Shaun Tan
The Only Child by Guojing
Bluebird by Bob Staake