Research Links Screen Time with Speech Delays in Young Children

You see it all the time. Little children with their parents' phone, iPad, or other handheld device. The temptation for parents is understandable; keeping a young child occupied can provide the distraction to enable a parent to complete an errand, do a task, or just catch their breath. It's an understandable impulse, and one we have looked at previously.

But it's not a benign activity, and new research shows just how damaging handheld screen time can be to the expressive language skills of very young children.

The study looked at roughly 1000 children in the Toronto area, ranging from six months to two years of age. By the time they were 18 months old, their parents reported that 20 percent of the children had average daily handheld screen time use of close to 30 minutes. Based on a screening tool for expressive language delays, the researchers found a significant correlation between increased screen time and delays in expressive language. For every half hour increase in screen time with a handheld device, there was a 49 percent increased risk of expressive language delays. There did not seem to be delays in other forms of communication, such as body language or gestures.

This study is preliminary and the researchers emphasize that more investigation is needed. But the results are of sufficient concern that they should give pause to parents who are inclined to hand over their phones or tablets on a regular basis to entertain a fussy baby.

The Brain Dictionary

“Words, words, words,” says Hamlet. “What’s in a name?” asks Juliet. Shakespeare had his characters musing on language, as their author dove deeply into the English dictionary, pulling out words, connecting them in novel ways, and even coining some of his own. Shakespeare is not unique in his interest in words. Many neuroscientists have shared in a fascination with language, and much research has gone into the topic.

One of the latest studies on language was done by a team of researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, who set out to explore which parts of the brain are active in processing which particular words. While their subjects listened to hours of narratives, they used functional MRI scans to monitor the subjects’ brain activity, e.g. blood flow, in response to particular words. What they found was activity that spanned many brain regions, and both brain hemispheres, with patterns being highly consistent across the participants. Certain areas were activated in response to words in similar categories. For example, words having to do with appearance tended to be found near the visual cortex. Based on the results, the researchers were able to map the brain’s semantic systems in previously unknown detail.

The study findings highlight that language comprehension, rather than being specific to just one part of the brain, is a process that involves a wide variety of brain regions, depending on the type of meaning of the language involved. This parallels what we know about other cognitive functions, such as memory, that involve various parts of the brain. If you were to go looking for a memory, it is not as if turning a key to a singular “Memory Center” would unlock the area that you need for sorting through them all. Similarly, there is no singular “Language Comprehension Zone” but rather an assortment of involved areas linked to particular categories of meaning.

It is pretty exciting to live in a time when we cannot only read a Shakespeare play but can view the map of a mind responding to its words. What’s in a name? We are learning more and more about the answer.

Encouraging Young Children’s Speech

Speech delays can be scary for the parents of young children, but a toddler whose language lags behind his or her peers is not necessarily a cause for panic. Although guidelines for young children’s speech development exist, the range that is considered normal is wide. Furthermore, some very young children who exhibit speech delays catch up with their peers and have no difficulty learning when they begin school. (Since speech delays can be an indicator of some serious problems, however, concerned parents should still speak to their pediatrician about how to obtain a formal evaluation if a child over 24 months old seems to be having an unusually difficult time understanding language or using and pronouncing words.)

No matter the cause of a speech delay, everyday interactions with toddlers are critical opportunities for learning. Even children who receive formal intervention will learn best if they have frequent, high quality linguistic interactions with people they love inserted into their daily routines.

We’ve compiled some tips from the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, Reading Rockets, and our own experience and knowledge for parents of young children who seem to exhibit speech delays.

What you’ll see below are suggestions for ways to encourage very young children to understand and use language and to model language in helpful ways. What you won’t see are suggestions about correcting children. The reason? Children struggling to use language can become frustrated when they are unable to make themselves understood, especially when it seems so easy for everyone else. Correcting a young child can cause negative associations with speech and language use. Modeling, on the other hand, provides a positive example instead of a rebuke.

Tips for Encouraging Early Speech

Even if you don’t understand what your child is saying, acknowledge the attempt to communicate. Smile and make eye contact with your child. This will encourage him to keep trying. If you need clarification, commend the child for trying and then ask for a gesture by saying, “I’m so glad you’re using your words! Can you help more? Show me what you want.”

If you can understand, repeat what your child says so that she’ll know you understood her. Even better, show your child how she can add more words to her sentence by expanding it for her. If your child points and says, “juice,” say, “Would you like some juice? I hear Lucy saying, ‘I want some juice, please!’”

All people learn new words best when they’re presented repeatedly in context. To help your child learn a word, use it frequently in sentences. For example, if it is clear that your child doesn’t know the word toast at breakfast, say, “Here is a piece of toast for you. I’ll have some toast, too! I put some butter on your toast. I’ll have some butter on my toast, too. My toast is still warm. Is your toast warm? Toast is great with eggs!”

Repeating a child’s utterance will help her to feel validated, and it may even help prevent tantrums! Some children melt down when they’re told “no” because they’re frustrated that their desire hasn’t been understood. If your child wriggles and exclaims “Up!” on an airplane, say, “I know. You want to get up. I understand. I’m sorry, but we can’t get up. We have to sit. The rules are we have to sit for now. It will keep us safe. We can get up soon. For now, let’s look at this book.”

Avoid speaking in the third person (e.g. saying “Mommy is here!” if you are Mommy). Pronouns like I and me are difficult for young children to grasp, and they need to hear as many examples of correct use as possible. Speak to your child as you would to an adult, albeit with clearer, short sentences.

To help children understand pronouns, incorporate them into play. Using two dolls or figurines, act out interactions. This is especially helpful when talking about possessions; very young children have a tough time with mine versus yours. For example, you might show one dinosaur “saying,” while nudging a crayon to a Lego man, “This blue crayon is yours.” The Lego man can then ask, “Really? It is mine? It is for me? It’s mine?” The dinosaur can reply, “Yes, it is yours,” and the Lego man can reply, “Hooray, it’s mine! Thank you!” Invite children to participate in the dialogue if they are able.

Demonstrate the right word if your child uses the wrong one. If your child points to a piece of ribbon and says, “Rope,” say, “Look at the ribbon! It looks like the ribbon your sister wears in her hair. That ribbon is red, just like your sister’s ribbon. Sometimes people use ribbons on birthday presents.”

As much as possible, avoid questions that can be answered with yes and no to give your child the opportunity to practice using other words. Provide multiple choices so that your child has language to imitate; this gives him the chance to use words without having to generate them himself. Ask, “Do you want to wear the red shirt, or the blue shirt?” or “What do you see the other kids doing? Are they swinging or running or sliding?”

Pairing words with actions will help children to remember them. This works best with verbs; demonstrate the actions when you say, “clap your hands,” “jump,” or “nod your head.” Encourage kids to do the same.

Songs’ rhythms, rhymes, and melodies make them excellent for cementing language in memory. Children’s songs, like the ones sung by the legendary Raffi, are great for building language. Worried you’ll lose your mind? Play albums by The Beatles, Cat Stevens or any other band that writes catchy, short songs sung with clear diction.

Reading is a wonderful way to introduce language to kids. (Talking to your child is no substitute for reading, by the way; studies show that books expose children to a wider variety of words than those used in everyday speech, and the pictures help them make meaning from the new vocabulary.) After you’ve read a book a few times to your child, ask them to tell you what is happening on a particular page, using the picture as a scaffold. Follow the tips above to show your child that you understand them and model some expanded sentences. As your child’s language develops, ask her to retell story as you turn the pages, using the pictures to help her structure her narrative.

Shakespeare’s First Folio to Tour the Country

2016 marks the 400th anniversary of William Shakespeare’s death. It’s impossible to quantify the impact of Shakespeare’s work on (primarily, but not solely) the English-speaking world. Shakespeare’s observations about human nature are timeless. His plots, which have mesmerized readers and audiences for centuries, still have the power to captivate. And it is estimated that he added 1,700 words (e.g. countless, laughable, grovel, dawn) and numerous everyday phrases (e.g. break the ice, it’s high time, for goodness sake, what’s done is done) to the English language.

In recognition of the significance of this year, Washington, DC’s Folger Library is sending one of its most prized artifacts on a tour through all 50 states: the 1623 First Folio. (Yes, that Folger. The library’s founder, Henry Clay Folger, was not only an enthusiastic collector of Shakespeare-related artifacts; he was also the nephew of J.A. Folger, founder of San Francisco-based Folger’s Coffee.)

As its name suggests, the First Folio is the earliest collection ever amassed of a number of Shakespeare’s plays. Assembled by Shakespeare’s friends and colleagues seven years after his death, it contains eighteen plays that, were it not for the folio, may never have been preserved, including Macbeth, The Tempest, and The Taming of the Shrew. Printing a folio was expensive, so few copies of the book were made and even fewer survive today.

This rare book may be viewed in New York City at the New York Historical Society  from June 7th through July 17th; to find out where else it will travel, use this interactive map. Can’t wait that long to see it in person? You can read a digital copy of the First Folio in its entirety while you wait. In addition, the Library’s website offers excellent resources for teachers and for parents and kids.

Those with an addiction* to Shakespeare because of his madcap*, zany* comedies; his monumental* histories; the remorseless* savagery* shown by some characters in his tragedies; and the overall radiance* of his words may consider it torture* to contain their excitement* as they await this ode* to the great man himself.


*word coined by Shakespeare

Finding Logic in the English Language

Many people will tell you that English is a crazy language. Because it is derived from so many disparate languages—English is based mostly on a West Germanic language but peppered with influences from Greek, Latin, and other European languages—there are plenty of exceptions to English spelling patterns, grammar, and punctuation usage. Sympathetically agreeing with a child that English spelling doesn't make sense or that rules governing comma use are simply crazy may seem like a kind gesture. After all, the rules can seem endless and complicated, and we don't want to make kids feel bad about their errors.

But simply falling back on the excuse that English is just wacky and devoid of logic is not only damaging to kids' motivation to improve, it's untrue. English does contain exceptions, but there are actually plenty of rules that govern correct usage. These rules are not only fascinating to learn about, they're tremendously helpful.

For example, the /ər/ sound at the end of words that define a person's job can be spelled in two ways: "-er" (painter) and "-or" (senator). Though the two suffixes are pronounced the same way, they're spelled differently and many people will tell you that the only way to know which one to use is to memorize the word in question. Not so, according to Solving Language Difficulties, a fascinating and useful book of exercises by Amey Steere, Caroline Peck, and Linda Kahn. Although there are a few exceptions, spelling of the /ər/ sound corresponds with the level of education needed for the job. An "-or" spelling is generally used for someone whose job requires a great deal of education (doctor, editor, governor) while the "-er" is used for someone who doesn't need as much training (barber, farmer, waiter).

Want more? TED-Ed is an outstanding source of interesting educational videos. A great one to get you started is a fun, story-like video that anthropomorphizes the comma, lending logic to rules about when commas are called for and when they're unnecessary. 

                                       

Another video we love provides a brief, fascinating explanation of how English spelling that seems completely illogical, like the "tw" in the word "two" is actually reasonable and meaningful.

                                        

Learning these rules is empowering for kids. After all, nothing is more frustrating than being told that the guidelines don't make sense but you have to learn them anyway. And young people generally enjoy discovering explanations for concepts that were previously shrouded in mystery. Solving Language Difficulties and TED-Ed are just the beginning. But be warned: start digging and you may become hooked.

Kindergarten Readiness: A Framework from Sesame Workshop

Preparing children for school, and ensuring they have the skills required to be a successful learner, can be a challenge for every parent. Parents are often left wondering what abilities their child needs to have mastered before entering school, leaving them with high levels of anxiety about how to best prepare their child for school, and what the commencement of kindergarten will bring.

Sesame Workshop, the educational research organization behind Sesame Street, commissioned the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study to examine school readiness in today’s children. Their findings where released in the Kindergartners’ Skills at School Entry report in July 2014. The report reveals discrepancies in kindergarten readiness, with 44% of children entering school with one or more risk factors that have the potential to impact their success in school.

In response to the data and in acknowledgement of the anxiety parents face around school readiness, Sesame Workshop decided to make their personal Kindergarten Readiness Framework available to the public. This document is the culmination of over 45 years of their independent research on early learning. Previously, Sesame Workshop has used this guide as their internal framework to help ensure that the content they produce is developmentally appropriate and supports the educational growth of their young audience. The document is robust, and highly supported by current research.

It does an excellent job of breaking down and detailing twenty key school readiness skills that are thought to help promote success in school settings. Furthermore, each content area (language, math, science, health, emotional regulation etc.) is sectioned by age, and offers developmentally appropriate skills that a child should be achieving in years two through five.

Hopefully, this guide is able to answer some of your questions about kindergarten readiness, and the key skills your child needs before entering the classroom. However, it is important to note that children progress and develop at different rates. Therefore, if you find that your child isn’t preforming at a level described in the framework, don't  be alarmed. This is only a guide, not a diagnostic tool. It is also only one tool of many to help you determine your child’s readiness for school. If you are still left with concerns over your child’s kindergarten readiness, you should start by talking to your child's pediatrician about how your child is developing and acquiring skills.

Use of "Touch Screen Devices" by Toddlers

The  American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has long cautioned parents to limit media exposure of young children and updated their recommendations as recently as 2013.

A new study on this subject from a team led by Dr. Ruth Milanaik, an attending developmental and behavioral physician at the Cohen Children’s Medical Center of New York on Long Island, New York, looked at the very youngest children -- infants and toddlers up to age three -- to examine what the researchers called "touchscreen device usage" or TDU, to see how use of or exposure to such devices as smart phones and iPads impacts children's development.

Dr. Milanaik noted that the study was prompted, in part, by the observation that the "number one toy" that parents gave their children to play with at a newborn follow-up clinic was a smartphone. In an article on the study in Forbes, she noted that parents were substituting smart phones for books and other baby toys and stated, "Many parents did not seem to bring any other distraction for their children except the touch screen devices.”

The study found that the majority of parents questioned believed that TDU had educational benefits. However, developmental scores showed no significant difference between children who had access to such devices and those who did not. Furthermore, children who played non-educational games (such as Angry Birds or Fruit Ninja) on touchscreen devices had lower receptive & expressive language scores compared to children who engaged in other types of TDU. The authors caution that it is possible that children with slower language development may prefer playing non-educational games and that it would be inappropriate to conclude that lower scores in language were caused by TDU.

Dr. Paul Yellin commented,  "Dr. Millanaik’s quote may get to the heart of the matter. It may not be the devices per se, but rather the fact that they are used instead of reading or speaking to children. This is consistent with recent research demonstrating the importance of exposure to language in the early years."

This Friday, April 11th, Dr. Paul Yellin will be the Keynote Speaker at a forum titled Silent Crisis: The Impact of Chronic Stress and Trauma on Early Childhood Learning and Development. His presentation will look at a number of important considerations in the emotional, cognitive, and behavioral development of children under stress from the environment in which they live.

Starting with the famous "marshmallow experiment" and its follow-ups, he will look at how children's impulses are shaped by whether they have - or don't have - a reliable, trusted adult in their lives. He will discuss how early language skills are acquired and the importance of exposure to language in this process. He will then proceed to look at how the developing brain is impacted by stress, using images of brains in different circumstances to clarify his examples. 

Dr. Yellin will then speak about  neuroplasticity - rewiring our brains - to see how this ability is part of resilience, the ability to bounce back, recover, and ultimately overcome adversity. When children have a "turnaround" person in their lives, they are often able to succeed even if their early development was fraught with stress and lacked the language input and emotional support that is optimal for brain development. 

This event, with other speakers including Aletha Maybank, MD, MPH, Assistant Commissioner of the Brooklyn  Public Health Office of the NYC Department of Health; Evelyn K. Blanck, LCSW, from the NY Center for Child Development and Renee Wilson-Simmons, Dr.PH, Director of the National Center for Children in Poverty, is co-sponsored by Healthy Start Brooklyn, Central Harlem Healthy Start, and Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health Downstate New York Healthy Start, in collaboration with the Northern Manhattan Perinatal Partnership.

The forum will be held at the Oberia Dempsey Mult-Service Center, 127 West 127th Street in Manhattan and admission is free and open to the public. It begins at 9 a.m.

Recommended Reads: Tiger, Tiger by Lynne Reid Banks

Tiger, Tiger by Lynne Reid Banks

Grades: 4-6

Plot: The story opens with the capture of two wild tiger cubs from their jungle home, then follows them into the dank belly of a ship bound for ancient Rome. The stronger cub is immediately chosen to be trained for Caesar’s games, where he will be set loose in the coliseum to fight gladiators to the death. He is known to his tormentors as Brute. Caesar’s plans for the smaller cub, however, are quite different: he is to be a pet for Caesar’s coddled daughter Aurelia. She names him Boots, and while Brute learns to lash out at humans with all the ferocity he can muster, Boots lives a life of luxury as he is pampered by Aurelia and cared for by her slave and animal keeper, Julius. But Aurelia’s idyllic existence starts to tarnish when she is taken to the coliseum for the first time and sees the violence her beloved father considers entertainment. Meanwhile, her cousin Marcus is becoming jealous of Aurelia’s growing affection for Julius, and he plans a prank that backfires horribly. The climax of the book reveal’s Rome’s cruelties to Aurelia and even to Marcus, but it highlights the power of family and love as well.

Adult themes: The book is certainly appropriate for most kids nine years old and above. Be warned that animal lovers will find plenty of moments in the book to be cringe-worthy, however, and some of the people in the book are treated cruelly as well. Too-young readers may struggle with the idea of Aurelia’s father arranging her marriage. 

Our Take: This unique and wonderful book by one of our favorite authors isn't as well-known as her Indian in the Cupboard series, but we found it just as compelling. Banks paints a living, breathing portrait of third century Rome that will make readers feel as though they’d stepped into a time machine, and the characters, even the minor ones, are sumptuously vivid as well. Brief scenes, such as the one in which Marcus’s father wrings his hands over pleasing Caesar even though they are related, or when Aurelia must put on a show at the coliseum for her father’s subjects despite her true feelings, will impress upon young readers the absolute power of the Caesars more than any history book could. One thing we really love about Banks is that her language and vocabulary are rich and complex – there’s none of the watered-down prose one sees too often in young people’s literature. Most sophisticated words are clear in context, but parents may wish to challenge kids to keep a list of words they can’t figure out on their own to make this book even more enriching.

-Beth Guadagni, M.A.

Recommended Reads: Frindle by Andrew Clements

As the East Coast heatwave continues to bake New York, sitting somewhere cool with a good book seems like the ideal activity. So, we decided  it's a good time to revisit our occasional Friday series, Recommended Reads, where we review books of interest to children and young adults. Today's book is Frindle, by Andrew Clements.

Ages: 8 and up

Plot: Nick Allen, our hero, doesn't fall into any of the usual categories at school. He isn't a bad kid, or a particularly brilliant kid. Instead, he’s known as the kid who has lots of great ideas and isn't afraid to explore them, even if it means shaking things up. When Mrs. Granger, his fifth grade language arts teacher, tells the class that words mean what they mean because people say they do, Nick decides to test this idea by inventing his own word. Before long, all of his friends are using Nick’s word, saying “frindle” instead of “pen.” Soon the whole grade is using Nick’s word. Then it’s all over the school! The word starts an all-out war between Nick and Mrs. Granger, who has the deepest respect for the sanctity of language and bans “frindle” from the school. But the word’s popularity is such that Mrs. Granger, and even Nick himself, loses control of it. Nick’s word is soon in the local news, then on national television! Readers will love this realistic fantasy that shows the power of a simple idea. The end of the book is immensely satisfying and heart-warming.

Our Take: As lovers of vocabulary and language, we are impressed by this simple story’s ability to make big questions about linguistics accessible to youngsters. We’re also fans of the book’s main characters. Nick is realistic and likable, and Mrs. Granger is the kind of English teacher some adult readers will remember fondly and others will wish they’d had. Her mastery of English is deep and passionate, and she’s sharp as a tack and tough as nails. At the same time, she demonstrates that she truly understands and cares about young people and occasionally betrays a delightful sense of humor. The path of Nick’s word, which is soon used all over town, gets him on talk shows, becomes an international sensation, begets a line of products, and is eventually adopted into the dictionary, seems far-fetched, but the spread of “frindle” mirrors the way new language is adopted in the real world.

Author Andrew Clements, through Mrs. Granger, shares with his readers the widely accepted anecdote of the creation of the word “quiz,” allegedly invented by Irishman Richard Daly in response to a bet that he couldn't spread a nonsense word of his own invention through Dublin in 48 hours. Nick unconsciously follows in Daly’s footsteps. The success of Nick’s word leads him to be a bit humbled by the power of his ideas, but he’s not cowed for long and soon puts his knack for thinking up and implementing his thoughts to work in other ways. (After learning about supply and demand in his history class, for example, he uses the principle to rally his classmates and ends up improving the quality of food in the school cafeteria.) We were pleased, by the way, to note that while Nick is certainly an out-of-the-box thinker, he is always careful to follow established rules and to be respectful to the adults in his life. Parents and teachers will love this book because it is an introduction to sophisticated themes. Students will love it because it is a great story. But be warned: It just might start young readers hatching some revolutionary ideas of their own.

Early Exposure to More Words Leads to Academic Success

Head Start, the iconic preschool program begun in 1965, aims to erase the achievement gap between affluent children and poor children by providing preschool services to vulnerable populations. But erasing this gap has proven to be difficult.

A recent article in The New York Times looks at an exciting program in Rhode Island called Providence Talks, which builds on research published in 1995 by the late Drs. Betty Hart and Todd R. Risely, which suggested that children from wealthier families tended to outpace their lower-income counterparts even before preschool began. Providence recently won the $5 million Bloomberg Philanthropies’ Mayors Challenge for its proposal to build on Hart and Risely's findings to use a network of nurses, mentors, therapists, and social workers to teach pregnant women and families with new babies the importance of exposing their youngsters to lots of words.

Hart and Risely found that the critical difference between children from higher and lower income groups was how much parents talk to their children from birth to the age of three. In a study designed to investigate how parents at different income levels talked to their babies, they stumbled upon the realization that what really mattered was how much parents talked. Kids who did better in school by the age of nine had parents and caregivers who talked to them a great deal. Further, the amount of talk seemed to be more important than the type of talk.

Hart and Risely found that the number of words children heard seemed to vary a great deal by income level. Children whose families received welfare heard about 600 words an hour, compared to 1,200 words for babies in working-class families and 2,100 for babies in professional families. (Talk heard on television didn't count; in fact, television exposure appeared to be detrimental to students’ IQ and school performance.) According to Hart and Riseley’s results, at those rates a poor child would have heard 30 million fewer words by the time he or she turned three. Their findings indicated that increased exposure to words was associated not only with stronger vocabulary, but also with higher IQ and school performance. Provocatively, Hart and Risely argued that the correlation between word exposure and academic success was so close that if all children were exposed to the same number of words during the first three years of life the income gap would disappear entirely.

A summary of Hart and Risely's research findings entitled The Early Catastrophe includes a number of compelling charts.

This issue isn't new; we wrote about the importance of talking to your children just over two years ago, noting how parents and caregivers engaged with their cell phones are missing opportunities to speak to their child. Sometimes the research findings we report are difficult to replicate at home. Hart and Risely's findings are easy to apply. Talk to your child - early and often.

Photo: janectmck / Flickr

Musical Math

Flashcards and drills don’t feel like much fun to kids who are struggling to grasp academic facts. Tim Bedley, a veteran elementary school teacher, sought to combat this problem when he came up with the idea for his band Rockin’ the Standards, a talented trio who somehow manage to walk the line between being instructive and entertaining. Their surprisingly appealing math album contains tracks like “Parallel or Perpendicular?,” “The Place Value Rap,” and “The 6’s Song,” tunes designed to help students remember basic mathematical principles and skip counting (enormously helpful for multiplication) in a way that sticks. Both the song lyrics and album are available for download. In addition, Tim's own website contains helpful resources for teachers, including videos on teaching techniques for a variety of subjects.

The band has also released a language arts CD, featuring songs like “Plural Y and F,” and “Parts of Speech.” Trust us, it sounds dorky, but parents and teachers should not be surprised to find themselves singing snatches of Rockin’ the Standards’ songs even when there are no kids in sight.

Watch a video of Rockin' The Standards below:

Catch! Summary Ball Helps Students Build Retelling Skills

Summarizing a text can be difficult for younger students or poor readers. They may not know how to use sequencing language properly, or they might struggle to recall what they have read. A fun alternative to drilling students is to play Summary Ball.

Game play is simple. After finishing a book, the adult and the child face each other. (Classroom teachers may wish to allow students to play the game in pairs.) The adult begins the summary by saying a sentence about the beginning of the book. It is important to model good summarizing language, such as “In the beginning,” or “When the story starts.” Once the adult is finished with the sentence s/he tosses the ball to the child who provides the next sentence, then tosses the ball back to the adult. They should go back and forth until the story is complete. For more advanced students, adults may change the rules so that players may offer only half sentences if they wish, creating cliff-hangers that the other player must complete. Adults should continue to model good language used for sequencing information throughout, and children should be praised for using this language themselves.

Here is an example of the beginning of a game of Summary Ball played after reading Shel Silverstein’s The Giving Tree:

Adult: In the beginning of the story, there is a tree who loves a little boy.

Child: The little boy makes crowns from her leaves and eats her apples.

Adult: And the tree is happy. But then…

Child: ...they boy gets older and he doesn’t visit the tree as much.

Adult: And the tree is sad, until…

Here are some useful words and phrases to use while playing Summary Ball:

· At first,

· In the beginning,

· When the story starts,

· Then,

· Next,

· And,

· After that,

· But,

· Until,

· However,

· So then,

· As a result,

· Because of [event],

· Finally,

· In the end,

· At last,

Photo: Valentina Powers (modified) / Flickr Creative Commons

Award-Winning Audiobooks

We love audiobooks. Not only are they entertaining, they allow children whose decoding skills are less developed than their language skills to access important literary concepts, vocabulary, and background knowledge. Students who read along with audiobooks reap even greater rewards because seeing words while hearing them builds fluency. And of course audiobooks are perfect for summer, when a good story can make hours in the car fly by.

The selection of titles available in audio format is growing, making it difficult to choose good ones. For those unwilling to be stuck with a subpar recording of an otherwise great book, the Audie Awards are a lifesaver. The Audies are sponsored by the Audio Publishers Association and presented to recordings that demonstrate excellent narrative voice and style, vocal characterization, appropriateness of audio format, and enhancement of text. As well as the award for audiobook of the year, outstanding books are considered for awards in a wide variety of categories, like biography/memoir, classics, humor, business, and mystery. There are also categories for books read by the author and for multi-voiced performances. Young people should check out the finalists and award winners in the Teens, Children Under 8, and Children Ages 8-12 categories. The website of audiobook magazine AudioFile presents a list of finalists and winners in each category, and would-be listeners can access full reviews and even hear a short sample of texts that seem appealing.

In addition to the awards lists, AudioFile is host to a wealth of audiobook reviews. So before committing to that book intended to entertain your family in the car for the next 30 hours, consult this list to be certain you’ve picked a winner. 

Mentor Texts

Writing is a challenging task, and for many children it can be difficult to know where to begin. The use of mentor texts – books, stories, poems, articles, etc. written by professional writers – selected as models can provide young authors with a much-needed boost.

To begin, ask the child to select a text he really enjoys. (Or, if the child must complete a homework assignment, try to find a piece of writing that is similar to the goal of the assignment.) The student should reread the text and consider what makes it so appealing. Some children may need assistance in pinpointing the particular aspects of a text that make it so great – good word choices, flowing sentence structures, plot pattern, etc.

Once the student has generated some good observations, it’s time to get writing. She shouldn’t copy the ideas in the mentor piece, but rather should focus on trying to use the same elements she admires in it. For example, use of specific words that professional author included can make a piece more lively and vivid while simultaneously teaching vocabulary. Using someone else’s sentence structure to express a student’s own ideas will expose her to different ways to construct and join phrases and allow her to experiment and branch out as a writer.

Modeling writing from mentor texts is effective because it can liberate students from writer’s block and promote learning by doing. Pieces written with inspiration from models will be of higher quality than pieces written independently, and students are likely to retain the lessons they learn about good writing because they’ve had the opportunity to practice them.

Imitation is the highest form of flattery, and it can also be a great teaching tool.

Photo: Kristina/Flickr Creative Commons

Vocabulary Knowledge Scale

Memory is a strange animal indeed. Recent research suggests that people have difficulty differentiating between what they know and what is familiar to them unless they are specifically prompted to do so. Dr. Yellin likes to share a story about a conference about memory he attended in which the lecturer asked the attendees how many of them knew how a toilet worked. Most of the hands in the room went up. The lecturer then asked how many of them could explain it step by step. Nearly every hand went down. This is the difference between familiarity and mastery: Just because our memories have encountered a concept before does not mean that we understand it thoroughly.

The first step in transitioning from a recognizer to a master of a concept is to determine where the gaps are, and sometimes that realization takes some outside prompting. This issue is particularly prevalent in the issue of vocabulary. Many students will say that they know a word’s meaning only to be unable to define it when asked. Chances are they’re not being cheeky; their brains are just confusing familiarity with mastery. To help students combat this, a vocabulary scale can be a great tool. 

The scale is made up of four levels:

Level 1 – I can define that word and use it in a sentence.

Level 2 – I’ve heard that word before and know the gist of it. I may be able to give you some examples or use it in a sentence, but I can’t come up with a solid definition.

Level 3 – I’ve heard that word before, but I have no idea what it means.

Level 4 – Huh? I’ve never heard or seen that word.

If an adult working or talking with a student suspects that a student does not know a word, s/he should ask the student to determine which level the word is for them using the scale. Sometimes, simply discussing a Level 2 word is enough to help students construct a definition for it. Words from Level 3 and 4 should be taken in context, and preferably in the context of other sentences as well, deconstructed, and looked up.

The vocabulary scale is not intended to instruct students in vocabulary, per se. It can, however, make students more self-aware of their levels of word knowledge, making it even more powerful than any curriculum.

Photo: Horia Varlan/Flickr Creative Commons

School Visit: Mary McDowell Friends School

Your blogger recently had a chance to visit the elementary school program at this private special education school located in Brooklyn's Cobble Hill neighborhood in New York City and came away most impressed with what she saw and with the information provided by Deborah Edel, the Director of Admissions.

Mary McDowell Friends School began in the 1980's as a K-4/5 school and over the years has added grades and changed locations so that it now also has a middle school program for grades 6-8 in a separate building in nearby Carroll Gardens,  as well as a high school program in Brooklyn Heights that presently goes through 10th grade and is adding an additional grade each year.

Mary McDowell Friends School in Brooklyn

The students at Mary McDowell have a variety of learning issues, but the largest number are students with language based difficulties, ranging from dyslexia to expressive and receptive language disorders, as well as processing issues, including central auditory processing difficulties. A somewhat smaller number of students have been diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), primarily of the inattentive type. Mary McDowell would probably not be a good fit for students with major hyperactivity. The school also serves students with executive function difficulties and a small number of students with nonverbal learning disorders, including those who have issues with social cognition. Deborah Edel noted that learning difficulties seldom fit into neat categories and that some students have difficulties in more than one domain.

One of the aspects of the school that we found particularly appealing was its focus on the Quaker principles, called testimonies, reflected in the acronym SPICES: simplicity, peace, integrity, community, equality and stewardship. The students at Mary McDowell come from all kinds of religious affiliations, but the Quaker values transcend religion and infuse the culture of the school with a sense of responsibility towards others, to the school community, and to the community at large. 

Mary McDowell is not on the "approved" list maintained by New York State and families who seek public funding for tuition (now $49,000 per year) will need to seek reimbursement from their public school district.

Photo via Mary McDowell Friends School

Build Vocabulary and Background Knowledge with Podcasts

In an earlier post about building vocabulary, we wrote that reading widely is the best way to build new vocabulary. Words encountered in context are more likely to become part of a person’s vocabulary. Seeing a word is generally preferable to simply hearing it. However, today’s students seem to have particularly packed schedules, and they may have difficulty squeezing in non-required reading. Thankfully, there are an increasing number of podcasts on the rise that can expose students to great language, and great ideas, on the go.

Some of our favorite podcasts, all available for free download via iTunes (as well as other providers), are listed below. The average high school student and many inquisitive, thoughtful middle school students should be able to benefit from them. Parents should be sure to preview episodes if they have concerns about the ideas or language used; although two of the three are broadcast on National Public Radio, their target audience is composed primarily of adults. All three offer fascinating discussion of relevant topics, and can be enjoyed while a student is washing dishes, going for a jog, cleaning his/her room, or commuting to and from school or a practice, rehearsal, or tutoring session.

Enriching, Entertaining Podcasts

RadioLab

A surprisingly entertaining podcast about science.

This American Life

Weekly episodes share enriching stories about the week’s theme.

Stuff You Should Know

Provides investigation of fascinating, universal questions, like “Is it possible to control your dreams?”

Reading Beyond Books to Build Vocabulary

Studies repeatedly show that the best way to build vocabulary is through exposure to new words, and the best way to find new words is to read. People who read a lot, especially if they choose texts that span topics and genres, will encounter new words more frequently. Paired with the context provided by sentences and paragraphs, new words are more likely to stick than they are if studied in isolation or accompanied only by a definition on a flashcard.

Students averse to reading may balk at the idea that reading is the best way to improve their vocabularies. However, reading novels is not the only way to expose their minds to new vocabulary. There are an abundance of valuable reading options available that go beyond chapter books. Newspapers, for example, are a great way to pick up new vocabulary. Most newspapers are written at a level accessible to students in middle and high school, and the variety of topics covered throughout the various sections mean that there will almost certainly be something to interest just about anyone in an issue. (It should be noted that engagement is critical; an unengaged reader is unlikely to maintain the level of focus needed for vocabulary acquisition, so students should read about topics that genuinely interest them.)

Magazines can also make for great, educational reading. Check out some of the following options for:

Upper Elementary and Middle School

• Odyssey – variety of science topics
• Girl Zone – substantive reading material for girls
• Time for Kids – current events, local and world culture
• Sports Illustrated for Kids – various sports, featuring both young athletes and professionals

High School

• Teen Voices– substantive magazine for teenage girls
• Cicada– literary magazine for middle and high school students
• Teen Ink– online magazine containing fiction and non-fiction on a variety of topics
• Upfront– news magazine for teenagers published by the New York Times
• Time/Newsweek – written on a level most high school students can understand
• iaam.com – tips on money management, career options, college, etc.
• NextStepU – college and career advice

Photo: Robert Wallace/Flickr

How Brains Respond to Reading

Rejoice, bibliophiles! Recent neuroscience research suggests that reading fiction is more than just enjoyable; it can stimulate the brain in valuable ways and even positively affect a person’s behavior and social cognition. A recent article in the New York Times explains several fascinating phenomena discovered by scientists. 

Interestingly, reading words can activate parts of our brain usually reserved for handing input that our senses gather from the outside world. In one study, simply reading words referring to materials that people detect with their olfactory sense like “cinnamon” caused the areas of the brain that process smell to “light up.” In a different study, subjects saw words associated with smells (like “coffee”) and words associated with objects that have no strong smell (like “key”). Brain scans showed that the olfactory cortex responded only to the words associated with scents. Similarly, reading metaphors that evoke one’s tactile sense (e.g. “his leathery hands”) caused responses in the sensory cortex of test subjects’ brains. “The brain, it seems,” the article concludes, “does not make much of a distinction between reading about an experience and encountering it in real life.”  

Similarly, our brains react to the social situations presented in novels in much the same way they respond to the social situations we encounter in our daily lives. Understanding stories causes people to engage the same skills they use to figure out what makes their friends and family feel certain emotions or behave in a certain way. One study even found that increased exposure to fiction was correlated with better social skills, like empathy and interpersonal understanding. Similar findings emerged in a study of preschool children: Those who had more stories read to them tended to have stronger social skills and a better understanding of the people around them.

Most of us know that reading to young children, or encouraging older ones to read their own books, is valuable for myriad reasons. Neuroscience has just handed us another.

photo from Difei Li