Talking propels reading and writing development. “It is through talk that children learn to follow and tell stories, understand logical sequences, recognize causes, anticipate consequences, explore options and consider motives… It is through talk that our children learn that their observations, hunches, and insights are interesting and worth developing. It is through talk that our …
Sharing stories in the classroom and at home is the most important way to support literacy, according to Gordon Wells, who conducted a 10-year study of oral language development in the home and at school at the University of California at Santa Cruz. “Constructing stories in the mind — or storytelling, as it has been …
The simple truth is: pets and animals add value to our lives. They fill us with happiness; we can physically feel their love for us when we feed and talk to them in the morning. When we return home in the evening they burst with excitement that we came back. Our pets give so much …
In her book Raising Lifelong Learners Lucy Calkins states, “Teachers know the value of talking about books… helping children to have conversations about texts, will help them to have conversations in their minds’ eyes as they read silently. This sort of learning into the story makes for active, powerful reading.” Powerful reading broadens the mind …
