Setting Up For Success

Within a typical classroom there will be students who are at different stages in their learning and who possess diverse learning styles. A range of strategies (visual, auditory and kinaesthetic) is therefore provided to help address the individual language learning needs of students. This resource:

1 Describes strategies for providing a supportive learning environment

2 Highlights the curriculum area related to a particular language skill

3 States the skills a student requires to achieve in this particular curriculum area

4 Gives an example of a student who is having difficulty in this area

5 Lists strategies the teacher can use to build these skills in their classroom.

Many of these strategies were provided by teachers and are commonly used in classrooms.

Creating a Climate of Confidence

The following strategies will create a climate of acceptance that will foster students' confidence in listening:

• Place those who have difficulty listening or hearing close to the front
• Ensure there is good light on your face and that all students can see you clearly
• Keep instructions short and simple
• Use a signal the class understands when they are to stop what they are doing and listen
• Allow sufficient time for a student to process information and formulate a response
• Encourage students to listen to stories, songs, chants and poems
• Tell stories without a book and encourage students to join in repetitive phrases
• Provide opportunities for hearing and retelling familiar stories
• Introduce a variety of music-related activities
• Provide a CD player or listening post with a selection of stories, songs or rhymes
• Link to activities used at home, such as sound lotto, rhyme and rhythm games.

The following strategies will create a climate of acceptance that will foster students' confidence in speaking:

• Develop and maintain routines - they provide a safe learning environment
• Provide regular and varied opportunities for students to speak and ensure all students have a turn
• Allow sufficient time for less confident students to make contributions
• Structure opportunities for students eg, provide a sentence framework into which they put the missing word
• Encourage the use of word games at home
• Include repetition - this allows students to develop prediction skills and builds confidence in making contributions
• Prepare students - they are more likely to contribute when they know what is coming, and where other students are providing models
• Arrange for peer tutoring using a buddy who is strong in language.