An instructional prereading using American Sign Language (ASL) was effective in improving the ability of 7 prelingually deaf children (ages 11 and 12) to understand and retell a story after reading it in print. A six-step procedure for using the ASL technique is explained. Other applications of the technique and its appropriateness for public…

This paper describes the process of "contemplation writing" for one urban sixth-grade class. The paper describes the daily give-and-take between teacher and students, relates the way in which the teacher instructed his students about how to concentrate and observe before the writing process actually began, discusses the writings that…

Discusses the philosophy of publishing high school student writings in "English Journal," and calls for submissions. Prints a student short story, analyzes its merits, suggests ways to use it for teaching, and approaches to revision. (JG)

The use of the language experience approach to teach readiness and beginning reading and writing skills in preschool programs is explored. The value of this holistic approach is illustrated with a case study of a preschool child with a severe expressive language delay and phonological disorder. (DB)

This article identifies speech and language goals to improve the safety of school-age deaf children. These include vocalizing or clearly communicating "no!"; communicating a general physical description of another person; communicating their own first and last name, address, and telephone number to a hearing person; and communicating about…

Thirty-five students (age 5-21) with mental retardation completed a 10-lesson curriculum on verbal and signed vocabulary acquisition. Therapist only and therapist plus video methods resulted in higher spoken and manual sign production of targeted items compared to the video only method. Receptive vocabulary was not improved. (Author/JDD)

Stories were read daily at school and home to 32 children, aged 3-10, with severe learning difficulties. After eight months, almost all of the children showed improvements in verbal comprehension greater than gains of a comparison group, and the older children showed improvements in verbal expression. (Author/JDD)

This paper suggests classroom activities to develop awareness of language and the sociolinguistic aspects of language proficiency and to help eliminate language prejudice. The exercises are presented in seven categories: (1) examination of connotative and denotative language, names and nicknames; (2) dialects and slang and the status attached to…

An extracurricular program in an Australian university French language program that brings together adults of varying ages and nationalities for oral language development activities is described. The program uses improvisation, psychodrama and role playing, and suggestopedia all together to develop a theme or in alternation, for creativity and…

This instructional guide for Alberta's (Canada) secondary school program in French second language instruction presents instructional plans and describes specific classroom techniques and activities for listening comprehension and oral production. Section 1 outlines the overall objectives and structure of the program. Section 2 addresses the…

Strategies to engage middle school students in listening to stories, retelling them, and improving their communication and social skills are offered. For students with disabilities, teachers should adapt strategies, keep individualized education program goals in mind, and focus on activities that are meaningful to the student. (DB)

Theoretical insights into teaching English as a second language developed in recent years are brought together in a broad methodological approach called the balanced activities approach. The book aims at providing a theoretical background to the approach as well as detailing practical instructional techniques. The first of the three parts of the…

A study of advanced English learners' use or avoidance of English idioms is described. The investigation looked at whether the subjects would attempt to use English idioms in a translation task containing idioms, or would instead use non-idiomatic synonyms or paraphrase. It also looked at which idioms are used and which are avoided: those that are…

Intended especially for teachers who might be a little intimidated by the art of playwriting, this guide provides a step-by-step plan for using drama in the classroom in grades 4-8 to build children's language arts and thinking skills. The guide features a series of engaging activities where students will learn how to write dialogue, set scenes,…

This instructional guide for Alberta's (Canada) secondary school program in French second language instruction presents instructional plans and describes specific classroom techniques and activities for listening comprehension and oral production. Section 1 outlines the overall objectives and structure of the program. Section 2 addresses the…