It is held that academic learning, beginning with speech mastery, is the natural, necessary, and most legitimate core of every child's nursery curriculum. And no subject matter is more academic in nature than the mastery of spoken and written language. However, as intellectually challenging as the learning of first language may be, it is generally…

Describes three areas in which speech and writing diverge sharply and urges teachers to free remedial students from the constraints of their spoken language. (DD)

Observational records presented in this report demonstrate the powerful influence that adults have on the developing literacy of young children. The report reveals the role that language plays in contextually providing adults' expectations for the extent of children's participation in written language events. Observations of 4-year-old fraternal…

Responds to an article appearing in an earlier issue of the journal that discussed the relationship between social-cognitive ability and writing skill. Reports on a study that investigated the relationship and found that social cognitive ability was more closely related to oral than to written performance. (FL)

Lists activities designed to improve students' skills in speaking, writing, singing, and grammar in a foreign language. These activities include talking about resolving a problem situation, writing a narrative in the foreign language being studied, listening to a song and associating its words with images, and engaging in conversation designed to…

Considers how the cultivation of patterns of spoken English can help basic writers become more aware of the structures of written English. Provides background information needed for discussing with students the similar characteristics of oral and written language. (HB)

The relationships that exist among the skills of reading, writing, speaking, and listening suggest a need for greater attention to oral communication processes in the formal instructional program. The extent of these relationships is such that four national associations drafted a joint paper stating that oral language competency is the basis for…

This book is intended for all educators who work with reading and writing skills. The book combines Howard Gardner's multiple intelligences and recent brain research on reading and writing with historical, anthropological, biographical, and psychological perspectives on literacy. It pulls the research together to show how teachers can engage…

Two minipresentations by second-language teachers describe their classroom efforts to instruct their students. The first article focuses on using computers to help students improve their writing skills. The second zeroes in on incorporating speaking activities into the daily life of the classroom. (CK)

The controversial oral English Bagrut examination is seen as a means to prepare students for their written Bagrut exam, specifically to encourage the active use of the English language. (LB)

Postage stamps provide second-language instructors with colorful and appealing materials to emphasize the four language skills and to introduce cultural topics. The use of visual materials in the classroom increases student interest, bestows a sense of the context of the language, and provides a specific reference point of stimulus. (41…

A college faculty member points out that allowing students to write and perform their own foreign language plays improves listening, speaking, and writing skills and exposes the students to new idiomatic expressions and conversational patterns used in contextually relevant and culturally specific situations. (Author/CB)

Proposes an instructional progression that goes from writing to speaking in learning English as a Second Language. Specific focus is on writing to improve speaking, games for writing to speaking, free writes from personal experiences, creating a scene, autobiographies, and argumentation. (Author/VWL)

Discusses four British educational practices dealing with reading instruction, written language, copybooks, and oral language and how they differ from American practices. (HTH)

Considers the role of oral language in reading and its implications for the primary grades teacher. Provides a number of activities that integrate reading, speaking, listening, and writing. (FL)