Engaging in frequent, meaningful conversation during the early years of schooling is foundational for children's literacy development. Specifically, developing oral language through daily conversations is essential for language comprehension, and eventually, reading comprehension. In this article, we discuss how teachers can use the…

In this article, the authors present a literacy research project in which humor, popular culture, and improvisational comedy (improv) are viewed as curricular resources to engage students' minds "and" bodies in multimodal story building, following a posthuman assemblage theory approach to literacy learning. This approach takes students'…

Oral language development facilitates print literacy. In this article, we focus on the ways in which teachers can ensure students' speaking and listening skills are developed. We provide a review of some time-tests classroom routines as well as some that can be enhanced with technology.

Language production, or output, is not simply a product to demonstrate learning but part of the learning process. The output hypothesis, a theoretical model of second-language acquisition, proposes that second-language learners must produce the language they are learning in order to obtain a level of proficiency similar to that of native speakers.…

Discusses four books that can help teachers offer students opportunities to engage in purposeful oral language activities. (PRA)

Children arrive in classrooms with varied background knowledge, which means that teachers must select instructional methods, materials, and techniques to meet multiple needs. A carefully planned approach that includes direct and explicit instruction--as well as extensive opportunities for reading, writing, speaking, and listening--can help…