Can you teach orthography to young children?

YES!...recently I had the wonderful opportunity to guide a group of inspiring, enthusiastic 4 and 5 year old learners. Together, we embarked on an incredible journey of 'digging' into the depths of the English language. 
Here is an account of our learning journey and our amazing discoveries!

Our inquiry: Words belong in families, connected by meaning and spelling. 

Teaching strategies: 

1. 'Concept attainment'- learners make their own learning discoveries. Usually presented as a Venn Diagram.

Prior: identify what needs to be discovered. During: learners think independently/to self about concept. After: learners reveal the reason why these words are connected. 

2. Think/pair/share- all learners are actively involved. Used frequently throughout the lesson in different formats and ways.

Prior to embarking on our journey, I likened words to people families and demonstrated how members of my family were linked: 'people live in families so do words'. 
We illustrated this idea, discussed how families are different/similar and how families are connected. 

First stop! Choose a starter base from the 'word bag' (play) (a familiar base that young children can easily relate to). We discussed the meaning individually, in pairs and with the whole group. 

Next stop! Delving into the word bag...Does this word (playing) belong to the family of (play)?
Think/whisper to your partner/let's share ideas with the group.

 
Moving on! More words to pull out of the bag...Do they belong or not? How do we know? 
(I also included a few other words (painted) (painting) that did not belong to the family of (play). These words were used to start another word family, created the following day.

And finally: Identifying the reason why these words belong in the family of (play); creating a word family chart; illustrating our understanding and then sharing our learning!

Plural suffixing: (-s) or (-es)

Understanding the 'essence' of the 

plural suffixing pattern.

During the past few years, teaching Grade One and Two students, I have often observed the children's puzzling expressions and seemingly random guesses when attempting to build a plural word from a singular word. 

I have observed students who on one day will use (-s) to build a plural word in their writing but on another day decide to choose (-es), or use an apostrophe (-'s), for no real reason but just to experiment! Or maybe their parents have shared some 'interesting rule' that they learned at school many years ago. The students can often demonstrate understanding of the difference between singular and plural and know that there are two choices, (-s) or (-es)...but which one? 

Over the years,  I have implemented and experimented with a variety of different strategies and ways to support children's learning of this concept. Critical to success, is ensuring  the children have established  a clear understanding of the terms singular/plural and how to count syllables, before embarking on this investigation. 

Depending of the children's current needs this could be covered in a couple of lessons or it might involve a much longer learning process. It has varied from year to year, from class to class group.

Through my own learning journey of understanding I have now changed the way I guide/teach/support  children through the process of understanding the two plural suffixes (-s) and (-es) and identifying the essence of this pattern.

Just like so many other lessons...it's a continuous learning journey for me as a teacher and the students!

During this learning journey the students will learn:

• through inquiry, discovery and collaboration.
• how to count syllables accurately, using a kinaesthetic approach.
• how to build and use a 'flow chart' to demonstrate understanding of the pattern.
• how to identify which plural suffix to use: the short form (-s) or the long form (-es).

Understanding how words are related through MEANING and SPELLING

Building 'word webs' through a collaborative approach.

Using a collaborative strategy, Round Table Word Webs, students will develop an understanding of the importance of connecting SPELLING with MEANING, 
the essence of the English spelling system. 

The students will have an opportunity to build a number of different word webs, by collecting words that all have a common base. This activity will help students to understand how and why words are related in 'word families' and how this essential knowledge demonstrates the key to the spelling.

Read on for further details regarding this collaborative activity by clicking on the link.