Strategies that teachers can use:
Teachers can:
Set the student up for success. Many students with EBD and/or language issues are used to failing and as a result are reluctant to ‘guess' or attempt work. You can:
- Work backwards from the answer. Offer a number of possible answers for the student to choice from. All answers should be correct options so regardless of what the student chooses they will be right. This guarantees success. The student can then explain why they have selected an answer. This results in increased confidence as the student achieves success( they don't realise they can't be wrong) and encourages them to attempt the next task where they may not have answers provided.
- Provide students with work with accompanying pictures. Too many words on a page and no visuals can be overwhelming and result in refusal. Cartoons are a good way to provide pictorial support that is age appropriate.
1. a) Students say: "I don't know what to write."
b) Teachers can:
• Give them a picture to stimulate ideas for stories. When asked to generate their own ideas most students report that they don't know where to start or can't think of their own ideas so would rather sit and do nothing
• Provide the student with scaffolds. This might be as simple as headings to help structure paragraphs or if might involve the beginning of sentences with the specifics of what details need to be added e.g. The ......................................................................................... dog was .............................. (describe the size and colour and anything unusual about it) (what is one thing the dog did.) (Who saw the dog doing this?)
• If looking at developing vocabulary (using verbs/adverbs/adjectives) and sequencing sentences together, teachers can look at using lego building (see video clip for a demonstration).
Teaching language to enhance explanations
Additional strategies that teachers can use:
2. Have vocabulary lists (with pictures next to words) ready that a student can refer to.
This will help especially when you are asking them to describe things.
- As you mark their writing circle a few places where they can add in details.
- Ask them to look at the vocabulary list and pick out one or two words they can add to the description. You may need to direct them initially e.g. ‘lets pick a word that will describe the way the man looks so that someone reading your work can have a clear picture in their mind'
3. Directly teach inferential skills.
- Start by giving sentences and working out what the situation may be that is being described
e.g. ‘The heat was intense as the flames flicked through the window'
- Ask the student to tell you what has flames? Where have they heard this word before? What did it related to? if they can't think of a situation provide them with 2 or 3 possible situations.
one they have the event continue by asking 'where do you think it is?' Highlight the word window to direct their thoughts.
4. Predicting: Teach students how to predict.
- Use clips and stop it at a crucial moment and ask "what will happen next?"
- You need to teach students to look for the signs to help with predicting. Tell them to look at the no
response show them a list of suggestions and get them to choose one and explain why they chose
that expression, look at what is happening in the background, think about what has happened and ask
them to draw on their own experiences or movies/tv shows they have seen to help think about what
might happen next.
5. Building on vocabulary: spider web
This is something where you can aim to add an extra layer of the 'web' each day.
1. Start with a word in the middle of the web. This can be the spider if you'd like.
2. Now get students to come up with any words that either describe a spider (you may need to give
them heading to help generate words i.e. what does it look like? How does it feel? where do you find
it? etc.)
3. Each word forms a different branch from the middle of the web (see below for example)
4. Next, ask students to look at each new word and think of something else this characteristic is
associated with or reminds them of. This word stems of this branch and starts another layer of the
web.
The aim is to make the web as big as you can and show students how words can have different meanings or associations.
E.g
