International Baccalaureate

Written Language - Reading

Conceptual understandings:

The sounds of spoken language can be represented visually.
Written language works differently from spoken language.
Consistent ways of recording words or ideas enable members of a language community to communicate.
People read to learn.
The words we see and hear enable us to create pictures in our minds.

Learning Outcomes:

Related Ziptales Materials:

Learners:

select and reread favourite texts for enjoyment

Study the Specialised English Lessons Reading Module My Favourite Stories to springboard a discussion about favourite texts.

understand that print is permanent, for example, when listening to familiar stories, notices when the reader leaves out or changes parts

Use a familiar story such as The Three Little Pigs (Storytime) for learners to practise identifying when parts of the story have been left out.

participate in shared reading, posing and responding to questions and joining in the refrains

View the Specialised English Lessons Reading Module Making Reading Fun and use the activities to encourage learners to participate in shared reading.

participate in guided reading situations, observing and applying reading behaviours and interacting effectively with the group

Work in groups to take turns reading pages from selected Easy Readers with the voiceover turned off.

listen attentively and respond actively to readaloud situations; make predictions, anticipate possible outcomes

Encourage learners to make predictions using the Storytime worksheets Goldilocks and the Three Bears (4) and The Three Billy Goats Gruff (3).

read and understand the meaning of self-selected and teacher-selected texts at an appropriate level

Use the Storytime Multiple Choice Worksheets, and Worksheet 2 for Goldilocks; The Three Billy Goats Gruff and Little Red Riding Hood to assist learners with understanding the meaning of the texts.

Use meaning, visual, contextual and memory cues, and cross-check cues against each other, when necessary (teacher monitors miscues to identify strategies used and strategies to be developed)

Study the Specialised English Lessons Reading Module Learning to Read to assist with the development of reading strategies.

read and understand familiar print from the immediate environment, for example, signs, advertisements, logos, ICT iconography

Use the iconography from the Ziptales website to help learners read and understand the print used underneath the icons for each link.

make connections between personal experience and storybook characters

Make connections between personal experiences and characters using The Three Little Pigs Worksheet 3 (Storytime) and the Specialised English Lesson Reading Module Understanding Stories.

understand sound-symbol relationships and recognize familiar sounds/symbols/words of the language community

Use the Learning the ABC Module 1: The Alphabet and the Easy Reader worksheets to assist with the identification of sound-symbol relationships.

instantly recognize an increasing bank of high-frequency and high-interest words, characters or symbols

Study the Specialised English Lessons Reading Module Word Brainstorm to increase recognition of high-interest words.

have a secure knowledge of the basic conventions of the language(s) of instruction in printed text, for example, orientation, directional movement, layout, spacing, punctuation

Use the following Specialised English Lessons to reinforce the basic conventions of printed text:

Reading Module: Learning to Read
Writing Module: How to Write Sentences

participate in learning engagements involving reading aloud — taking roles and reading dialogue, repeating refrains from familiar stories, reciting poems.

View the Storytime fairytales with the sound off for learners to practise reading dialogue and repeated refrains aloud e.g. The Three Little Pigs: ‘Let me come in! Let me come in! Or I’ll huff and I’ll puff…”

Written Language - Writing

Conceptual understandings

People write to communicate.
The sounds of spoken language can be represented visually (letters, symbols, characters).
Consistent ways of recording words or ideas enable members of a language community to understand each other’s writing.
Written language works differently from spoken language.

Learning Outcomes:

Related Ziptales Materials:

Learners:

enjoy writing and value their own efforts

Use relevant Easy Readers Writing Focus worksheets (e.g. Is It Fun?) to promote an enjoyment of the writing process.

write informally about their own ideas, experiences and feelings in a personal journal or diary, initially using simple sentence structures, for example, “I like …”, “I can …” , “I went to …”, “I am going to …”

View Specialised English Lessons Spoken Language Module Likes and Dislikes and use Task 1 as a prompt for learners to write about the types of things that they like and dislike.

read their own writing to the teacher and to classmates, realizing that what they have written remains unchanged

Study the Specialised English Lessons Writing Module How to Fix Up Stories and then use Task 1 to assist learners with developing an awareness of editing skills.

participate in shared and guided writing, observing the teacher’s model, asking questions and offering suggestions

Use Task 1 from the Specialised English Lessons Writing Module What is a Sentence? to encourage learners to participate in shared writing by offering suggestions to ‘build’ a sentence.

write to communicate a message to a particular audience, for example, a news story, instructions, a fantasy story

View the Specialised English Lessons Writing Module Words are Everywhere to discuss how writing communicates a message.

create illustrations to match their own written text

Learners write a sentence about their favourite part of an Easy Readers or Storytime story and draw an illustration to match the text.

demonstrate an awareness of the conventions of written text, for example, sequence, spacing, directionality

Study the Specialised English Lessons Writing Module What’s On a Page? to promote awareness of the conventions of written text.

connect written codes with the sounds of spoken language and reflect this understanding when recording ideas

Use Specialised English Lessons Writing Module Word Families to study the written codes of common blends.

form letters/characters conventionally and legibly, with an understanding as to why this is important within a language community

Study Learn the ABC Module 2 to instruct learners to form letters of the alphabet conventionally and discuss why this is important within a language community.

discriminate between types of code, for example, letters, numbers, symbols, words/characters

View the Learn the ABC Module 1 to study the difference between upper case and lower case letters.

write an increasing number of frequently used words or ideas independently

Use the Easy Readers Writing Focus worksheets to assist learners with writing ideas independently.

illustrate their own writing and contribute to a class book or collection of published writing.

View the Specialised English Lessons Reading Module Using Pictures in Stories to inspire learners to illustrate their own writing.

Oral Language - Listening and Speaking

Conceptual understandings

The sounds of language are a symbolic way of representing ideas and objects.
People communicate using different languages.
Everyone has the right to speak and be listened to.

Learning Outcomes:

Related Ziptales Materials:

Learners:

listen and respond in small or large groups for increasing periods of time

View each Easy Readers story to provide opportunities for learners to listen and respond for increasing periods of time.

listen to and enjoy stories read aloud; show understanding by responding in oral, written or visual form

Watch the Puppet Plays and respond in oral, written and visual form by completing the extension activities worksheets.

memorize and join in with poems, rhymes and songs

Memorize and join in with the rhymes used in the Specialised English Lessons Reading Module Nursery Rhymes.

follow classroom instructions, showing understanding

Use the Easy Readers worksheets for learners to practise following instructions.

describe personal experiences

Ask learners to describe their personal experiences using themes from the Easy Readers and Storytime stories e.g. The Three Little Black Birds - Describe a time when you felt left out.

obtain simple information from accessible spoken texts/li>

Read aloud the questions from the Multiple Choice worksheets for the Storytime stories and encourage learners to locate the answers in the text.

distinguish beginning, medial and ending sounds of words with increasing accuracy

Assist learners with identifying the sounds within words using the worksheets for the Easy Readers.

follow two-step directions

Use the Ziptales website to direct learners to open a selected story e.g. Click on Storytime then choose a story.

predict likely outcomes when listening to texts read aloud

Encourage learners to predict likely outcomes when listening to the Storytime stories e.g. Wendy and the Dragon - What do you think is inside the egg?

use language to address their needs, express feelings and opinions

View Specialised English Lessons Spoken Language Module Likes and Dislikes to encourage learners to express their feelings.

ask questions to gain information and respond to inquiries directed to themselves or to the class

Use Specialised English Lessons Spoken Language Module Asking Nicely to promote the use of good manners when posing questions.

use oral language to communicate during classroom activities, conversations and imaginative play

Study Specialised English Lessons Spoken Language Module How to Work in a Group to equip learners with effective oral communication skills.

talk about the stories, writing, pictures and models they have created

View Specialised English Lessons Spoken Language Module Speaking in Front of a Group to build oral reporting skills.

begin to communicate in more than one language

Springboard interest in other languages using the Specialised English Lessons Spoken Language Module What Language Do You Speak?

use grammatical rules of the language(s) of instruction (learners may overgeneralize at this stage).

Promote the use of English grammatical rules using Specialised English Lessons Writing Module What is a Sentence?

Visual Language - Viewing and Presenting

Conceptual understandings

People use static and moving images to communicate ideas and information.
Visual texts can immediately gain our attention.
Viewing and talking about the images others have created helps us to understand and create our own presentations.

Learning Outcomes:

Related Ziptales Materials:

Learners:

attend to visual information showing understanding through discussion, role play, illustrations

Assist learners to attend to visual information by:

discussing how to complete the Learn the ABC worksheets
role playing the fairy tales in Storytime using masks
illustrating the events of the Storytime stories in order.

talk about their own feelings in response to visual messages; show empathy for the way others might feel

Reflect on the facial expressions of the characters in the Easy Readers and the Wendy stories in Storytime and talk about how they are feeling and why.

relate to different contexts presented in visual texts according to their own experiences, for example, “That looks like my uncle’s farm.”

Encourage learners to relate to the contexts presented in the Storytime stories e.g. Wendy and the Dragon – the beach, Wendy’s bedroom & house.

locate familiar visual texts in magazines, advertising catalogues, and connect them with associated products

Learners view the Specialised English Lessons Spoken Language Module Likes and Dislikes then locate things they like and dislike in magazines and catalogues.

show their understanding that visual messages influence our behaviour

Discuss how the appearance of the scary characters in the Storytime stories influence the behaviour of the other characters.

connect visual information with their own experiences to construct their own meaning, for example, when taking a trip

Use the Easy Readers animations to assist learners to connect the visual information within the story to their own experiences e.g. At the Playground, Rainbow Bay, The Awful Animal Zoo.

use body language in mime and role play to communicate ideas and feelings visually

View the Set 1 Easy Readers story It is Fun? then encourage learners to use mime to communicate the ideas presented in the story e.g. What would you do if you sat on a pin?

realize that shapes, symbols and colours have meaning and include them in presentations

Use the Set 1 Easy Readers story Oh No! to discuss the meanings of ‘red’ back spider (dangerous) and ‘black’ cat (bad luck).

use a variety of implements to practise and develop handwriting and presentation skills

Complete the Easy Readers and Learn the ABC worksheets to develop handwriting and presentation skills.

observe and discuss illustrations in picture books and simple reference books, commenting on the information being conveyed

Discuss how the illustrations in the Easy Readers and Storytime stories convey a message (e.g. Wendy and the Genie - Does the genie look scary or friendly?)

recognize ICT iconography and follow prompts to access programs or activate devices

View the Specialised English Lessons Reading Module Different Kinds of Books to learn about the iconography and prompts of the Ziptales website.

through teacher modelling, become aware of terminology used to tell about visual effects, for example, features, layout, border, frame

Talk about the visual effects of the Storytime home page e.g. featured stories, how the layout shows the two categories (fairy tales at the top and Wendy stories underneath), how the border expands when the cursor rolls over it.

view different versions of the same story and discuss the effectiveness of the different ways of telling the same story, for example, the picture book version and the film/movie version of a story

Compare the animated versions of the fairy tales in Storytime (e.g. Goldilocks and the Three Bears, The Three Little Pigs) to the picture book versions of the same stories.

become aware of the use and organization of visual effects to create a particular impact, for example, dominant images show what is important in a story

Build awareness of how the visual effects of the Storytime stories and Easy Readers (e.g. close up shots, animations) reflect important aspects of the story.

observe visual images and begin to appreciate, and be able to express, that they have been created to achieve particular purposes.

Assist learners to develop an appreciation of how visual images are created to achieve particular purposes using the Specialised English Lessons Reading Module Using Pictures in Stories.

International Baccalaureate