Using Dr. Seuss’s ABC in the classroom

By Torun Sørbøen

Dr. Seuss’s ABC

Dr. Seuss’s ABC (1991) is an alphabet picture book with a rhyme for each letter from A to Z, or rather, from “Aunt Annie’s alligator” to “Zizzer-Zazzer-Zuzz”. Most of the rhymes follow the same pattern, with a few exceptions, such as this: “Big X, little x,?”, followed by a some words or a some words beginning with that letter or an alliteration, and ending with “X…x…X”. There is a related illustration accompanying each stanza. Dr. Seuss’s works are often full of nonsense words and fantasy creatures. This book uses quite a few, such as a “tuttle-tuttle-tree” or a “duck-dog”.

Dr. Seuss’s ABC in the classroom

When working with Dr. Seuss’s ABC in the classroom, one can find many possible aims on which to focus. Some of the most relevant aims are these from the list of aims after Year 2 from the English subject curriculum (Udir.no, 2013):

“Participate in simple rehearsed dialogues and spontaneous conversations related to local surroundings and own experiences”(p. 6):

There is a Wh-question in each poem ("what begins with X?”), a type of question is usually more difficult to answer than a Yes/No-question or an Or-question. Here however, the question is repeated, only switching out the letter in question, giving the pupils more repetition with this type of question, as well as providing an answer. This might make for a good way of introducing a Wh-question to the pupils. Furthermore, the structure of the sentence is the same as in Norwegian, which can help Norwegian learners. To increase the challenge, the teacher can also ask the pupils to come up with other words that begin with the letter.

“Find words and phrases that are common to English and one’s native language” (p. 5) or as it sais in the aims after Year 4: “Find similarities between words and expressions in English and his/her own native language” (p.6):

As well as having similar sentence structures, there are also many transparent words for language learners with Norwegian as their native language, which is positive for understanding and noticing similarities between the languages.

“Listen for and use English phonemes though practical-aesthetic forms of expression” (p. 6):

The book structured with a repeated pattern throughout the book, and with humorous rhymes, silly words with matching illustrations. This makes the book very accessible for young language learners. One can use only one or two of the poems, or work with the whole alphabet systematically. Some words that might not be particularly frequent or useful for young pupils to learn, such as barber and neckties. However, the focus in these poems is to play with sounds. Chorus reading with a focus on pronunciation could be a good exercise to use when working with these poems in the classroom.

References

Munden, J. & Myhre, A. (2015). Twinkle Twinkle. 3^rd edition. Oslo: Cappelen Damm Akademisk.

Udir.no. (2013). Udir.no - English subject curriculum - Hovedområder. Retrieved 16 August 2015, from http://www.udir.no/kl06/ENG1-03/Hele/Hovedomraader/?lplang=eng

Seuss, D. (1991). Dr. Seuss's ABC. An Amazing alphabet book! A Bright and Early Board Book. New York: Random House.

Every Time I Climb A Tree

By Heidi Alida Dørmænen 

I have chosen the poem Every time I climb a tree by David McCord (Paschen, 2005). I am going to give a short introduction to the theme and characters in the poem, before I discuss how the poem can be used in relation to the competence aims in LK06.

The poem is written with a single speaker in 1^th person. The poem is about a boy or a girl who tells the story about when he or she climbs a tree. The theme of the poem is very typical for children, and it is easy to understand what it is about. I think the students could benefit from working with a poem like this, because they could relate to the person and the story in the poem very easily.

In the National Curriculum for Knowledge Promotion in Primary and Secondary Education and Training, LK06, one can find several competence aims in English concerning literature and poems. I have chosen to focus on three of the competence aims that the students are suppose to accomplish after their 4^th year.

·      Find similarities between word and expressions in English and his/her own native language.

·      Understand the main content of nursery rhymes, word games, songs, fairy tales and stories.

·      Participate in presenting nursery rhymes, word games, songs, short plays and stories in English. (Utdanninsdirektoratet)

The poem consists of several transparent words, which gives the students an opportunity to find similarities between English and their own native language. Some of these words are tree, leg, knee, bee, egg, things, good. The use of these transparent words can also make it easier for the students to get a felling of what the poem is about before they start to analyze or translate the poem. When the students begin to analyze the poem, it is possible to differentiate the tasks to the group of students after their levels, if that is needed. Some of the students could look after words ending in the same way, and that makes rhymes in the poem, while some students could look after particular characteristics for different types of poems.

Reading a poem can be done in many different ways. As mentioned over the poem consists of rhymes, and these rhymes can help making the reading of the poem more interesting. For instance it could be a good idea to begin with choral reading of the poem. With choral reading the teacher can make sure the entire group of student get a chance to hear how the word is pronounced correctly. The length of the poem is not so long, and since it consists of three stanzas, the students have a chance to memorize the whole poem, or at least one of the stanzas. Then they have the opportunity to play with where to pace, pause, pitch, the power of their voice, emphasis, and also the inflection if they make a performance out of their poem (Gamble, 2013, p. 238).

Sources:

Gamble, N. (2013) Exploring children’s literature. London: SAGE Publications Ltd.

Paschen, E. (red.). (2005) Poetry Speaks to Children. Naperville, Illinoise: Sourcebooks, Inc.

Utdanningsdirektoratet, National Curriculum for Knowledge Promotion in Primary and Secondary Education and Training: http://www.udir.no/kl06/eng1-03/Hele/Kompetansemaal/kompetansemal-etter-4.-arstrinn/?lplang=eng (sourced 17.09.15, kl.14:03)

- How should we teach grammar?

Descriptivism is term that is used to describe and analyse how a language is spoken, especially in peoples everyday. Descriptivism is examining how language and grammar is ever changing and dependent on the environment and culture. According to the movie “Grammar revolution” most linguists acknowledge themselves as descriptivists. On the other hand the viewer is introduced to the term prescriptivism, which is a contrasting approach to grammar teaching and usage. While descriptivism is more concerned with how the language is used daily, prescriptivism pays more attention to how the language should be used. For that reason a teacher following this approach would focus on giving the students explicit guidelines for how they should begin their sentences. The focus would be on memorization and to standardize the students English, instead of getting a conceptual understanding of the grammar structure. A teacher following a descriptive approach would on the contrary urging the students to find multiple alternatives, and tell them to observe how the structure changes. 

The movie states that prescriptive ways of teaching grammar have faded, which has to do with the progressevist movement. Progressivism focuses on the practical use of grammar, which is more similar to the descriptivsm. This will give the students a more conceptual understanding of grammar and providing them with a language about their language. The students will in theory be more motivated when they understand the practical usage of grammar. The teacher´s role is to be a mentor and give the student’s guidance, rather than being an authority that directly transmits information to the students. A prescriptive approach is in contrary, intended to train the students skills in standard English, which by many linguists recognised as the key to succeed in society. From my point of view I will have to agree with the linguists stating that explicit grammar teaching is the right path; 

“It empowers the students to feel that they can be clear and articulate and communicate effectively. It provides the students with a vocabulary that allows them to describe their own language”.

When I was thought grammar through drills and exercises I didn’t see the practical use of grammar. Hey, I am able to communicate in Norwegian why should I learn about nouns and adverb? I found it really boring and subsequently I skipped many of the Norwegian classes. I can imagine that a lot of young students to have the very same attitude towards explicit grammar teaching today. It might be more exciting if the children conceptual understanding through practical experiences from the real world. Additionally I must emphasise that I believe prescriptivism makes a valid point underling the importance of standard English. In todays modern society most citizens are members of different social groups, and should therefore adjust their language thereafter.