grade r and school readiness and writing skills in the foundation … · grade r and school...

GRADE R AND SCHOOL READINESS AND WRITING SKILLS IN THE FOUNDATION PHASE

Marésa Viljoen

[email protected]

mailto:[email protected]

http://www.saou.co.za/

“Die Reënboog-Werkboeke vir die Resepsiejaar (Graad R) maak deel uit van die Departement Basiese Onderwys se strategie om Suid-Afrikaanse kinders se skoolprestasie ‘n hupstoot te gee. Navorsing toon dat kinders wat voor Graad 1 aan stimulerende aktiwiteite blootgestel word,

deur hul primêre en sekondêre skooljare heen

akademies beter presteer.

Daarom fokus die Departement so

sterk op leer in Graad R.”

WANPERSEPSIES RAKENDE GRAAD R

WHAT DO WE KNOW ABOUT GRADE R

Gee die pas aan Setting the pace

• There has been a massive expansion of provision of Grade R.

• Problem: Poor quality in ECD centres and the fact that too many practitioners have a limited understanding of their role in child developement.

• Quality of Grade R, a quality curriculum AND quality teachers.

• Grade R should be aligned with pedagogical practice and not be a ”watered-down” Grade 1.

SCHOOL READINESS AND THE IDEAL PERSONALITY OF A TEACHER


There is NO ideal personality. Children do equally well and feel equally happy with the motherly person, the artistic -, the sporty -, the humorous - and the intellectual person.

Two important characteristics must be present:

KNOWLEDGE – knowledge of the child and the different components of the preparatory programme and

EMPHATHY – empathy towards the child, the school, education and the community.

GRADE 1: AGE OF ADMISSION


In South Africa children can either enter school when they are 5 years old, providing they turn 6 by the end of June.

Compulsary: 7 years.

Retention in Grade R.

SCHOOL RIPENESS VS SCHOOL READINESS


School ripeness is the level of physical and psychological development or ripeness which is an essential precondition for successful learning processes. This process happens biologically and cannot be precipitated.

School readiness, on the other hand, is a broad term and includes school ripeness, social ripeness and emotional ripeness.

School readiness can be stimulated by routine and confidence.

ROUTINE AND CONFIDENCE


• The unknown usually causes stress.

• Children have very little control over their environment.

• Unexpected changes deprive children of that sense of security and control, leaving a feeling of anxiety. Children will therefore try to find ways to take control of their environment, often in unacceptable ways like tantrums, defiance and inappropriate behaviour. Routine helps children make sense of what is happening around them and what to expect. Routine involves repetition. Repetition implies predictability. Adults find predictability boring - children thrive on it.

• Build their self-confidence by giving them the support they need to accomplish a task, rather than simply doing it for them.

CONCENTRATION


Children have to play outside. Studies have shown children who played outside can concentrate better.

Children ages 5-6 years old typically can attend to one activity that is of interest to them for around 10-15 minutes at a time. As a guideline research suggests using a child’s age as a general starting point for the number of minutes a child can attend to a single assigned task… so 5 minutes for a 5 year old, 7 minutes for a 7 year old, etc.

MEMORY


Visual and auditory memory:Visual memory demands the ability to see something and remember it visually. Children who struggle with this will struggle to write correctly from the board.Auditory memory is the ability to interpret and do what you have heard, correctly. A child of two has a memory span of 2 - if you give 2 numbers, they should, 75% of the time, repeat it correctly. A child of 3 should have a memory span of 3 numbers etc.

Visual and auditory memory - necessary for successful reading.

FACTORS THAT INFLUENCE SCHOOL READINESS


1. Physical development (Age, health)

2. Language ability - the child must be able to speak, understand and express his thoughts and his needs in words.Language confusion can arise when a child comes into contact with more than one language and has not mastered the ability of the two languages to learn separately.



3. Social Development: The child's ability to adapt himself to new situations and to build positive relationships with peers and with the teacher, is largely determined by language ability, social pre-school experience and home environment.3.1 Generosity/kindness/unselfishness

3.2 Empathy

3.3 Fairness

3.4 Helpfulness

3.5 Cooperation

3.6 Friendship



4. Emotional factors

• Confident

• Spontaneous

• Perseverance

• Accept challenges

• Self-esteem

• Independent

• Responsible

• Initiative

• Problem solving

• Taking decisions

• Control of emotions



5. Personality factors

Introvert - shy, reserved, less social and quiet,

Extrovert - impulsive, talkative, social and lively. However, it should never be assumed that the extrovert is more ready for school than the introvert.



6. Secure and safe

The child will experience the school and everything in the school as threatening if he/she feels insecure.

7. Normative values

It is expected of the child to have a basic concept of the acceptable moral norms and values. This aspect can also influence the degree of school readiness on different levels.



8. Handling of conflict

A slip of the foot you may soon recover,

but a slip of the tongue you may never

get over.

Benjamin Franklin

No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.

How people treat you

is their choice; how you react is yours.

I cannot always control what

goes on outside. But I can

always control what goes on inside.

It is not about WHAT is said...it

is all about HOW it is said.



9. The ability to balance Static balance - 10 seconds.

10. Ability to complete tasks

SCHOOL READINESS AND THE PARENT

Parents can assist:

Help the child develop solid routine.

Discipline starts at home.

Play.

Read.

Communicate.

Explain certain basic, especially large-motor exercises, to the parents so that the learners can practice at home, eg. balancing on a straight line on the floor.

SETTING THE PACE – GEE DIE PAS AAN

REASONS FOR A QUALITY PROGRAMME


• Differentiation! It is expected that all children should reach a certain level. Stronger learners achieve below their abilities while too high expectations are laid down to weaker learners. • To ensure that not too much attention is paid to two-dimensional

exercises at the expense of motor, fine-motor, visual and auditive exercises.• To ensure that the programmes are more diagnostic of nature. Learners

are taught things and are not permitted to make mistakes. It is only when a learner is allowed to experiment and to make mistakes that a problem can be identified. • To ensure that the teachers know exactly why certain activities are

being performed and the connection to formal teaching.• To ensure the transition to formal work happens gradually.

KNOW THE CHILD: BASELINE ASSESSMENT


1. Get to know the child better.

This is done by observation - baseline assessment.

The Grade R learner is not subjected to tests, the teacher depends on observation.

BASELINE ASSESSMENT: OBSERVATION


Communication with parents

• be unprejudiced;

• be willing to listen;

• be tactful, especially when questions are asked;

• display sensitivity for what is not said by the parent;

• display discretion when information is given;

• know when to keep quiet;

• mutual RESPECT



Communication with the learner

Personal conversation for at least one minute every day with each learner in the class. It will give you a better understanding of:

• the child’s level of language development,

• how the child experience school;

• the child’s insight; and

• his emotional ability.

This conversation can happen at any time during the day or during any lesson.



Observation of child’s work

• Comprehension

• Task completion

• Utilisation of space

• Laterality, midline crossing etc.

• Fine-motor co-ordination

• Always give clear instructions and ensure that everyone understands the instruction

• Give assistance and correct at the beginning but allow learners to work on their own thereafter

• The learners complete the assignments on their own; only help when a learner asks for help. All the learners will not complete the assignment correctly.



• Recording of continuous assessment

• The √ X

• This method of work can be used with written commentary to define the level of achievement.

• CAPS guidelines.

xx


• Grade R: All preparatory exercises that eventually lead to writing are spontaneous play. Opportunities to draw and paint have much more value than formal writing instruction patterns.

• Readiness for writing as such is enhanced by a variety of activities; in the first instance to enhance muscle control and hand-eye-coordination, secondly, by the use of writing patterns as pre-exercises for print, and in the third place, by the tracing of letters and words, which is also a form of preparatory work.

MOTOR SKILLS, CONCENTRATION AND PROMOTING OF WRITING READINESS

HANDWRITING AND RHYTHM


In this phase the child draws the movements on paper. The children choose the shapes that they want to draw. Simple songs may be sung. Examples of the three triple beat drawings


Examples of the four beat drawings

HANDWRITING AND RHYTHM



Low muscle tone: develop trunk muscles and hand - eye coordination to stimulate pre- writing skills :

Shaving cream/sand/finger paint. The child learns regarding resistance of the working surface and how hard he or she should press on the painting or drawing instrument

Walk like a… /crawl like a…./wheelbarrow play: It helps to develop bilateral coordination, muscles and shoulder stability.

Dough and pegs: stimulate bilateral integration, fine motor skills, strengthening hand and thumb muscles, strengthen bilateral coordination, in-hand manipulation and finger isolation.


Finger warm-up activities:

• Put on imaginary writing gloves: Pull on the ‘gloves’, applying firm pressure to the fingers and back and palm of each hand. This exercise provides tactile feedback and prepares the muscles for movement.

• Spider push-ups: Place finger tips together and bend and straighten the fingers while pushing the finger tips against each other.

• Inchworm: Using a tripod grip, move the fingers along the pencil from one end to the other. Do not use the other hand to hold or support the pencil.

• Piano: Drum the fingers on the desk as if playing a piano. Ensure each finger tip touches the desk.



Shoulder warm-ups prepare the arm for writing and may help to release tension in the neck and shoulders.

• Shoulder shrugs, Crocodile snaps, Butterflies: movement from the shoulders.

• Chair push-ups: Sit up straight in the chair with hands gripping the sides of the chair, thumbs facing forwards and fingers pressing against the underside of the chair. Using the strength in the arms, push the bottom up from the chair. The feet should come up from the floor.

• Desk push-ups: Start with hands flat on the desk, with the tips of the thumbs and index fingers facing each other to create a triangle. Bend the elbows to bring the nose towards the triangle and then push up with the arms to straighten the elbows again.

DEVELOPMENTAL STAGES OF HANDWRITING


• Learners should always start with big perceptual motor movements (from the shoulder) which should be reduced to finer movements of wrists and fingers.

• Write new letter in correct way on white/chalk board (large).

• Learners repeat using a straight arm. (Shoulder movement)

• Repeat same movement, with closed eyes.

• Repeat writing letter on desk, using finger. (forearm)

• Learners now use wax crayon – large piece of paper.

• Last step – workbook.

TEACHING HANDWRITING

xx


Correct writing position has direct influence on quality of writing.

1. Upright, directly in front of writing surface.

2. Shoulders should be same height and line should be parallel to desk.

3. Chest may NOT press against desk/table.

4. Eyes should be more or less 30 cm from writing surface.

5. Legs should not be crossed.

6. Feet should be flat on floor.

7. Left hand should hold book/paper.

CORRECT POSTURE AND WRITING POSITION

PENCIL GRIP


If an incorrect grip has been established, it is almost impossible to change.

Tri-pod or not?

For legibility the distance between words in a sentence should be more or less equal to the height of the body of a letter. These spaces will vary according to the size of the writing. Between sentences the spaces should be more or less 1½ times the height of the body of the letters.

CAPS AND GRADE R

Strips containing examples of writing are a great aid in lower grades. If such strips are used, each learner should have his or her own copy.

The example on the slip provides guidance regarding shape, slant, size and spacing of letters and words.

If the learner keeps the slip just above the line of writing, moving it down as the page is filled, the learner will not copy his or her own writing, but the correct example. This facilitates remedial work as the learner can immediately be made aware of errors.

To ensure that shape, slant, size and spacing of letters in all examples are correct, the person who writes the examples should be very skilled. If this is not the case, approved printed examples should rather be used.

WRITING STRIPS

MEANINGFUL TRANSITION FROM GRADE 2 TO 3 TO 4


Although writing as primary functional skill should be emphasised throughout the primary school, writing instruction is especially important in the Foundation Phase. The emphasis is on skill and bringing the child's writing as close as possible to the desired standard, while taking his or her temperament and perceptual motor development into account. One must pay attention to aspects such as the forming of letters and figures, size, spacing, clarity and neatness.

Learning basic writing skills may never become more important than the main purpose of writing, namely functionality. Right from the start in Grade 1, the purpose of acquiring basic writing skills and functionality, should simultaneously be achieved. As soon as possible, even though the quality may not be up to standard, the child should be given the opportunity to use writing for something, in other words, a functional application. In the Intermediate Phase it is important to remember that writing is not presented as a separate unit, but frequent checking of writing in all subjects results in continued neat writing.



All writing in subjects and exercise books is functional. (The only possible exception is when writing techniques are taught during formal writings periods and writing is practised in writing exercise books.) Functional writing can initially be done on blank paper with a single guideline. Do not limit young children by forcing them to write on guide lines. The lines will only result in the children paying more attention to how they are writing instead of what they are writing.



4 PARTS OF WRITING INSTRUCTION


1. Formal writing instruction, especially in the lower classes, when the following is taught: correct shapes of letters, slant, relative height, size of writing, links between letters, spacing of elements and letters, parallelism, spacing, continuity, breaking off of words, etc.

2. Developing a decent writing speed once the child has made sufficient progress in formal writing and is able to spell and read.

3. The functionality of the child's writing ability (functional writing) should be the continuous purpose of the learning of writing techniques.

4. Remedial writing instruction for individual and/or groups of learners for whom this might be necessary.

LEFT AND RIGHT HANDEDNESS


More than 10% of learners in your class will be left-handed. Two thirds of these learners can learn to write with the right hand without any negative effects. For one third it will be very negative to change the preferred hand.

When the right-handed learner writes, the right arm moves naturally from the middle line away from the body, but for left-handed learners, the left arm moves towards the body. When writing print, the edge of the book should be parallel to the edge of the desk, but the right hand edge of the paper should be to the left of the middle line of the body. For cursive writing the paper should be at an angle of 50° to 60° to the edge of the desk (which is considerably more than the 15° to 20° for right-handed learners).

CURSIVE WRITING


WORST MISTAKES THAT WE MAKE IN INSTRUCTING HANDWRITING


• Worksheets;

• Teachers expecting perfect layouts;

• Expecting all children to be at the same stage of development;

• The teacher has the wrong attitude towards children’s marks (scribbles);

• A teacher sitting at the desk while instructing handwriting.

Gee die pas aanSetting the pace

PARENTS AND THEIR MISTAKES

Parents should give children the opportunity to be themselves, to learn from experiences and mistakes.

Two mistakes you should never make:• Never break your child’s self esteem and• Do not typify your child


MOTHERS SHOULD...

… give their child wings while, at the same time, be a safe haven:i. Give children confidence and believe in them.ii. Give them independence and acknowledge their right to complete tasks on their own.iii. Allow children to make their own mistakes. Do not tell them they can not climb high, rather be close if they might fall. Give them wings but be the safety net. The biggest favour you can do your child is to teach him / her to survive the storms in life.


FATHERS, CHILDREN NEED YOUR ...

… time and physical closeness.Put them on your lap, tell them stories, read to them, let them tell you what they did/saw/hear. Teach them how to take care of books. Let them “read” pictures.Children want to know that their dad accept them, that they are good enough.

1. Teach parents to give smaller portions of healthier snacks.

2. DO NOT teach your child to read/write. OR expect the teacher to do that!

3. NO written homework in Gr R.4. Handling of conflict.5. Discipline starts at home.


WHAT IS EXPECTED OF PARENTS?

6.Children must leave home neat.7. Punctuality.8. Read communication/newsletters.9. Send money in an envelope with the child’s name and details.10. Mark clothes/bags etc.11. Communicate with teacher when your child is ill/absent.12. We do not have to like all people, BUT we do have to respect all people.


WHAT IS EXPECTED OF PARENTS?

grade r and school readiness and writing skills in the foundation … · grade r and school...

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