Third and fourth classes

Strand:

Receptiveness to language

Strand unit:

Oral language: developing receptiveness to oral language

The child should be enabled to

• experience the teacher's use of challenging vocabulary and sentence structure
• listen to, retell and tape a narrative or a description, taking turns giving the account
• give and follow instructions on how to perform a particular task or process
• become increasingly aware of the importance of gesture, facial expression, tone of voice, audibility and clarity of enunciation in communicating with others
• use mime to convey ideas, reactions, emotions, desires and attitudes
• discuss the use and effect of music, sound effects and non-verbal clues in audio tapes, video tapes and film clips.

Strand unit:

Reading: developing strategies

The child should be enabled to

• use more than one strategy when reading unfamiliar text
  grapho/phonic, syntactic, contextual
• identify unfamiliar words by reference to word parts, prefixes and suffixes
• continue to self-correct reading errors
• become an increasingly independent reader
• understand the relationship between text and illustration
• refine his/her listening skills through hearing the teacher read aloud.

Strand unit:

Writing: creating and fostering the impulse to write

The child should be enabled to

• experience a classroom environment that encourages writing
  class library
  writing corner
  displays of writing
  anthologies of his/her and others' writing
  captioned drawings
  posters
• observe the teacher modelling different writing genres
  writing about a personal experience
  writing a letter
  writing a description
• use personal reading as a stimulus to writing
• write stories that explore a variety of genres
• re-read his/her writing for pleasure
• choose the audience for which to write
• choose both the subject and form of his/her writing
• receive and give positive responses to writing
• see his/her writing valued
  constructive comment
  having it displayed
  having it included in class anthologies
  reading it aloud.

Strand:

Competence and confidence in using language

Strand unit:

Oral language: developing competence and confidence in using oral language

The child should be enabled to

• give and take turns in speaking and experience a classroom environment in which tolerance for the views of others is fostered
• initiate conversations and respond to the initiatives of others in talking about experiences and activities
• present ideas that are relevant to the subject in a logical sequence
• summarise and prioritise ideas
• discuss the meanings and origins of words, phrases and expressions with the teacher
• become aware of new words and new connotations of words through his/her
  reading and writing experience
• play synonym and antonym games
• become familiar with the functions of words without necessarily using technical
  grammatical terms
  noun, verb, adjective, adverb, pronoun, preposition
• practise the common social functions in the everyday context of class and school and through improvisational drama
  introducing others to the class group or another pupil
  expressing appreciation
  expressing approval and disapproval
  engaging in simple commercial transactions
  expressing concern
  asking questions to elicit views and feelings
  expressing support
  giving directions
• make lists of local expressions and words
• use improvisational drama to re-create well known characters
• hear, discuss and react to local storytellers.

Strand unit:

Reading: reading for pleasure and information

The child should be enabled to

• have access to a plentiful supply of books both in the classroom and in the school library
• use library facilities outside school
• select personal reading material and develop personal taste in reading for pleasure and information
• experience different types of text
• engage with a wide variety of poetry and verse on a regular basis
• develop basic information retrieval skills
  using table of contents, chapter headings
  and index interpreting diagrammatic information
  scanning and skimming
• use simple dictionaries effectively
  find words
  find the meaning of words
  check spelling
  find the pronunciation of words.

Strand unit:

Writing: developing competence, confidence and the ability to write independently

The child should be enabled to

• write regularly, and gradually extend the period over which a writing effort is sustained
• engage with the writing of one piece over a period
  a week, a number of weeks, a term
• experience varied and consistent oral language activity as a preparation for
  writing
• learn to use questions as a mechanism for expanding and developing a story
  who? where? when? why? what? how? what if?
• give sequence to ideas and events in stories
• develop an appreciation of how the intended audience should influence the nature of a piece of writing
  a birthday invitation
  a letter seeking information for a project
• develop an awareness of the difference between written language and oral language
• learn to revise and re-draft writing
  reading it over
  conferring and discussing with the teacher
  conferring and discussing with others in the class
• learn to use a wider range of punctuation marks with greater accuracy as part of the revision and editing process
• learn to write with increasing grammatical accuracy through the process of revision and editing.
• use a range of aids and strategies, including the use of approximate spelling, to improve his/her command of spelling
  dictionaries, word lists, word searches, spelling checkers, anagrams, regular word patterns
• write in a legible joined script with confidence and fluency
• develop his/her ability to write using information technology
  word-processing
• regularly select his/her own topics for writing
• choose to write for himself/herself only
• decide, after conferring with the teacher and others, who the audience for a piece of writing should be
• decide the quality of presentation in relation to the purpose and audience of a piece of writing
• co-operate in writing a record of class activities
  a single topic
  a theme
  a timetable.

Strand:

Developing cognitive abilities through language

Strand unit:

Oral language: developing cognitive abilities through oral language

The child should be enabled to

• discuss issues that directly affect his/her life
  in school
  outside school
  in other areas of the curriculum
• discuss a story being read and predict future events and likely outcomes in it
• discuss different possible solutions to problems
• discuss what he/she knows of a particular topic or process as a basis for encountering new concepts
• discuss causes and effects in relation to processes and events and predict possible outcomes
• listen to a presentation and discuss and decide which are the most important questions to ask
• learn how to use the basic key questions
  why? how? where? when? what? what if?
• make presentations to the class about his/her own particular interests
• justify personal likes and dislikes
• argue a point of view and try to persuade others to support it
• explore historical events through improvisational drama
• explore reactions to ideas through improvisational drama.

Strand unit:

Reading: developing interests, attitudes, information retrieval skills
and the ability to think

The child should be enabled to

• extend participation in listening and silent reading activities
• read short books in one sitting to experience success in reading
• explore new interests and perspectives through reading
  poetry, non-fiction, newspaper articles
• read books independently
• seek recommendations for books to read and recommend books to others
• continue to use information technology to increase motivation to read and to enhance reading development
• know the structure and terminology of books
  cover, spine, illustration, dedication, table of contents, introduction, page, chapter
• develop skills in locating and handling books through using well-stocked school and classroom libraries
• continue to develop a range of comprehension strategies to deal with narrative, expository and representational reading material
  assimilation (what did I learn?),
  deduction (what can I conclude?),
  inference (what may I conclude?),
  analysis (what are the details and how do they come together?),
  prediction (what might happen next?),
  evaluation (what do I think of this?),
  summarising (how can I give a brief account of the main points?)
• use a knowledge of printing conventions as an aid to expression and comprehension
  bold type, punctuation marks, capital letters
• keep a record of his/her reading in various forms
  keeping a list of books read, keeping written comments on books in a folder.

Strand unit:

Writing: clarifying thought through writing

The child should be enabled to

• write in a variety of genres with greater sophistication
  stories
  diaries
  records of what has been learned
  reports
  letters
  notices
  menus
  lists
• read a story and write it in his/her own words
• read a narrative or expository piece and summarise it
• write about an idea to explain it to someone else
• write about why he/she finds an idea attractive
• write about ideas encountered in other areas of the curriculum
• write down directions on how to perform a particular process
• write a list of questions about a particular topic and prioritise them
• write a sentence and elaborate on it by adding one or more ideas to it
• expand and clarify his/her thoughts on a particular idea or topic through drafting and re-drafting.

Strand:

Emotional and imaginative development through language

Strand unit:

Oral language: developing emotional and imaginative life through oral language

The child should be enabled to

• describe everyday experiences to the class or group and discuss them
• discuss favourite moments, important events and exciting characters in a story, play or poem
• express reactions to events and characters in stories
• discuss reactions to poems
• create and tell stories to the class or group, and retell them after questioning, comparing the versions
• express feelings and attitudes through improvisational drama
• create and sustain imaginary contexts through improvisational drama
• react to poems through improvisational drama
• dramatise stories
• experience and enjoy playful aspects of language
  asking riddles and telling jokes
  experimenting with funny-sounding words
  playing word association games
  reading and listening to examples of humorous literature
  composing rhymes and verses
  appreciating how words interact—how a word can trigger a humorous reaction.

Strand unit:

Reading: responding to text

The child should be enabled to

• extend and develop his/her response to increasingly challenging reading material discussion, poetry, writing, drama, visual arts, movement, dance
• engage in talk about books
  setting, plot, character, motive, favourite authors
• talk about choice of books and the reasons for choices
• recognise and discuss differences in reading tastes
• share responses with other children and with adults to cultivate a community of readers
• experience a shared response to fiction through the use of a class novel
• read aloud with expression.

Strand unit:

Writing: developing emotional and imaginative life through writing

The child should be enabled to

• express his/her reactions to particular experiences in writing
• write about experiences and feelings in diary form
• write about feelings experienced in improvisational drama
• create stories and poems
• write extended stories in book form
• write about favourite moments, characters and events in stories
• express in writing his/her reactions to poems
• express in writing his/her reactions to personal reading
• use his/her own artwork and that of others as a stimulus to writing.