Let Them Talk! (Reading and Writing Instruction Begins with Oral Language)

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There is extensive research on the connection between reading and writing and how these processes strengthen each other. As an educator of educators, I want to remind some, restate for others, and teach (for) new educators that learning to read and write begins early with oral language. Early exposure to rich language experiences is critical for developing these processes. Language experiences are not shared equally, so I want to focus on what happens with students when they get to school and what can and should happen when students are in our classrooms despite what may or may not have occurred at home.

Linnea Ehri conceived the idea of reading development into phases. Learn more about it here: Ehri's Phases of Word Reading Development When children first come to school, they will come with skills ranging from what she coined as pre alphabetic (not understanding the connection between letters, letter combinations, and sounds associated with those letter and letter combinations) to later alphabetic (being able to recognize sight words and use them in their reading and writing). As a result, we, as educators, can have a wide range of student reading and writing abilities in our classrooms. So, how do we teach our students to be better readers and writers?

As I mentioned, it all begins with oral language and the opportunities we, as educators, can create and cultivate in our classrooms. We must meet students where they are and extend learning from there. From birth, unless a child is hearing impaired, they hear language — the amount and type of language they hear varies — the fact remains that because oral language comprehension develops from birth (and some say from conception), it is the largest form of comprehension we have. We start our classroom instruction with conversations, read-aloud, singing, and playing rhyming games, letting our students experience language. We must let them talk! Allowing our students to talk gives them the practice of verbally sharing their intentions, ideas, and experiences. It is only then that real learning can take place. I like this quote from James Britton (1993); “Reading and writing float on a sea of talk. Talk is the foundation of literacy”.

Reading and writing are reciprocal processes. They do have a mutual relationship. It is important to remind you that these processes are not naturally learned. They must be taught explicitly, systematically, and in conjunction with each other—first in isolation to introduce the skill and then, as often as possible, in the context of authentic reading and writing experiences. We model each skill and give students opportunities to practice each skill while giving them corrective and affirming feedback that is specific to the skill and personalized to the needs of each student and student group.

​Thank you for reading,

Dr. Pearl

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