Approach to Teaching Language Methods and Learning Styles Language Acquisition: Mentor Teacher's Approach and Theoretical Alignment Observing Emergent Reading in Grade R Class: Sarah's Progress

To successfully complete Activity 9 and Activity 10, you need detailed observations and reflections. Here's a guide to help structure your responses: ### Activity 9: Discuss with Your Mentor Teacher 1. **Prepare Questions**: - How do you introduce new vocabulary to students? - What activities do you use to develop listening and speaking skills? - How do you incorporate reading and writing into your lessons? - Can you describe a specific lesson plan and the strategies you use to engage students in language learning? - How do you assess the students’ language development? 2. **Document the Teacher’s Responses**: - **Question: How do you introduce new vocabulary to students?** - *Answer*: "I use a multi-sensory approach that includes visual aids like pictures and flashcards, as well as physical objects. I also incorporate the new words into stories and use them in sentences to provide context." - **Question: What activities do you use to develop listening and speaking skills?** - *Answer*: "I use interactive activities such as storytelling, role-playing, and group discussions. This allows students to practice listening to others and speaking in a supportive environment." - **Question: How do you incorporate reading and writing into your lessons?** - *Answer*: "Reading is integrated through shared reading sessions, where I read aloud and students follow along with their own copy of the book. For writing, I encourage students to write short sentences or stories based on prompts or pictures." 3. **Examples from Observations**: - During a lesson on animals, I observed the mentor teacher using animal flashcards and a picture book to introduce related vocabulary. Students participated in a storytelling session where they had to use new vocabulary words. ### 9.1 Compare the Mentor Teacher's Approach with Language Acquisition Theories 1. **Mentor Teacher's Approach**: - Multi-sensory learning, contextual vocabulary use, interactive activities, and integrated reading and writing. 2. **Related Language Acquisition Theories**: - **Behaviorist Theory** (Skinner): Emphasis on reinforcement and repetition seen in multi-sensory learning. - **Nativist Theory** (Chomsky): Importance of innate grammar and structured activities supporting language acquisition. - **Social Interactionist Theory** (Vygotsky): Role of social interaction in learning, reflected in group discussions and role-playing. - **Cognitivist Theory** (Piaget): Language development as part of cognitive development, seen in contextual vocabulary learning and integration of reading and writing. 3. **Comparison**: - The mentor teacher’s approach aligns well with Vygotsky’s theory by using interactive and social activities which promote language learning through communication. The use of context and reinforcement echoes Skinner’s ideas on behaviorists approach. The integration of structured activities for grammar and syntax supports Chomsky’s nativist perspective. ### Activity 10: Observing Emergent Reading in Grade R Class 1. **Observe General Signs of Emergent Reading**: - Interest in books and stories. - Recognition of letters and simple words. - Attempts to “read” by looking at pictures and telling a story. - Participating in reading activities and discussions about stories. 2. **Choose One Learner for Detailed Observation**: - **Learner Example**: Emily - **Signs of Emergent Reading**: - Emily shows interest in picture books, often picking them up and looking through the pages. - She can recognize and name several letters and is starting to sound out simple words. - During group reading sessions, Emily actively participates, pointing to pictures and trying to narrate the story based on them. 3. **Document Specific Behaviors**: - During a shared reading of "The Very Hungry Caterpillar," Emily eagerly pointed out the caterpillar on each page and tried to mimic reading the text aloud based on the illustrations. - When given a set of letters, she successfully identified and named ‘A’, ‘B’, and ‘C’. ### Conclusion - **Activity 9**: Capture detailed responses from your mentor teacher and use them to compare with language acquisition theories, ensuring you provide specific examples. - **Activity 10**: Observe and document specific behaviors in a chosen learner indicating their emergent reading abilities, ensuring you provide detailed descriptions. This structured approach will help you gather necessary information and present a comprehensive analysis for both activities.