Teaching speaking and listening in Year 3
The importance of speaking and listening
Language is an integral part of most learning and oral language in particular has
a key role in classroom teaching and learning. A recurring message in the
research into spoken language is that talk is fundamental to children’s
development and learning and has a central role to play in developing children’s
knowledge and understanding. Speaking and listening plays an important role in
children’s social, emotional and cognitive development. Excellent teaching of
speaking and listening will therefore enhance children’s learning and raise
standards further.
In the National Curriculum there are separate programmes of study for speaking
and listening, and reading and writing. Each has its own particular features yet
they are inextricably linked. Clearly, some teaching about language is relevant to
reading and writing but the curriculum for speaking and listening must also give
due weight to the distinctiveness of talk. There are features of oral language that
do not occur in the written form and these need to be explicitly addressed in the
classroom.
Speaking and listening, reading, and writing are not only interdependent but
mutually enhancing. Teaching and learning about language and how it is used in
the different modes will develop all three. The objectives for speaking and
listening complement the objectives for reading and writing. The speaking and
listening objectives reinforce and extend children’s developing reading and
writing skills for most children try out ideas in talk long before they are able to pin
them down in writing.
Speaking and listening can help children to consider how effectively a particular
text works and how it could be improved. It helps children to organise and
rehearse ideas in advance of putting them on paper. All areas of the curriculum
offer distinctive opportunities for developing children’s speaking and listening and
effective speaking and listening offers opportunities to enhance the subject being
taught through explaining and justifying choices, recognising alternative
viewpoints and clarifying ideas. Spoken language can enhance thinking and
learning, thoughts are not merely expressed in words but come into existence
through them. Thinking aloud allows children to go beyond the here and now to
think in abstractions and plan in the future. Talk is the underlying key factor in the
development of literacy as well as a central feature of any successful teaching
and learning.
Given the significance of speaking and listening for children’s learning and
overall language development, it is important to allow adequate curriculum time
for it to be explicitly taught and to identify places in the timetable where children
can revisit, apply and extend the speaking and listening skills which they have
been explicitly taught.
Teaching in Year 3
In Year 3, children will be working on the objectives for their year group. Although
fast backtracking may need to take place, this will be so that children can work at
age related expectations as soon as possible. Speaking and listening skills will
be taught discretely but children will then apply these skills when working in other
areas of the curriculum.
Children entering Year 3 will have had experience of sequencing and sustaining
their talk. In Year 3, these aspects of talk will be developed further. Children will
need experience of taking long turns spontaneously and by the end of the year
they will be able, not only to sustain a conversation, but to explain and give
reasons for their views. These skills can be taught explicitly in any subject of the
curriculum with the teacher modelling long turns, for example when making a
statement or offering an opinion, the teacher should give reasons for their views
in a long turn. The teacher should then remind children to do the same in all
curriculum subjects. Children will then be provided with the opportunity to make
extended contributions in all areas of the curriculum, for example when they are
explaining solutions to problems in maths, science, or justifying their opinions
(‘the reason I think this is because…’) By the end of the year, children will be
able to give a clear account or explanation which is sustained and complete. This
may be reporting findings to a group, or making a more formal presentation to the
class using presentational techniques effectively to communicate their message.
It is expected that children will be using Standard English in more formal
situations so children will need to be taught the difference between formal and
informal language and when it is applicable to use each form.
Children leave Year 2 able to work collaboratively in groups and listen to each
other’s views and opinions before considering alternatives and finally reaching a
decision. They will have had experience of supporting (‘I agree…. Yes, we could
… .’), or challenging other group members. Some children will need further
practice in challenging other group members constructively e.g. ‘I thought that
part worked really well, but what about …’. These skills will be extended further in
Year 3 and when working in groups (e.g. on a science investigation), children will
be taught to organise roles. They need to be allocated specific roles during a
group discussion including a chairperson who will open up the discussion and
ensure that everyone is involved. The chairperson will also ensure that a plan of
action is carried out and move the group towards negotiation or compromise, for
example ‘We had better move on if we are going to finish this …. It would it be a
good idea if …’
In Year 3 children will move from using language from their own experience to
beginning to use the language of possibility to conduct investigations. This will be
modelled by adults through asking questions such as ‘I wonder what will happen
if …?’ It is expected that children will use the language of possibility when
studying feelings in literature, as well as investigating problems in other
curriculum areas. This language will need to be taught (probably, maybe,
perhaps, presumably…, and tentative phrases such as this suggests, I suppose,
what if, what about ….) This language will be closer to first draft talk and
characterised by exploring ideas collaboratively. After teaching and modelling
this language, children will need the opportunity to practise this for themselves
during group work in other curriculum subjects.