The conversation we should talk more about

Can you hear the cheerful chatter of the kindergarten classroom from down the hall?

No? A quiet room full of young children may be a sign that something’s missing.

As kindergarten classrooms reorient to emphasize reading skills and teacher-led whole group instruction, something important can get lost along the way. And it might hold children back from “developing strong, comprehensive literacy proficiency,” say several experts in a recent EdWeek article.

What they’re talking about is talking.

Why oral language matters

As teachers talk more, children talk less, both with each other and with adults around them. And opportunities to practice oral language through conversation and play give children a leg up in literacy.  

“Much of that [group instruction] time focuses on decoding and understanding written text, but children develop vocabulary and syntax—the building blocks of comprehension—through conversation.”
- Professor of Reading Education Sonia Cabell, Florida Center for Reading Research, in EdWeek’s Kindergarteners aren’t talking enough in class: Why that matters

“I think, sadly, the emphasis on literacy has actually exacerbated the reduction in conversations.”
- Early Learning Consultant & Retired Co-Director and Research Professor for the National Institute for Early Education Research at Rutgers University Ellen Frede in EdWeek’s Kindergarteners aren’t talking enough in class: Why that matters

Talking to think and learn

In Tools Kindergarten classrooms, child talk is not just encouraged, it’s intentionally built into the curriculum. Tools Kindergarten activities put children at the center of the action as they engage in shared activity with partners, support their peers, and plan and dramatize scenarios together.

Tools kindergarteners practice oral language through conversation across the Tools day, as they talk to problem-solve, collaborate, and communicate their ideas with each other.

Our playful learning activities develop kindergarteners’ self-regulation and core literacy skills, preparing children to be motivated, reflective readers, and active, self-directed learners.

Click here for more on how classroom conversations shape children’s oral language development and how teachers can deepen the impact in Tools classrooms.