LEA: Language LEA: Language Experience ApproachExperience Approach

LEA: Language LEA: Language Experience ApproachExperience Approach

Dr. Kristen Pennycuff TrentDr. Kristen Pennycuff Trent

Language Experience Approach: LEA

• LEA interrelates the different language arts and uses the children’s experiences as the basis for reading materials.– All children have experiences that can be converted

to stories• Concrete experiences can be provided to help create

the stories• Stories developed by children:

– Motivational– More meaningful because language of the children used

» Effectively used for ELL children: provides material they can understand

Language Experience Approach: LEA

1. Participating in a common experience

2. Discussing the experience3. Cooperative writing of the story

on a chart, board, or computer4. Participating in extension

activities related to the story

Language Experience Approach LEA

•Advantages:

•Children see transformation of oral language to print including directionality, spacing between words, meanings, punctuation, and capitalization

•Children see relationships between reading and their oral language

•Teacher observations during dictation and reading provide diagnostic insights into children’s reading difficulties

LEA Advantages• Variety of modes of learning offers something to all

children– Auditory: dictation or read aloud– Kinesthetic: writing the stories– Visual: reading stories

• Promotes good self-concept– What they have to say is important enough to write down

and others interested• Promotes close contact between teacher and students• Remedial older learners and ELL consider this reading

more authentic than some of the remedial material exposed to in classroom

• Excellent way to provide variety of programs that are need to teach reading

Language Experience Approach: LEA

• Implementation in Kindergarten:– Emphasize oral language can be recorded

and reconstructed – Process writing—choose topics, discussion,

drawing, and dramatic play before writing, drafts used

– Teaching of vocabulary, decoding, and comprehension skills

– Show-and-tell writing—invented spelling

Language Experience Approach-LEA

Implementation in the Primary Grades:

1. Participating in a common experience

2. Discussing the experience

3. Cooperative writing of the story on a chart, board, or a computer

4. Participation in extension activities related to the story

• Rereading story

• Finding words

• Matching sentences with sentence strips

• Word banks—word cards containing words a child has used in stories

• Used for sight vocabulary, word recognition skills, and develop comprehension skills

• Writing of Computer-generated stories

• Illustration of stories

• Sharing of stories

• Creation of books

Language Experience Approach-LEA

•Implementation in Higher Grades:

•Content area instruction:

•Writing the result of scientific experiments

•Comparing and contrasting people, things, or events

•Writing directions for performing a task

•Computer-generation important

•Enter stories easily, ease of revision without recopying

•Direct teaching of story structure during LEA helpful to older remedial learners

•Include revision and editing as natural extensions

Language Experience Approach: LEA

1. Participating in a common experience

2. Discussing the experience3. Cooperative writing of the story

on a chart, board, or computer4. Participating in extension

activities related to the story

Language Experience Approach: LEA

• Your Turn: Create an LEA for your third grade students who have just returned from a field trip to the fire station. Remember to include all the steps.

1. Participating in a common experience2. Discussing the experience3. Cooperative writing of the story on a chart,

board, or computer4. Participating in extension activities related

to the story

Language Experience Approach: LEA

• Jigsaw the sample lesson plan for LEAs.– Home team– Expert teams

• Unit-Set• Instruction• Closure-Assessment and Evaluation• Supplemental Activities-Reflection of the

Candidate