Family literacy 2

 

Family literacy

Turkish template for a workshop with parents

 

 

The family is the ideal place where a child can and should acquire a vocabulary according to his /her age. It is important that parents and other family members use every moment of life to develop in the child a rich baggage of knowledge and, in particular, a rich content of words. It is known, language is an element that helps to increase cognitive intelligence and emotional intelligence. The language learning activity takes place permanently and is linked to every life circumstance in which the child is also involved:

- at the table

- during game time

- during the household activities

- in nature, etc.

It is very important that the adults in the family and the older siblings correctly name the terms specific to the situation they are in and explain these terms. It is very important that adults and other family members do not encourage the child's misexpression. Most of the time this becomes a topic of fun for family members and the child continues this misexpression, which can become frustrating in early school age.

In addition to this responsible and conscious approach to the education of a child in the family, many other activities of learning through play can be organized. Of great use are word games, which are a challenge for children, as they are made to think, find solutions, describe, use words in appropriate contexts. Through these, children enrich their vocabulary, use elaborate expressions, understand the meaning of unknown words. It is a way of learning through play.

Examples of activities:

1. In my schoolbag there is... - it can also be played by preschoolers.

The first player says: There's a wet sandwich in my schoolbag.

The second player repets the words of the first player and adds an other object which can be found in his schoolbag: There's a wet sandwich and a rusty trumpet in my schoolbag.

Each player adds one thing to the list of items in the bag and repeats the entire list. 

The game develops the ability to reason, develops language and memory.

2. The succession of stories - can be played by students, as the game requires writing skills.

Certain types of words are established, for example: an adjective, the name of a personality, a famous place, two words that describe a woman, a line you can give to a man, an answer for an angry person, etc.

Each player writes all of these in the order set:

- during the first in the first round each player writes at the top of the page an adjective (beautiful) then folds the sheet to hide the word and gives it to the player on his right.

- the second player adds the name of a famous person (Einstein), folds the sheet and gives it to the player on hir right.

When each player has received his sheet on which he wrote the first word, he opens it and will get a number of words with which he makes a short story:

Einstein arrived happly  in Panama where he met a petite woman. The woman asked:

- Are you the famous Einstein?

Einstein replied:

- Don't worry, I won't invent anything about you!

The game develops the ability to reason, develops language, the ability to put into context and to make correct grammatical associations.

3. Looking for....... – it can be successfully played in the car, in nature, at home.

One player chooses a letter of the alphabet then all players must observe something (an object, a natural phenomenon, etc.) starting with the chosen letter. The first player to see an object whose name begins with the indicated letter announces aloud: I saw a.....

The game must contain all the letters of the alphabet. The first player to spot something that starts with the chosen letter gets a point and chooses the letter for the next round. The player who has accumulated the most points at the end of the game wins.

The game develops both the ability to notice and identify words that fall into a certain category, as well as concentration and language.

4. Endless story -  it can be played at any age, being able to be adapted to the age of the child. It is a game of creativity and language development.

A player begins a story by saying a made-up phrase: Once upon a time there was a very sad king who did nothing but stare out the window for hours. One day......

Then the first player stops and the other players take turns adding a phrase. The next player always stops mid-sentence to allow the other player to continue the idea.

The game develops creativity, the ability to issue reasoning, to generalize, to solve problems.

5. Do not say ,,Yes” - it is a game that requires attention and the ability to substitute a closed answer.

For example, one player asks the other a question (Do you like to eat pizza?) to which the answer is obviously Yes.

The player asked must answer, but not use the word "yes". It can use an affirmative word ("of course," "almost true") or an explanation ("Well, pizza is among my favorite foods").

If one of the players makes a mistake and says the word "yes", he receives a funny punishment: drink a glass of water, go out barefoot in the snow/rain, shout out loud (at the door/window) various things ( I love you; I'm not afraid; I need a friend, etc.).

The game develops the ability to concentrate, the attention, the vocabulary.

6. The job game – is a game that has a triple purpose: identifying jobs, developing language, accumulating knowledge specific to certain jobs.

One player thinks of a job that the others have to guess. He says: I am a...

Game participants ask questions to the one who chose the job. These helpful questions have the role of narrowing down the identification area of ​​the respective job:

- Do you work outside?

- Do you have a team?

- Do you use a tool?

- Do you work with people?

The player who has chosen his job answers with "yes" or "no".

Players are allowed 10 attempts and can name the job they suspect at any time. The 10 attempts are both the questions and the name of the job. If after the 10 attempts the job that the first player thought of has not been identified, he names it and gives additional explanations, if necessary.

7. Can you see...? - involves a limited time to find the required answer, for example one minute is set for each question. It is recommended to be played in crowded places (airports, train/bus stations) or in traffic, when we are stuck in a traffic jam.

The first player starts with a question such as: Can you see .... a man in a black hat?

All other players try to identify the named thing/person. The first person to identify that object/person gets a point. The player who collects more points wins.

The game develops the ability to observe and the language, while also contributing to reduce the tension generated by the static situation in which we find ourselves.

 

 

 

 

This project was funded by the European Commission. This publication reflects the views only of the author. The European Commission and the National Agency are not responsible for any use that may be made of the information it contains.