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NarrativeExpository Peer InteractionReadingWritingPre-SchoolEarly ElementaryUpper ElementaryMiddle/High SchoolTechnologyParent and Professional Information
We have previously discussed the potential of the incredibly popular game Minecraft for developing narrative language skills through the use of Story Grammar Marker®. At that time, I had described the game as potentially too complicated to use as an actual tool in activities, but I have since rethought that. The iPad version ($5.99) will allow you to create a simple “world” (use the Creative mode) and the building interface is easy to learn, operating much like LEGOs. As a result, spaces can be used to scaffold language for describing settings. Minecraft Education, on the other hand, offers a specialized, structured collection of Worlds you can use for both narrative and expository language. The software is available to anyone with a Microsoft 365 account and usable on a laptop, desktop, or again on the iPad...
“Interjections” has always been my favorite Schoolhouse Rock song, and I am sure we have some we would like to utter about summer being (almost!) over. But it is always good to return to work with a sense of purpose, right? It has been fun writing this year’s Summer Study Series and I thought this last piece was particularly relevant to our roles in being part of a collaborative community in schools. Engaging minds and hearts: Social and emotional learning in English Language Arts (click for full free PDF article) is an honest, insightful look at SEL programming and has helpful suggestions for its integration in ELA classes. To me, though not explicitly stated here, it highlights the role of narrative language intervention and applications of Story Grammar Marker® and the Critical Thinking Triangle in helping our students unpack stories to learn from the higher level elements of feelings, plans and mental states. Though this article relates to such instruction in Canada, it is just as relevant to schools in the USA...
As many narratives could tell us (think of Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery” as an extreme example), just because something “has always been done this way” does not mean it shouldn’t be questioned. This month we’ll turn that concept into thinking about standardized tests, too-long THE> determining factor in whether students do or do not receive speech and language interventions, particularly in the public school setting. Without inserting my POV too much into this topic, let’s keep the Summer Study Series focus and take a look at the recent review article published in Language, Speech and Hearing Services in Schools, A Critical Analysis of Standardized Testing in Speech and Language Therapy (Nair, Farah & Cushing, 2023). The authors recount the history of speech and language intervention as dating back to the Middle Ages, with recognition of speech disabilities and efforts to remediate seen in cultures such as ancient India...
June has at this point busted out all over! I know I am wrapping up my school year work while many of you may have been lounging for a few weeks, I hope. For this month’s entry in our Summer Study Series 
we are diving into the strong connection between narrative language and social learning. But speaking of Summer Studies related to narrative and social development, don’t miss MindWing’s Summer Course: Social Communication with SGM®: Social Emotional Learning, Language Processing, & Pragmatics—July 25 & 26, 2023! While from a few years back, this month’s article presents terrific and easy to implement ideas for the PK-primary school level. Let’s delve into “Using a narrative- and play-based activity to promote low-income preschoolers’ oral language, emergent literacy, and social competence” from the Early Childhood Research Quarterly (Nicolopoulou, Cortina Ilgaz, Brockmeyer Cates & de Sá, 2015)...
It’s great to have another resource due to the publication of this study, Investigating Narrative Performance in Children With Developmental Language Disorder: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis (Winters, Jasso, Pustejovsky & Byrd, 2022). “Thus the story grammar model appears to be a valid representation of how individuals organize story information in order to encode, understand and retrieve stories.” The Journal of Speech, Language and Hearing Research is more technical than some publications, but I’ve provided some salient points below. One way this study differs from the previously discussed meta-analysis is that it focuses on assessment rather than intervention. Among its aims are looking at different narrative measures such as macrostructure, microstructure, and internal state language, and identifying which may have a better sensitivity in identifying developmental language disorder (DLD)...
In this Autism Acceptance Month, it’s more important than ever to hear the voices coming out of the neurodiversity movement and those of our students themselves. With many autistic individuals growing up and sharing via social media and other channels what has and hasn’t worked in their education, we have some affirming shifts that we can make, for sure. One angle that I always try to take is incorporating my students’ interests in sessions. This helps our activities to be engaging and context-driven, but also incorporates client values, a pillar of evidence-based practice. A teenage client of mine has shown a burgeoning interest in rock music and The Beatles in particular. It occurred to me immediately that many Beatles’ songs tell a story, so that was a great place to start. One of the key things I love about technology is that it can make context immediately available...
Artificial Intelligence (AI) has entered a new phase with the recent arrival of generative AI, which can be used to create content rather than just sort existing data. This has resulted in the release of tools such as ChatGPT, which is simple to use and query for all kinds of language content. Just log in with your Google account and you are good to go! Of course, with ChatGPT able to generate any kind of information and write in a wide variety of styles, there are concerns about its use as a workaround for schoolwork. Teachers do have tools to detect AI writing, and a specific SLP’s take is that this kind of AI clears the way for us to work on higher level skills. For now, it’s a good tool to explore. Consider the ways that ChatGPT specifically could be used to generate stories using specific Characters, Settings or Kick-Offs in order to emphasize story elements with Story Grammar Marker®. It also can be used to create text that corresponds to various expository text structures such as List, Sequence, and Description and thereby be used with ThemeMaker®’s Information structures and Maps...
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