Wright's Word Wall--Week 4

Can you believe this will be the last week of January?  How are you doing with the words related to the theme of "football"?  Have you noticed that while the words are indeed related to football, they are related to many topics and used many times in everyday language, especially in January?

Here are the Wright's Word Wall words for this week:

People: I
Action: Play
Noun: Chair
Describing Word: Pretty
Place: Restaurant
Social Vocabulary: Awesome

The word pretty could be misunderstood, but keep in mind all the ways in which we use it.  There is the meaning for pretty as in attractive or beautiful, but then there is the meaning that is relational, such as it was pretty big.  Feel free to use the describing word in both contexts.  This will help your child to understand that words have multiple meanings and interpretations, based on how they are used.

The word chair was selected for the same reason.  We all sit in many different types of chairs.  The one used in the symbol represents something similar to a kitchen chair, but that does not mean that this symbol could not represent a recliner chair, or bean bag chair.  Help flex the language thinking of your child through symbols having multiple meanings.

The trickiest word on the word wall is the word "I".  I find this word very hard to teach, because when we say "I" we are referring to ourselves.  However, when we try to teach the word "I" we try to take on the perspective of the child.  This can be very confusing.  If your child is having a difficult time with the concept of the word "I", make a copy of the symbol and put your child's name on it and use it as a third person marker.  So in my instances, I would say "Sandra" rather than trying to learn "I" at this point. Once I have a good grasp that this symbol means me, then I would start pairing Sandra and I, then drop Sandra and see if the child would use I alone.  Keep in mind that when you say "I" the child may initially think that you are referring to him or her as well.  Give it a shot! 


You now have 24 words in which to play with.  If you feel your child is not ready for this many words, then go back to week 1.  Don't push your child too fast, but make sure to have all of the words accessible somewhere, we never know when spontaneous utterances or access could happen.  You can put magnets on the back of your printed cards and place them on the fridge and arrange them in different phrases and sentences.  You can put velcro dots (the scratchy side) and they will stick to a lot of carpet textures and place them around the floor.

Find a way for your child to manipulate language at least twice a day in a purposeful manner with your guidance and engagement.  Words can be overwhelming and abstract. 

The Super Bowl will take place on Sunday (pending a weather change).  Make sure to take advantage of TV commercials, news print, casual conversation that is taking place regarding the topic of the month to help make everyday life connections regarding Wright's Word Wall and language in the community.

You are doing a great job of helping support language development in your child!