susan ebbels - introduction to shape coding - assessment-meaning and interpretation
TRANSCRIPT
Using ‘Shape Coding’ to teach Using ‘Shape Coding’ to teach grammar grammar
3030thth June 2011 June 2011 Dyslexia Action conferenceDyslexia Action conference
Susan Ebbels
Moor House School, Hurst Green, Surrey, UKwww.moorhouseschool.co.uk
and Division of Psychology & Language, UCL
Dyslexia and Dyslexia and language impairmentslanguage impairments
• Approximately 50% of children diagnosed with dyslexia have language impairments and vice versa (McArthur et al, 2000)
• Language impairments often affect the ability to understand and form grammatically correct or complex sentences
• Shape Coding can help children learn the rules of English grammar
Visual coding systemsVisual coding systems
Implicitly based on following hypotheses:
1. Children with grammatical difficulties have not learned language implicitly in the normal way
2. They can learn language using taught strategies
3. They have visual strengths
4. They can be taught language through these visual strengths
Shape CodingShape Coding
1. Codes parts of speech with Colour Pattern Scheme colours (with a few modifications)
2. Codes phrases with shapes (drawn in black).
3. Codes verb morphology with arrows
Shape Coding - coloursShape Coding - colours
Colour Pattern Scheme colours (with a few alterations)
Noun / Pronouns (boy, table, I)
Det / Possessive pronouns (the, a, my)
Verb (push, melt)
Adjective (hard, sad)
Preposition (in, through)
Adverb (quickly, carefully)
Coordinating conjunction (and, but, or)
Subordinating conjunction (because, if)
• Phrases grouped with shapes and linked with colour, a question and a symbol
Shape Coding - shapesShape Coding - shapes
What happening?
ClauseAux or Modal
• ‘Subjects’ and ‘objects’ have different shapes
NP: Subject NP: Object
Who? What?
Who?
What?
Verb Phrase
What doing?
Prepositional Phrase
Where?
What like?
How feel?
Adjective Phrase
• Extra shapes
How?
When?
Ben was putting an apple in a bowl
Shape CodingShape Coding
The apple is tasty
The sad boy is putting his tasty apple in her bowl
NarrativeNarrative
• Plan ideas in the relevant shapes, e.g.,
• Setting: Where, When, What like? • Main characters: Who?• Actions / Events: What did?
• Makes links between narrative and grammar
NarrativeNarrative Where?
When?
Who?
What happened or will happen?
What like? How feel?
1.
2.
3.
4.
How is Shape Coding How is Shape Coding introduced to new children?introduced to new children?
2. Teach that can have >1 word per shape and the correspondence to the question word is key to coding John is cleaning the car John is putting the car in the garage
3. To reinforce the meaning of the shapes, give exercises where the shape changes according to the meaning John is sleeping vs. John is tired
4. and answer questions of Who or What, but belongs inside other shapes
5. Specific shapes inside hexagons (verb phrase) depend on the individual verb and need to be learned with the verb.
1. SV sentences Who is what doing
Examples of verb typesExamples of verb types
feel or
feel
go
push
sleep
put
pour
fill with
Basic sentence TemplatesBasic sentence Templates
Learning vocabularyLearning vocabulary
To really know an item of vocabulary you have to know its1. Phonology
2. Meaning, includinga) multiple meanings (use colours to show different meanings
which belong to different grammatical categories)
b) if it is an irregular plural (double red line) or past tense (vertical arrow at the left) or past participle (horizontal arrow pointing left)
3. AND be able to use it in a sentence, for this you need to know itsa) Part of speech (use the colour)
b) Argument structure if it is a verb (use the shapes)
light = not heavy, easy to lift
This box is light
light = object which helps you see when it is dark The boy is touching the light
light = make something burn
The boy is lighting the fire
For exampleFor example
Part 2: verb morphologyPart 2: verb morphology
Subject verb agreementSubject verb agreement• Double red line used for plural nouns
• Double blue lines used for plural verb
The man and the lady are happy
The man is happy
The men are happy
he ate
Verb tensesVerb tenses
• Vertical arrow = finite verb (in the middle=present, left=past tense)
• zig-zag at right end = progressive participle
• horizontal arrow pointing left = past participle
he eats
he is eating he was eating
he has eaten he had eaten
walk
walk
drink
drink
ank
was
walk
walk
drink
drink
Intervention: verb tensesIntervention: verb tenses Ebbels (2007)Ebbels (2007)
• Coding used to reinforce which form of the word is present and which is past
• Signing also used with verbs to indicate tense
PAST
ed
PRESENT
s
s
is
is
was ing
inging
ing
Teaching past tense to Teaching past tense to class class
• Start with time line• Establish position of ‘present’ and ‘past’• Think of words which could be used for past times
e.g., yesterday, last week, this morning, 10 years ago• List verbs in present progressive versus past progressive• Introduce simple past tense• Class identify tense of different verbs in isolation or in
sentences• Class change words/sentences from past to present tense• Class correct adult’s bad sentences• Class correct own free writing
Unaided free writingUnaided free writing
0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%
100%
A B C E F G H I J
Sept
Jan
Feb
Percentage of verbs used in past tense when required
Uses of morphological Uses of morphological codingcoding
• Teaching • Concepts of tense and agreement• Grammatical rules e.g., every clause must have one tensed verb =
“every cracker must have one down arrow”• Need to have an auxiliary (“diamond”) to carry tense (“down arrow”)
with a present or past participle • Consistency of tense throughout a piece of text (“arrows should be
in the same place – middle or left of blue line”)
• Correcting work• Use coding system to mark work• This enables children to “see” their own mistakes• Increases independence as can correct own mistakes
Points to notePoints to note
• Shape Coding is a tool, not a programme• You need to gradually withdraw the shapes to get
automatic use or understanding of the grammatical structures:Activities with shapesActivities without shapes, but bring shape templates
back to check answersActivities with no use of shapes
Evidence of effectivenessEvidence of effectiveness• Comprehension of ‘wh’ questions and passives (Ebbels & van der
Lely, 2001)
• Comprehension of datives (Ebbels, 2007)
• Use of past tense in written work (Ebbels, 2007)
• Production of verb argument structure (Ebbels et al., 2007)
• Comprehension of coordinating conjunctions (Ebbels et al., 2011)
Ebbels, S. and van der Lely, H. (2001). Meta-syntactic therapy using visual coding for children with severe persistent SLI. International Journal of Language & Communication Disorders 36(supplement), 345-350.
Ebbels, S.H. (2007). Teaching grammar to school-aged children with Specific Language Impairment using Shape Coding. Child Language Teaching and Therapy, 23, 1, 67-93.
Ebbels, S.H., van der Lely, H.K.J., and Dockrell, J.E. (2007). Intervention for verb argument structure in children with persistent SLI: a randomized control trial. Journal of Speech Language and Hearing Research, 50, 1330-1349.
Ebbels, S.H., Marić, N., Murphy, A. & Turner, G. (2007). Can we improve comprehension of grammar in secondary-aged students with language impairments? A randomised control trial of therapy for coordinating conjunctions. Poster presented at “Lost for Words: Lost for Life?” conference on SLCN in older children and young people. 15-17 June 201, City University London, England.
More informationMore information
Email:
Website (CD of resources & References):
www.moorhouseschool.co.uk/shape-coding-course
Discussion group + info re future courses: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/shapecoding/
or email: