Structured Word Inquiry
Workshop Details
WHEN: Saturday, 7 to Sunday, 8 February 2015 (8.30am - 3.30pm)
WHERE: ISKL Melawati Campus - Community Room
FEES: Non ISKL USD500
FOCUS: ES & MS Faculty
Workshop Overview
This two-day workshop provides opportunities for educators to learn about a clear, engaging, structured approach to word study using spelling clues and conventions and critical thinking skills instead of rote memorization.
This lively two-day course enables participants to teach students how to spell using their critical thinking skills while developing a lifelong understanding of spelling clues and conventions. This “structured word inquiry” approach eliminates rote memorization and explores the revealing linguistic aspects that teachers often wish they had learned in college.
Learning Outcomes
As a result of this course, the participant will be able to:
• Learn the underlying meaning-based structure of written words through the study of
English orthography, including the ability to:
• Understand morphology: prefixes, bases, suffixes and connector vowels in English;
• Learn the underlying meaning-based structure of written words through the study of
English orthography, including the ability to:
• Investigate the etymology or history of words and how that impacts what they mean
and how they're spelled; and
• Contextualize the phonology or sound structure of words and how it is not the
primary consideration in the spelling system.
• Prepare classroom lessons and activities that will teach these structures and the
patterns and conventions of the writing system to students of all ages.
Peter Bowers
Peter Bowers was an elementary school teacher (Grades 3-6) for ten years before beginning his graduate work studying the effect of instruction about the structure of the written word for literacy. He earned his PhD from the Faculty of Education at Queen’s University in Ontario. As an educational consultant and founder of the WordWorks Literacy Centre, Peter has presented to schools and conferences around the world (North America, Europe, Middle East, Africa, Asia, South East Asia, and Australia). His research on morphological instruction has been published in top education journals such as The Review of Educational Research and Reading and Writing: An Interdisciplinary Journal. (His research can be downloaded from this link: http:// wordworkskingston.com/WordWorks/About_WordWorks.html). With Peter’s background as a classroom teacher in international schools and in Ontario, he is able to make links between research and practice in a a way that classroom teachers understand as relevant to their everyday teaching.
Pete's email: peterbowers1@mac.com and wordworkskingston@gmail.com
Learn how investigating the structure of words can turn words like <does> makes sense of words are typically treated as irregular words to memorize. In fact studying this word with the matrix and the word sum, is a rich way to build understanding of the whole system. Go to the WordWorks Youtube page to see a video ("Spelling Does Make Sense") showing Pete Bowers investigating this set of words with a young class and many other videos of his instruction in action.
Links related to this Workshop:
- Explore Pete Bowers' WordWorks website with many free resources on this instruction here .
- See background and published research here.
- Visit the WordWorks YouTube page with many videos of this instruction in action here.
- See a recent WordWorks Newsletter with illustrations of structured word inquiry around the world here.
- Download and share a flyer for this workshop from this link.