Word Inquiry Training
Workshop Details
WHEN: Saturday, 22 August 2015 (8:00am - 4:00pm)
WHERE: ISKL Ampang Campus
FEES: Free for ISKL New ES & MS Faculty
FOCUS: New ES & MS Faculty
"The limits of my language are the limits of my world." ~ Ludwig Wittgenstein
What is Word Inquiry?
Word study conducted at each grade level is inquiry based. Students investigate principles of morphology (word structure), etymology (word origins) and phonology (the units of sound that give meanings to words) to reveal the consistency of the English orthographic system. Real Spelling is the foundational resource.
Word study is developed around the following premises:
- Spelling miscues are not deliberate.
- Students should know the laws, conventions and patterns of the English spelling system.
- Students have a right to know not just what a correct spelling is, but why it is so.
- Teachers analyze student spelling miscues to inform teaching.
When writing or reading, rather than relying on pronunciation or visual memory, students consider three key questions:
- What does the word mean?
- How is it built?
- How is it connected to other words?
When engaging in word inquiry, students are:
- thinking critically - researching, analyzing, explaining, comparing
- making cross-disciplinary connections
- learning valid transferable laws, patterns and conventions of written English
- building skills and understandings that support reading and vocabulary development
- using reference tools and graphic organizers (e.g. dictionaries, flow charts, word webs)
What is Real Spelling?
Real Spelling is the foundational resource for word inquiry.
Real Spelling presents the following underlying principles and facts about English word structure:
- The English spelling system is used to indicate in writing what a word means.
- English spelling is consistent, logical and has a high degree of order and predictability.
- There is an identifiable reason for every English spelling.
Workshop Overview
"Spelling is cognitive - thought made visible in the world." ~ Real Spelling
- Can you explain the final <e> in <please> or justify why the <ea> digraph and not <ee> is used?
- Can you explain the connection between curriculum, racecourse and being swept out to sea in an ocean current?
- Can you state how many phonemes are used in the word <enough> and why, contrary to many publications, this spelling is logical and consistent?
- Can you and your students use resources to find the root and its meaning in the word <commitment>, analyze the word into morphemes, explain why there are two <m>s and one <t> and identify over 100 words that have sprung from its root?
If you are hesitant or doubtful, this one-day training for Elementary School and Middle School new teachers, conducted by Ann Whiting, Sharon Peters and Margaret Cheng, will enlighten you.
Orthographical Understandings
- English spelling is a highly ordered and structured system.
- The primary aim of orthography is to represent meaning.
- A word’s meaning is represented through its morphological structure: elements and affixes.
- All words have a base element which holds the key meaning in a word.
- A word’s etymology influences it morphological and phonological structure.
Participants will:
- hypothesize and investigate morphological and phonological patterns of words.
- investigate the etymology of words.
- investigate suffix addition rules.
- explore a variety of ways students can show their morphological, etymological and phonological understandings.
Resources Include:
- print and online resources
- classroom support network via blogs
- cooperative learning structures
- tools (matrices, webs, flowcharts…)
- ideas for lessons
Ann Whiting
Ann Whiting is a Middle School Teacher who has been conducting many Word Inquiry Workshops for new ISKL ES and MS Faculty for several years.
Sharon Peters
Sharon Peters is a Middle School Teacher. She has also been conducting several Word Inquiry Workshops for new ISKL ES and MS Faculty for the past years.
Lisa Mangelsdorf
Lisa Mangelsdorf is an Elementary School Teacher. Along with Ann Whiting and Sharon Peters, she has been conducting several Word Inquiry Workshops for new ISKL ES and MS Faculty for the past years.
