Week 4 - Literacy: Speaking and Listening

The use of talking gadgets such as Webcams,

Talking photo albums,

Talking Tins,

and Podcasting, provide  varied opportunities for children to work with technology that will aid their Literacy skills. These tools enable instant feedback and reflection on the talking process which add to their appeal, making them an exciting prospect for children to experiment with. They have an added appeal to EAL or Dyslexic children who may struggle with written forms of communication but would find the talking tin for example, an easier verbal tool.

Podcasting

Let's take a closer look at Podcasting, an innovative form of communication that has become increasingly popular in primary schools. It's popularity is attributed to its ease of use (only requiring a microphone, PC and internet connection) and varied uses across the curriculum. Podcasting involves creating audio files and making them available online. Children simply make recordings using software such as Audacity, which is free, and download them in MP3 format.

Children take immense pride in creating and recording their own audio files, examples include: creating audio books and plays for Literacy; recording accents and pronunciations for MFL; setting up a school radio station to broadcast information across the curriculum.

Take a look at the link below, specifically "Wembley Finals", which includes children interviewing each other and sharing their experiences of a trip to Wembley Stadium. Podcasts such as these could be used as a motivational tool to inspire creative writing in Literacy.

http://www.podiumpodcasting.com/~182325/sandon/Sandon070607123315/rss.xml

The group work required to create a podcast often ensures productive discussion and sharing of ideas for the task at hand. Teachers can assess each member's contribution via observation and listening to the final product. A podcast can take the form of a simple recording of a song (eg. a french song in MFL), through to more complex broadcast with several layers including various audio imports. This allows an option to differentiate for more and less able students.