I was struck by something Alisa wrote here about a month ago, that the entire reading thing that we do at the middle and high school level can’t be done that way at the elementary level. That right there is a big thing to say and may account in part for the lack of valid and true CI instruction at the elementary level.
But I am glad that Alisa and others are experimenting with the Invisibles. Below is a recent comment from Alisa in which she promised to send the OWI images and here they are as well. What we want to notice is that this is very pure and successful One Word Image technique, complete with a big reveal.
The only difference, and this is kind of a big point, is that since the kids are too young to draw Alisa does all the drawing. (But one day if the program they are building in Winnetka schools keeps growing, then those same kids will become the artists in their middle and high school CI Spanish classes):
Last week and this week I’m doing nothing but OWI with all my classes, grades 1 through 4. I had never done it before but all the talk here and Tina’s vids were so excellent I just had to dive in! I modified for my young audience by doing the first OWI drawing myself, as I stand face to face w/my kids. I ask a detail, they tell me and I draw it (badly but who cares?) -sometimes I have them hum in a crazy way while I draw. The kids are so incredibly engaged the entire time. They are practically shaking in their seats before the “big reveal” (I have them do a drum roll on their laps). I don’t pre-teach any structures or words, but establish meaning as they come up on the front whiteboard part of the easel. To me it feels l like what I’ve always done, just without the pre-established targets. That’s the only diff – what is the big deal? I guess I dunno if I’d start out doing this – but clearly it can be done!! Tina and Ben proved it!
I’ve tried it in my Hebrew classes as well. Those 4th through 7th graders love it, too. It allows for lots of contextualized reps of some of the highest frequency super 7 verbs: There is, has/doesn’t have; is, wants, likes. Then, when you start weaving a story, you can slather on ‘goes,’ ‘says,’ etc.
I’ve not been to the FB page (I’m not on FB yet) but I can’t imagine any conscientious CI teacher finding fault with Tina’s vids!
I’m gonna stay away from there for now, cover my eyes, and hum in a crazy way. I’m sending Ben the first graders’ OWI’s. There’s Cloudy the sad cloud and his happy friend, Twinkle; Then there’s Hattie the hat, with a mask, a pig nose, an angry mouth, one long leg and one foot with no leg; and my personal fave, K.K. el queque (yes they’re homonyms!) – a 1st grader came up w/that name!!! – KK is upset that a knife has come to cut him on his 1st birthday…
What fun!
So the big point to make here is how Alisa drew as per the One Word Image process and it led to a very successful “big reveal” and so this might be one more piece in solving the puzzle of using CI at the elementary level.