APPROACH TO TEACH READING

(WHOLE LANGUAGE)
Hoe Xin Yi
Sarmila a/p Sundar
Afiqah binti Mohd Tarmizi
Nur Anis Nabilah binti Ahmad

DEFINITION
Describe a literacy philosophy which emphasizes
that children should focus on meaning and
strategy instruction.
Focus on learning the complete meaning of
words. (did not stress on phonetics part of the
word)

TEACHING PRINCIPLES
In the whole language approach reading should not be taught, but rather
acquired through trial and error. The teacher facilitates the learning
process, but provides little direct instruction.
Literature is used to excite the child about learning to read so that the
child begins to memorise the many words he sees in books.
There is an emphasis on comprehension as the ultimate goal of reading. It
is considered more important that a child accurately understands the
meaning of what he is reading, even if he does not recognise every
individual word accurately.
Children are encouraged to guess unfamiliar words using picture or
context clues.
Children are also encouraged to use invented spelling to write their own
stories.

LEARNING PRINCIPLE
Whole language emphasis draws from cognitivist learning theory (Lev Vygotsky).

Cognitivist learning theory is based on the idea that children learn by connecting new
knowledge to previously learned knowledge.

The term is a building metaphor that includes students using scaffolding to organize new
information. If children cannot connect new knowledge to old knowledge in a meaningful
way, they may with difficulty memorize it (rote learning), but they will not have a real
understanding of what they are learning.

Vygotsky identified a "zone of proximal development" where children can learn new
things that are a little above their current understanding with the help of more
knowledgeable peers or adults. This new knowledge is incorporated into their existing
knowledge base.

IMPORTANCE OF WHOLE LANGUAGE

Emphasises on the students as
they create (construct) their
own thinking from what they
encounter

A type of constructivist
approach (constructivists
believe that students do not
learn effectively by breaking
down the chunks of a word
system such as learning the
letters in order to learn
language)

Enhances the learners to come

up with their own perspective
and form their own framework
for new knowledge

IMPORTANCE OF WHOLE LANGUAGE

Helps the students to make
meaning of what they read
and to express meaning in
what they write

In terms of literature , this

approach develops love of
literature and help children
have interest and develop
the love

The effective whole language

teacher hears and sees the
childs errors using
formative assessment then
creates experiences that help
the child to acquire the
correct structure and form

ADVANTAGES OF WHOLE LANGUAGE

Children are exposed to outstanding childrens literature
from the very beginning of their reading experiences. This
makes reading more interesting for them.
They have a better understanding of what they are
reading, and a more interesting and creative approach to
reading.
There are no lists of sounds or rules to be learnt.
Children are able to observe real reading behaviours in
non-threatening situations and to imitate such behaviours
without fear or shame.

DISADVANTAGES OF WHOLE LANGUAGE

Children do not get a full phonic foundation and so
are unable to decipher unfamiliar words.
Accuracy and correctness can be overlooked. A child
might be praised for overall language use, even if he
has misspelled many words.
There is a lack of structure in this method of teaching
which puts a heavy burden on the teacher to develop
their own curriculum and may be difficult for
children who prefer a more organised way of
learning.

ACTIVITIES FOR
WHOLE LANGUAGE
APPROACH

1. READING PRACTICE
.Teachers should use authentic text
early reader books.
.They contain short sentences
written in simple language with
some repeated phrases but are not
written in order to practice specific
phonics rules.
.Children will use the pictures to
guess difficult words and through
repeated readings starts to recognise
words by sight.

2. ASK STUDENTS TO
WRITE WHAT THEY
HAD READ
After reading a story
together, ask students to
write about what he has just
read with you.
If he is too young for this,
you could encourage him to
draw his own pictures to
describe what has happened
in the story.

3. GUESSING
GAME
Teachers show flashcards
containing words based
on the dolch word list to
the students.
Teachers let student
guess the meaning of the
word by pairing the word
on the flashcards with
the picture provided.