Language and children's literature--sorting through the puzzle pieces.

Simpson, Alyson

One picture puzzle piece Lyin' on the sidewalk, one picture puzzle piece soakin' in the rain Extract from 'Picture Puzzle Piece' by Shel Silverstein

The poem 'Picture Puzzle Piece' begins with the mystery of a single jigsaw puzzle piece left out in the rain. It shows a glimpse of colour so no one knows what image it belongs to. In the poem Shel Silverstein goes on to talk of the many possibilities this tiny piece could signal of a whole picture. He plays with ideas related to colour and texture and story telling but the reader can not identify the correct answer, we do not have all the information, so we can only guess.

I use the poem as an analogy to what we sometimes ask children to do when we teach them decontextualised linguistic structures without giving them the full experience of what great texts are like. All good texts are made through the careful creation of an author who has made great efforts to hide the workings. When we read a well crafted text we are not aware of the effort an author has made in writing it. Yet beneath the surface of any text lie the tiny 'puzzle pieces' of its construction. Each part by itself may look inconsequential but each contributes to the final effect.

For example, in the poem Silverstein uses evocative word combinations formed as long descriptive noun groups, phrases and clauses to build contrasting imagery: a fold in the red velvet robe of a queen or a button of blue on the coat of the woman who lived in a shoe or finally one old wet picture puzzle piece. He also incorporates literary language features such as alliteration, repetition, rhythm and rhyme (Tunica 2005). His choices are guided by the text he has chosen to write and his purpose for writing it. He wants to write a poem that muses on the creative power of the imagination. The sociocultural 'frame' he has selected of poem places boundaries of logic around his language choices. If he chooses to work within these guiding edges he should not include random linguistic combinations such as a list of materials or command verbs as they could signal another purpose for his text (unless of course his poem was about giving instructions). But it is clear that Silverstein knows how to match his social purpose to suitable structures and align them with appropriate poetic features whilst still allowing himself room to be creative. In other words, he knows how to write. He is an author.

The situation is different for a lot of other people. Many adults can read and write texts but few amongst us are skilled enough to create literary texts. It is harder again for children to create and respond informatively to literary texts. So it our role as teachers to develop awareness of the vital contribution that language makes to literary texts, so we may support our students as they develop knowledge about how different language features operate. It is important therefore, that language study forms part of our work with literary texts. Yet, it is also vital that in our study of literary texts we do not lose sight of the author's intention; to entertain, to inspire, to gladden, to sadden, etc. (Saxby 1993).

The question we must ask ourselves is, 'what pathways can we take to productively introduce the study of language with literary texts?'. Returning to our jigsaw metaphor, some people start by sorting all the straight edge pieces into a pile and from this they build a frame within which to work. Others sort for colour and still others for texture. But before the puzzle is even attempted all the pieces are first taken from a box on which a large picture of the finished design is displayed. In other words, the puzzle maker understands how their creation should look when it is finished. Returning our attention to the study of language, does it make similar sense to start by recognising patterns in individual pieces? Or do we need to get a sense of the full picture first? That is, do we start with a focus on the goal, or on the small steps we have to take to get there? Putting it another way, do we engage children with a love of literature and the skill of the author before we focus on the details that will help students become good writers themselves? Or should we work from the ground up? The answer is that children need a balance between learning to and learning about reading outcomes if they are to become life long readers. Indeed, if we ignore the imperative to build habits of mind for good readers where we encourage students to read and enjoy literature, then we leave our students with a very limited appreciation of English (Simpson 2008). The reality in the current education climate though is that more classroom time is spent on study of text structure than on the creation and appreciation of literary texts.

21st century skills

In the 21st century list of skills, words such as creativity, imagination, communication and invention appear. These words should inspire innovative teaching. However, as we know, the success of all primary schools in Australia is measured nationally by standardised tests. There is a systematic control that often pulls innovative teachers back from working with any approach that does not immediately appear to be working towards the test. Indeed the impact of reductionist conceptions of reading and writing on the rhetoric of 21st century skills regrettably is that we have built our accountability system so it actually suppresses the kind of learning that the future calls for (Resnick 2010). Yet in strong contrast stands Ewing's report for the ACER, which asserts the centrality of creative thinking to learning for the future (Ewing 2010). Our best teachers know that creative learning leads to imaginative thinking which in turn improves learning outcomes but they face the dilemma that assessment of such deep understanding can be challenging as it is more difficult to measure.

It stands to reason that if we want our students to be positioned for higher order thinking the Australian Curriculum English needs to support learning pathways that will achieve such an outcome. As teachers are still working through the implications of the structural features of the Australian Curriculum, it is useful to ask the question. What does it provide to scaffold teaching and learning for the 21st century?

Australian Curriculum English

In the Australian Curriculum documents (ACARA 2011) the strand of Language is described as where 'students develop their knowledge of the English language and how it works'. The purpose of the study of language is for students to 'learn to communicate effectively through coherent, well-structured sentences and texts'. The complimentary information in the Literature strand states that through the study and creation of literary texts students will enrich their 'understanding of human experiences and the capacity for language to deepen those experiences. It builds students' knowledge about how language can be used for aesthetic ends, to create particular emotional, intellectual or philosophical effects.' Reading the curriculum across the substrands at one level a connection is signalled between ideas concerned with interaction and response to literary text so that language provides the means for interaction, literature creates the stimulus for response and literacy is used to interact with others. The rhetoric is strong but clearly the study of language needs to be well embedded in the study of literature for this model of the curriculum to function well in the classroom.

An extract of one section of the published curriculum information will be used below to inform our examination of how links can be created between language, literacy and literature as teachers prepare rich learning experiences. For example, in year 3 the substrand of literature includes the following descriptors:

Responding to literature

1. Draw connections between personal experiences and the worlds of texts, and share responses with others (ACELT1596)

2. Develop criteria for establishing personal preferences for literature (ACELT1598)

Examining literature

1. Discuss how language is used to describe the settings in texts, and explore how the settings shape the events and influence the mood of the narrative (ACELT1599)

2. Discuss the nature and effects of some language devices used to enhance meaning and shape the reader's reaction, including rhythm and onomatopoeia in poetry and prose (ACELT1600)

Creating literature

1. Create imaginative texts based on characters, settings and events from students' own and other cultures using visual features, for example perspective, distance and angle (ACELT1601)

2. Create texts that adapt language features and patterns encountered in literary texts, for example characterisation, rhyme, rhythm, mood, music, sound effects and dialogue (ACELT1791)

It is clear from the text that there are generalised points and also detailed information on isolated topics; so one risk of reading a list like this is it could lead to teachers to plan lessons that fracture student attention into parts where they lose sight of the whole and reduce the richness of reading and enjoyment of literary texts into a series of disconnected activities. For example, a decontextualised lesson on onomatopoeia could be followed by an unrelated lesson on rhythm in order to introduce the metalanguage and match the curriculum requirements. Whilst it could be argued that students would be learning the basics, the problem with this kind of approach is that it is associated with a drop in PISA results for Australia in recent years. McGaw warns that results are linked to the kind of teaching where students lack experience with developing 'sophisticated reading of complex text' (2010, p. 5). Fortunately the corollary is that, if a teacher makes use of the full set of descriptors under the heading literature with a stimulating literary text, then their students would be led towards developing sophisticated reading habits.

For, where a teacher knows how to blend language appreciation into a lesson sequence in support of students' understanding is when we see the strands working together in a relationship of interdependence. A case study of preservice teachers is used below to briefly demonstrate how detailed attention to language provides opportunities to respond to literary texts. The final year university students were studying the poem 'Prayer for the 21st Century' by John Marsden in preparation for planning lessons for Stage 2 and 3 students. The lesson sequence (based on an extract from Gibson and Ewing Leading with Drama, 2011 pp. 60-62), helped students work towards language and literature outcomes. But before any explicit attention was paid to individual linguistic features students used discursive, dramatic and artistic responses to the text as they developed greater awareness of the author's craft and learned to appreciate the power of the poem to create empathy.

Lesson sequence:

Warming up

Step 1: Students think of something they would like to change in the world and write it down as a wish statement

Step 2: Teacher reads John Marsden's 'Prayer for the Twenty First Century' while students listen to it as a whole poem. The teacher reads the poem a second time as students listen for a couplet with which they identify

Step 3: Teacher speaks about a couplet that is meaningful to them

Step 4: Students share the couplet they chose with a peer, then join with another pair to discuss their choices. The groups choose one of the couplets to depict as a frozen moment/tableau.

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Step 5: Groups present their depiction and others try to identify the chosen couplet being represented. The images can be photographed for use later. (The photos shown here were taken in the tutorial room and are used with permission of the students).

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As part of this step the teacher can tap in to track how the participants are feeling at this point especially if the class needs more information to make a constructive guess.

Visual Arts

Step 6: Students write their couplet on one side of a sheet of art paper and illustrate it on the other side.

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Writing

Step 7: Students think about how they will read their new couplet aloud and annotate their text to indicate e.g. stress, intonation, pitch, volume etc.

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Readers' Theatre

Step 8: Students sit in a circle with their images facing out and read their couplet to the whole group.

Backward mapping

The four images above show two paired examples of students' dramatic and artistic responses to the text. If we now backward map from the teaching sequence we can unpack the traces of learning and match them to curriculum standards.

Step 1: Students think of something they would like to change in the world and write it down as a wish statement. In this step we see the students considering universal themes and using their literacy skills to construct a sentence that focuses on the language of thought. They need to use appropriate feeling/sensing verbs to write their wish in terms of personal significance. They are developing writing skills as they address ACELY1682.

Step 2: Teacher reads the poem while students listen. The teacher reads the poem a second time as students listen for a couplet with which they identify. The students are asked to make links from the text to their own lives and experiences. The teacher has also given readings of the poem, which has modelled good practices that students can adopt later in the lesson. The students are working with talking and listening outcomes that link to ACELT1596.

Step 3: Teacher speaks about a couplet that is meaningful to them. The teacher models the ways to justify an opinion and present a personal response to a text. The students hear the language that enables her to share her connections to the text, which further underpins learning about ACELT1596.

Step 4: Students share the couplet they chose with a peer, then joins with another pair to discuss their choices and depict one as a frozen moment/tableau. The students use complex language to discuss which couplet to depict. They negotiate collaboratively to plan the depiction according to their interpretation of language devices used to create meaning in the poem. They are using talking and listening skills to focus on symbolic meaning as they address ACELT1600 and ACELY1676.

Step 5: Groups present their depiction and others try to identify the chosen couplet being represented. Students may verbalise their feelings if the teacher 'taps in'. The students are 'reading' a complex multimodal text that depends on their understanding of facial expression and body gesture. They must also use their knowledge of language to express thoughts and emotions that match the mood of their depiction. Students create and respond to a dramatic portrayal in terms of ACELT1600 and ACELT1601 as they simultaneously address ACELA1482 and ACELA1483.

Step 6: Students write their couplet on one side of a sheet of paper and illustrate it on the other side. Students complete a writing task modelled on the literary text. They also create a new text as an artistic response to the written word. Their interpretive image has been scaffolded by their own embodied experience as well as their study of the poetic language so through writing and responding they address ACELT1600, ACELT1601, ACELA1482 and ACELA1483.

Step 7: Students think about how they will read their new couplet aloud and annotate their text to indicate e.g. stress, intonation, pitch, volume etc. Students plan and practise a public reading based on their response to the text and their knowledge of language structures. They use reading, talking and listening and writing strategies to address curriculum descriptors ACELT1600, ACELT1791, ACELY1677 and ACELY1792.

Step 8: Students sit in a circle with their images facing out and read their couplet to the whole group. In this step students perform their response. They demonstrate their awareness of language and literacy through the delivery of an adapted literary text. They employ reading, talking and listening skills to address ACELT1791 and ACELY1792.

NB: There was one more step in the sequence by Ewing, Step 9: Creative Writing. As the tutorial was too short, sadly this step was not completed even though it would have led the students to write their own couplet using the wish they thought of in step one. This would have used writing to address ACELT1791.

Conclusion

Jigsaws have their edges and linguistic rules have their place but it is my belief that before students learn that texts are constructed objects, they need to experience how literary texts provide windows into other ways of thinking. If we wish students to develop literary consciousness rather than just a tendency to follow formulas then our teaching must introduce students to literary texts using pedagogy that balances curiosity, response and creation with knowledge about language and multimodal literacy skills. The analysis of the student work samples revealed the well principled integration of the three strands of the Australian Curriculum English. The lessons demonstrated how assessment tasks that use literary response enrich learning by helping students to appreciate their literary imagination as well as confidently begin to discuss linguistic features used in texts. Future lessons could take a more detailed look at the metalanguage but, as students started their study at the level of the whole text, they would not forget their initial engagement with its powerful message and the author's intent would not be lost.

References

ACARA (2011). The Australian Curriculum English. Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority. Retrieved 17/10/11 from http://www. australiancurriculum.edu.au/English/Rationale

Ewing, R. (2010). The Arts and Australian Education: Realising potential. Camberwell: ACER.

Gibson, R. & Ewing, R. (2011). Transforming the curriculum through the arts. Melbourne: Palgrave Macmillan.

McGaw B (2010). Reducing the impact of social background in education: Fond hope or realistic aim? Murdoch Lecture, Perth, 17/3/10. Retrieved 20/5/10 from: http://www.education.murdoch.edu.au/pdf_files/McGaw%20-%20 Murdoch%20lecture.pdf

Marsden, J. (1997). Prayer for the 21st century. Port Melbourne: Lothian books.

National Centre for Language and Literacy, (2005). Waiting for a Jamie Oliver: beyond bog standard literacy. Reading: NCLL.

Resnick LB (2010). Nested learning systems for the thinking curriculum. Educational Researcher 39, 183-197.

Rossbridge, J. & Rushton, J. (2010). Conversations about Text Marrickville: elit.

Saxby, M. (1993). Children's Literature: What to look for in a primary reading program In L. Unsworth (Ed.). Literacy, Learning and Teaching: Language as social practice in the primary school. South Melbourne: Macmillan. pp. 55-92.

Silverstein, S. (1981). A light in the attic: poems and drawings by Shel Silverstein. New York; Harper Collins.

Simpson, A. (2008). Reading Under the Covers. Helping Children to Choose Books. Sydney: Primary English Teachers Association (PETA).

Tunica, M. (2005). A passion for poetry: practical approaches to using poetry in the classroom. Newtown: PETA.

Alyson Simpson is Associate Professor at the Faculty of Education and Social Work at the University of Sydney. Her research projects in higher education and primary schools create connections between language, literature and literacy to examine the power of children's literature, designs for e-learning and concepts of visual literacy.

Dr Alyson Simpson is a keynote speaker at the 2012 ALEA Sydney Conference to be held at The SMC Conference and Function Centre Goulburn Street, Sydney NSW. Her keynote will consider: Literary Habits of the Mind: The Road Not Taken. And her workshop continues the theme: Building Habits of the Mind: What does a good reader look like? For more details and to register for the conference, go to www.alea.edu.au.