Text Talk

This article presents the different types of classroom conversations that can come from read alouds and reading from a common text. The author discusses the different types of "text talk" that can take place in a classroom. In most of my experiences, the text talk has iinvolved those "constraining questions" that only require the students to recall a fact. -n intermediate block, we were required to insert these types of questions into our reading lessons in order to check for students understanding and to attempt to engage them in the reading experience. I hated doing this. I could only remember as a child having someone read aloud to me, and getting so annoyed when they would pause the story to ask stupid questions like, "okay class! Who sat in the big pink chair?' Well of coarse, jane sat in the big pink chair.. You just said that 5 seconds ago! Now as a teacher candidate, I understand tha there are students that need that type of support when reading, but I also know that there are students out there like me that just wanted to snatch the book away and finish reading the book without any more ridiculous interruptions. I believe that there must be a better way to approach comprehension that this. I believe that this is a situation where differentiated learning should take place, but even as I stand on my pedestal and harp, I have to wonder how could a teacher differentiate a whole class read aloud experience?

I do enjoy looking at pictures with students and drawing conclusions or making predictions. As a teacher, it is remarkable what type of responses the students will give you from looking at an illustration. But thinking of it as a student, even if we are interrupting the book already on page 3, at least we are doing it for a good reason. Pausing for a pretty picture could never detract value from a story. It only enhances the experience.

I think that using background knowledge as a tool to "text talk" is one of the best ways to lead into the conversation. Granted, it has its drawbacks in that every student wants to share their experience, whether it has to do with the topic at hand or not. However, it causes students to make connections from the text to their lives and even if it leads down a bunny trail, the student is doing some higher level thinking than simply recalling that jane sat in a pink chair. They are remembering sitting in their grandmother's pink chair which may bring a student to wanting to talk about his grandmother, but the teacher must remember that the student is still making connections and he or she simply be ready to guide the conversation.

For the most part, my experiences with text talk has been as a student. Not too much of it has been very interesting. It is either too simple, or much too complex and not very engaging.and even though, I have very strong convictions about boring story interruptions, I am guilty of the crime as well. I can see my practicum students looking at me incredulously with that "did she just ask us that, don't she know we are 3rd graders?". So this just leaves me wondering how to break the cycle and make "text talk" more engaging for the students?