Language Arts

Grade 2: Oral Communication	Planning: Term # Tracking: Ach. Level
Overall Expectations	1	2	3	4
1. listen in order to understand and respond appropriately in a variety of situations for a variety of purposes;
2. use speaking skills and strategies appropriately to communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes;
3. reflect on and identify their strengths as listeners and speakers, areas for improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful in oral communication situations.
Specific Expectations
1. Listening to Understand
Purpose: 1.1 identify purposes for listening in a variety of situations, formal and informal, and set personal goals for listening, initially with support and direction (e.g., to acquire information from a presentation by a guest speaker; to exchange ideas in a small-group discussion; to enjoy and understand poetry)
Active Listening Strategies: 1.2 demonstrate an understanding of appropriate listening behaviour by using active listening strategies in a variety of situations (e.g., demonstrate understanding of when to speak, when to listen, and how much to say; restate what the speaker has said and connect it to their own ideas; express personal interest in what has been said by asking related questions: I like what ______ said about ______). Teacher prompt: "When First Nations peoples use a talking stick,* a person speaks only when holding the talking stick, while the rest of the group listens. Today we are going to speak and listen in a similar way."
Comprehension Strategies: 1.3 identify several listening comprehension strategies and use them before, during, and after listening in order to understand and clarify the meaning of oral texts (e.g., listen for key words and phrases that signal important ideas; retell an oral text to a partner after a presentation; ask appropriate questions in order to make predictions about an oral text)
Demonstrating Understanding: 1.4 demonstrate an understanding of the information and ideas in oral texts by retelling the story or restating the information, including the main idea and several interesting details (e.g., restate a partner's reflections after a think-pairshare activity; identify the important ideas in a group presentation; carry on a sustained conversation on a topic)
Making Inferences/Interpreting Texts: 1.5 use stated and implied information and ideas in oral texts to make simple inferences and reasonable predictions, and support the inferences with evidence from the text. Teacher prompt: "You predicted _______. What clues from the oral text did you use to figure that out?"
Extending Understanding: 1.6 extend understanding of oral texts by connecting the ideas in them to their own knowledge and experience; to other familiar texts, including print and visual texts; and to the world around them (e.g., talk about their own ideas and experiences related to the topic before listening; connect ideas from oral presentations to related school and community events and/or to other texts with similar topics or themes, including multicultural texts or texts in their own first language)
Analysing Texts: 1.7 identify words or phrases that indicate whether an oral text is fact or opinion, initially with support and direction (e.g., phrases such as I think...I feel... indicate an opinion rather than strictly factual information)
Point of View: 1.8 identify, initially with support and direction, who is speaking in an oral text, and demonstrate an understanding that the speaker has his or her own point of view (e.g., people, events, and details are viewed differently by different people). Teacher prompts: "Does who is talking affect the way the information is presented or the way the story is told?" "How do you know what the speaker's feelings about the topic are? How does that affect you as a listener?" "How might the text change if [character X] were speaking instead?"
Presentation Strategies: 1.9 identify some of the presentation strategies used in oral texts and explain how they influence the audience (e.g., the use of facial expressions helps the listener understand what is being said). Teacher prompts: "How does looking at the expression on a speaker's face help you to understand what is being said?" "Does the look on the speaker's face in some way change the meaning of the actual words being spoken?"
2. Speaking to Communicate
Purpose: 2.1 identify a variety of purposes for speaking (e.g., to entertain the class; to establish positive personal and learning relationships with peers; to ask questions or explore solutions to problems in small-group and paired activities; to give directions to a partner in a shared activity; to explain to a small group the method used to solve a problem; to share ideas or information in large and small groups)
Interactive Strategies: 2.2 demonstrate an understanding of appropriate speaking behaviour in a variety of situations, including paired sharing and small- and large-group discussions (e.g., make connections to what other group members have said; demonstrate an understanding of when to speak, when to listen, and how much to say)
Clarity and Coherence: 2.3 communicate ideas, opinions, and information orally in a clear, coherent manner using simple but appropriate organizational patterns (e.g., give an oral account of a current event using the five W's to organize the information; restate the main facts from a simple informational text in correct sequence)
Appropriate Language: 2.4 choose a variety of appropriate words and phrases to communicate their meaning accurately and engage the interest of their audience (e.g., use descriptive adjectives and adverbs to create vivid images for their audience)
Vocal Skills and Strategies: 2.5 identify some vocal effects, including tone, pace, pitch, and volume, and use them appropriately, and with sensitivity towards cultural differences, to help communicate their meaning (e.g., adjust volume to suit the purpose for speaking and the size and type of audience)
Non-Verbal Cues: 2.6 identify some non-verbal cues, including facial expression, gestures, and eye contact, and use them in oral communications, appropriately and with sensitivity towards cultural differences, to help convey their meaning
Visual Aids: 2.7 use a few different visual aids, (e.g., photographs, artefacts, a story map) to support or enhance oral presentations (e.g., use a family photograph as part of an oral recount of an event; use a story map to retell a story)
3. Reflecting on Oral Communication Skills and Strategies
Metacognition: 3.1 identify, initially with support and direction, a few strategies they found helpful before, during, and after listening and speaking. Teacher prompts: "What questions can you ask yourself while listening to be sure that you understand what you hear?" "What can you do after listening to check that you have understood?" "How do you get ready to speak?" "While you are speaking, how do you check whether you are keeping the attention of your audience?"
Interconnected Skills: 3.2 identify, initially with support and direction, how their skills as viewers, representers, readers, and writers help them improve their oral communication skills. Teacher prompts: "How does listening make you a better speaker?" "How does viewing texts help you when you are listening?"

Expectations: Copyright The Queen's Printer for Ontario, 2006.  Format: Copyright B.Phillips, 1998.