Language Arts

Grade 4: 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 goals related to specific listening tasks (e.g., to summarize the theme of a small-group drama presentation; to record important details about an upcoming event announced on the radio; to clarify suggestions for improvements in a peer writing conference)
Active Listening Strategies: 1.2 demonstrate an understanding of appropriate listening behaviour by adapting active listening strategies to suit a variety of situations, including work in groups (e.g., demonstrate an understanding of when to speak, when to listen, and how much to say; summarize information and ideas from a small-group meeting; ask relevant questions to clarify meaning and link responses appropriately to the topic of conversation; adapt listening behaviour to the requirements of informal social settings and more formal settings)
Comprehension Strategies: 1.3 identify a variety of listening comprehension strategies and use them appropriately before, during, and after listening in order to understand and clarify the meaning of oral texts (e.g., make notes to summarize what has been heard; use graphic organizers, diagrams, or sketches to record information or ideas presented orally; prepare for a visit to the theatre by activating prior knowledge of the structure of a play and discussing the subject of the play with peers)
Demonstrating Understanding: 1.4 demonstrate an understanding of the information and ideas in a variety of oral texts by summarizing important ideas and citing important details (e.g., present an oral report to the class after listening to a guest speaker; use a graphic organizer to map the important ideas in a text; represent the important ideas of an oral text through visual art, music, or drama)
Making Inferences/Interpreting Texts: 1.5 make inferences using stated and implied ideas in oral texts (e.g., listen "between the lines" to detect bias in an oral text)
Extending Understanding: 1.6 extend understanding of oral texts by connecting the ideas in them to their own knowledge, experience, and insights; to other texts, including print and visual texts; and to the world around them (e.g., relate the topic of an oral presentation to prior knowledge and information from personal experiences, articles, movies, stories, or television shows; ask questions about relevant stated and implied details; relate the ideas of other speakers in a dialogue group to their own experiences; use role play and drama to connect the themes and emotions depicted in an oral text to real-life situations)
Analysing Texts: 1.7 analyse oral texts and explain how specific elements in them contribute to meaning (e.g., ideas and information, body language, tone of voice). Teacher prompt: "How did the speaker's body language and tone of voice contribute to the meaning?"
Point of View: 1.8 identify the point of view presented in oral texts and ask questions about possible bias (e.g., identify the use of words and/or phrases that signal generalizations or stereotypes about gender, culture, ability, or age). Teacher prompts: "Whose point of view is presented in this poem?" "Whose point of view is excluded?" "Does this reflect the way the world is today?" "How might this text be different if another point of view were presented?"
Presentation Strategies: 1.9 identify the presentation strategies used in oral texts and analyse their effect on the audience (e.g., the use of emotive language). Teacher prompt: "Do you think this type of emotive language influences the audience in the way the speaker intends?"
2. Speaking to Communicate
Purpose: 2.1 identify a variety of purposes for speaking (e.g., to entertain a wider school audience; to establish positive personal and learning relationships with peers; to ask questions or explore solutions to problems in small-group and paired activities; to solicit opinions and react to information and ideas in a discussion or dialogue group; to explain to another person how something works; to summarize and comment on an event or oral text for the class; to clarify and organize thinking in order to contribute to understanding 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., acknowledge and extend other group members' contributions; make relevant and constructive comments on the contributions of other group members)
Clarity and Coherence: 2.3 communicate in a clear, coherent manner, presenting ideas, opinions, and information in a readily understandable form (e.g., respond in an appropriate order to multi-part, higher-level questions in a student-teacher conference or a group discussion; explain the results of research in an oral presentation, including a statement of the research focus, the procedures followed, and the conclusions reached; use an organizational pattern such as chronological order or cause and effect to present ideas in a dialogue or discussion)
Appropriate Language: 2.4 use appropriate words and phrases from the full range of their vocabulary, including inclusive and non-discriminatory terms, and appropriate elements of style, to communicate their meaning accurately and engage the interest of their audience (e.g., use evaluative terms to clarify opinions and for emphasis; use descriptive words to give specificity and detail to personal anecdotes; use humour or emotive language to engage the audience's interest or sympathy)
Vocal Skills and Strategies: 2.5 identify some vocal effects, including tone, pace, pitch, volume, and a range of sound effects, and use them appropriately and with sensitivity towards cultural differences to help communicate their meaning (e.g., adjust the pace of speaking for effect and to hold the listener's attention)
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 (e.g., use body language, such as moving closer, leaning forward, nodding or shaking their head for emphasis, to connect with their audience)
Visual Aids: 2.7 use a variety of appropriate visual aids (e.g., CDs or DVDs, computer-generated graphic organizers, concrete materials, artefacts) to support or enhance oral presentations (e.g., use pictures or samples of different kites to illustrate a talk on how to build a kite)
3. Reflecting on Oral Communication Skills and Strategies
Metacognition: 3.1 identify, in conversation with the teacher and peers, what strategies they found most helpful before, during, and after listening and speaking and what steps they can take to improve their oral communication skills. Teacher prompts: "What strategies do you use to monitor your listening to be sure that you are understanding the speaker?" "If, after listening, you think you don't understand, what steps do you take to clear up your confusion?" "How do you identify the things that you do well as a speaker and what you would like to improve upon?"
Interconnected Skills: 3.2 identify, in conversation with the teacher and peers, how their skills as viewers, representers, readers, and writers help them improve their oral communication skills. Teacher prompts: "How can viewing media texts help you as a listener or speaker?" "How can reading texts from different cultures help you connect to your audience as a speaker?"

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