Children entering kindergarten have varying levels of knowledge of speech acts. And yet, utterances that are used, for example, to thank, to apologize or to express needs are essential in day-to-day life.
Christian Dumais, a researcher at the Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières, has been working on a project with preschool teachers to develop a way of improving young children’s oral language skills. For two years, regular meetings were held to identify the most frequent and most important speech acts at this age. At the top of the list are thanking, apologizing, requesting and expressing needs.
The team then co-constructed the play box model, which includes both materials to help teachers develop children’s language skills in the classroom and a flexible procedure for encouraging symbolic play (for example, playing at being at a restaurant).
The researchers and teachers developed teaching materials (for example, an approach to teaching speech acts) intended for kindergarten and daycare staff in Québec. The work of Christian Dumais’s team has also led to the creation of a course on symbolic play and language development, which is offered in some education science programs at UQTR.
This research has also attracted interest across the Atlantic, where a research team has used the play box model with kindergarten children in France. For his part, Christian Dumais is continuing his study in Québec and is exploring the application of the play box model with primary school students.
Reference
Dumais, C. et Soucy, E. (2022). Le développement du langage oral à l’éducation préscolaire 4 ans et 5 ans par l’entremise des actes de parole : résultats d’une recherche collaborative. Éducation et francophonie, 50(1), 1-16. https://acelf.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/02-Dumais-et-Soucy.pdf