Colour me happy

Vanessa Reilly 2014

The Cosmo Course Book Quiz
1. Have you got enough time to coordinate with colleagues?
2. Is coordination and communication between Infantil and Primary good in your
school?
3. Have you got the time to create audio CDs with music etc for your children to
take home?
4. Have you got a library of resources with lots of audio material graded to the
level of your students, flashcards, stories, colour worksheets, etc?
5. Have you got access and are allowed to use a colour photocopier for
worksheets?
6. Have you got access and are allowed to use a colour printer for worksheets?
Did you answer No to 2 or more of these questions?
You MAY need a course book.
PLEASE CONTINUE THE QUIZ
7. Is there more than one English Specialist in your school?
8. Do you teach English to more than one year group, (1 A, B y C) and more than
one grade (Infantil 3 aos, Primero, Segundo and Sexto)?
9. Do you often find yourself complaining because you don't have time to do all
the work that needs to be done especially now you have to prepare your own
resources for the little ones?
10. Have the children got a book for other subjects?
11. Do you ever have problems with you voice your are often hoarse, lose your
voice or maybe even have a nodule?
12. Have you got parents that want the children to do work at home but dont
speak good English and ruin any of the good work you have done in school by
correcting the childrens pronunciation, etc?
If you have answered Yes to 2 or more of these questions, it would be a really good
idea to have a course book.

Colour me happy
Vanessa Reilly 2014

English in pre-school provides
the foundation for the rest of
the childrens English language
learning.
We need to make sure that it is
well-planned and co-ordinated,
not haphazard.
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Colour me happy
Vanessa Reilly 2014

Pre-school is where we can promote real communication.
BICS Basic Interpersonal Communication Skills
CALP Cognitive Academic Language Practice
We can give children the tools and practice to become communicative.
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Colour me happy
Vanessa Reilly 2014

Language presentation
Do you like sandwiches?
Yes, I do.
Do you like sandwiches?
Yes, I do.
Do you like sandwiches?
Yes, I do. X 3
BICS
Juice, juice, I like juice.
Bananas, bananas, I like bananas.
Yoghurt, yoghurt. I like yoghurt too.
Unit 7 Language presentation song
and the BICS song Oxford Splash A
CALP
You need healthy food you know!
Healthy food makes you grow.
Spaghetti, sandwiches, chicken and cheese.
Cherries, apples and oranges, please.
Yoghurt, juice and salad, too.
Healthy food good for you.
Unit 7 Project song Oxford Splash Plus A
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Colour me happy
Vanessa Reilly 2014

Children learn better in colour
Scientific research shows how children learn best.
In 1976, Rikard Kuller demonstrated how colour and visual
patterning affects not only the cortex but also the entire
central nervous system.
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Colour me happy
Vanessa Reilly 2014

Frank H. Mahnke in his book, Color, Environment and Human Response,
offers designers guidelines specifically for integrating colour in the
educational environment. His guidelines stem from his own research in
the fields of colour and environmental psychology.
Preschool and Elementary school children prefer a warm, bright colour
scheme that compliments their natural extroverted nature.
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Colour me happy
Vanessa Reilly 2014

Children Remember Colours
Better Than just Verbal Cues
A study conducted in 1999 by Vuontella, showed that children
remembered colour cues better than just verbal cues. Combining
lesson material with colours can help children to memorize
information.
Graphic organisers when the children are older.
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Roddie, S, Colour me happy, Macmillan Childrens Books
Colour me happy
Vanessa Reilly 2014

Dr. Judy Williss research from neuro-imaging
1st Filter
RAS
Reticular Activating System
The Lower brain filter
RAS is particularly responsive to
novelty, surprise, colour and unexpected
events when selecting which sensory
input to allow into the thinking brain.
2nd Filter
Affective filter
In the amygdala
When the amygdala is in a safe
state and emotions are positive,
the information is passed on to the
reflective, memory-making and
thinking networks in the brain.
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Dopamine a neurotransmitter
When learning is associated with pleasure, dopamine is released. This surge
increases focus, helping the brain stay alive.
Dopamine is also released when we eat chocolate.
It is also linked to falling in love!
RAD
R = Reticular Activating System
A = Affective filter in the amygdala
D = Dopamine
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Colour me happy
Vanessa Reilly 2014



Willis, J, (MD), (2006), Research-based Strategies to Ignite Student
Learning, ASCD

Willis, J, (MD, Med), (2008), How Your Child Learns Best, Sourcebooks

Dr. Judy Williss Website
http://www.radteach.com/

Why we need good-quality visuals in preschool
Learning Recall Related to Type of Presentation
Presentation Ability to Recall
after 3 hours after 3 days
Spoken lecture 25% 10-20%
Written (reading) 72% 10%
Visual and verbal 80% 65%
Participatory (role plays,
practice)
90% 70%
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From Dale E. 1969. Cone of experience, in Educational Media: Theory into Practice. Wiman RV (ed).
Charles Merrill: Columbus, Ohio


Colour me happy
Vanessa Reilly 2014

RAD
We need to be mindful of this when choosing learning materials for the
children in preschool.
We need coloured flashcards, puppets, etc.
Worksheets need to be in colour.
We need colour materials the children can manipulate
stickers, push-outs, mini-books, etc, that encourage communication.
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Unfortunately
Preschool is one area where we are cutting
back on spending, using photocopies instead of colour.
This is precisely where we SHOULDNT be using
black and white photocopies!
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Colour me happy
Vanessa Reilly 2014


From Judy Williss book Ignite students learning
Learning promotes learning
Engaging in the process of learning actually increases one's capacity to learn.
Each time a student participates in any endeavor, a certain number of neurons
are activated.
When the action is repeated, such as rehearsing a song, or when the
information is repeated in subsequent curriculum, these same neurons respond
again.
The more times one repeats an action or recalls the information, the more
dendrites sprout to connect new memories to old, and the more efficient the
brain becomes in its ability to retrieve that memory or repeat that action.
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Singing a song the first time we sing it, a certain number of
neurons are activated. When we sing it again, the neurons
respond again. The more we repeat it, the more dendrites
sprout to connect new memories to old.
e.g. With a song about the face, we learn the names. When
we then learn a song about the senses, the first song neurons
are activated and respond when we repeat it. When we learn
about the senses, new dendrites sprout and connect to the
memories about the parts of the face.
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A student CD helps parents get involved in the learning process.
Many pre-school courses provide a CD with the Class Book.
Online material
By re-singing the songs at home, we make the content of our class portable.


http://bitesizedbrains.com/2013/07/06/paper-vs-pixels-does-it-matter-how-we-read-
conclusions/ Paper vs Pixels article

Smith, L, (2010) Its a Book, Macmillan
Colour me happy
Vanessa Reilly 2014

TV. If kids are entertained by 2 letters, imagine the fun they'll have with
26. Open your child's imagination. Open a book.
~Author Unknown

Books can be dangerous. The best ones should be labeled, "This could
change your life." ~ Helen Exley (author of books for children and young
adults)

Books are the compasses and telescopes and sextants and charts which
other men have prepared to help us navigate the dangerous seas of human
life.
~ Jesse Lee Bennett (American writer 1885 1931)

The stories of childhood leave an indelible impression, and their author
always has a niche in the temple of memory from which the image is never
cast out to be thrown on the rubbish heap of things that are outgrown and
outlived. ~ Howard Pyle (American illustrator and author,1853-1911)

Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body.
Richard Steele, (Irish writer and politician in 1710)

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