Monday, November 23, 2009

Topic: Unusual Orthographic Features of Writing.

10-second review: Point out to students how authors use unusual orthographic features to convey meaning.


Title: “ ‘We-e-el-l’ or ‘We’ll’: Children Negotiating Orthographic Features of A Letter to Amy.” P Arya, P Wilson, P Martens. Reading Teacher (November 2009), 224-233. A publication of the International Reading Association (IRA).


Summary/Quote: “This study shows that orthographic features of text, including spelling, line breaks, fonts, and so forth, influence readers’ comprehending but…not necessarily comprehension.”


Comment: The authors make the point that we do a lot of things—gestures, etc.—when we speak to convey feelings but we are limited in conveying the same feelings in writing. Such orthographic tricks certainly contribute to comprehension. RayS.

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