Jo Wingo

In the second segment, Jo Wingo works with the children collectively to write a sentence on the flip chart. Excerpted from a videotaping at Centralized Kindergarten North School (North Central Regional Educational Laboratory, 1999).

Wingo: We need somebody to write have, have. Um, David hasn't been up here for a long time, David. Everybody say the word, "have." Don't tell me a letter, tell me a sound.

Children: Two finger spaces.

Wingo: Oh, two finger spaces, why?

Children: Beginning of a word.

Wingo: Beginning of a new word. Two finger spaces, and they said they heard the "hah," what letter says…

Children: H!

Wingo: H does. Well, I think we need it on that side of the finger spaces. Is this an upper case h or a lower case?

Children: Lower case.

Wingo: Lower case, this isn't the beginning of a sentence, and it isn't somebody's name, is it? Let's say the word "have".

Children: Have. ah. ah.

Wingo: Rachael said she heard an "ah." Do you hear the "ah?"

Child: Lower case a.

Wingo: What letter says "ah?"

Child: Lower case a.

Wingo: Lower case a says "ah." Does upper case A say "ah" sometimes?

Child: yeah

Wingo: It does sometimes, but this time it's a lower case. What did you heard after the "ah?" Have…

Child: V!

Wingo: See, that isn't it, that's a letter, but I heard a "va." V, the letter is v, isn't it Megan. Um, did you look at the valentine? And David and I have a surprise for you. There's something that goes on the end of this word.

Children: Period?

Wingo: We're not at the end of a sentence.

Child: A question mark!

Wingo: Who said that?

Natalie: Me.

Wingo: What did you say Natalie?

Natalie: e.

Wingo: Why?

Natalie: Because you can't hear it.

Wingo: We can't hear it. It's a silent e, but it is there isn't it? That's the way we spell the word have. Thank you David, go write it on your paper. We have a visitor. Visitors. Let's see, Sam hasn't been up her for a very very long time. I know, I'm keeping good track of it, I watch, and Emily hasn't either. I'll get Emily yet. I'll get Emily up, I'll get Nicoletta, I'll get all of you up at some point. You might not get up here today. Guess what the next word is in our sentence. We have...

Children: Visitors.

Wingo: Visitors.

Children: Two finger spaces.

Wingo: Two finger spaces. Va, va. Oh, you did hear a "va." What letter makes that sound?

Children: V!!!

Wingo: Ms. Queen, a V. Okay, write a v. Uppercase or lower case?

Wingo: Lower case, we're still in the middle of a sentence. Everybody say the word visitors, visitors..

Children: Ieh, ieh…

Wingo: I heard somebody say a "ss," but I heard something before that,

Children: "ieh"

Wingo: Ieh. You heard the "ieh" I do hear the "ss," but I heard the "ieh" first, and that letter is I, and then somebody said "ss." What letter says "ss?"

Children: s.

Child: You forgot a lowercase or uppercase.

Wingo: Oh, you know what, you're so smart, you know that this has to be a lower case, we're in the middle of the word. You're so smart I didn't need to ask you. Good.