Listening

Consider the various kinds of listening children and you do during a typical day. How are they similar to each other? How are they different? How did you learn to listen in different ways? How might you teach children to listen in different ways?There are basically four purposes or types of listening: discriminative, aesthetic, efferent, and critical (Tompkins, 2009).
Discuss the parallels between these type of listening and reading/writing (Ch. 3 in Tompkins).
Categorize the kinds of listening you do each day and that you observe children doing in your field experience.What advice might Paley give you regarding teaching listening in the classroom?



There are four types of listening that are described in Tompkins on page 214. The first is dscrimitive which means to distinguish among sounds. I have witnessed my students for Tuesday Experience engaged in this type of listening when they are reading and writing poems. The teacher will ask them to come up with rythming words of their own and they will have to pick them out of a poem that is read to them. I have also seen the stidents using this type of listening while they are read stories that have many sound words. They are also encouraged to use these words in their own writing to make their stories really come to life for the reader. I also believe that I am still engaged in this type of listening. When I read a poem or have one read to me I believe that I still focus on the rhyming words but also listen to what else in in the poem and try to find a deeper meaning if there is one. At a younger age I would have only focused on the rhyming words.



The next example of listening is aesthetic. When engaged in this type of listening it is being done for enjoyment. One way that I have seen my students engaged in this type is when the teacher will put on a CD for them. While they are test taking she likes to put on calming and soft music to help the students to relax. Also in the classroom there are many stories and poems that are read alloud by either the teacher, the children or me. While they are listening to these being read they are enjoying what they are listening to. They also are alloud to write for fun. They are giving creative prompts where they are able to use their imagination. I feel that I am also engaged in this type of listening through the day. I like to listening to music and will have it on in the background while I fall asleep. I believe that when I was younger that if I were doing this type of listening it would make me tired. Now I am able to really focus even when it is just for fun.



Then next type of listening is efferent. This is done to understand messages. One way that studnets are engaged in listening like this in the classroom is when they are doing history. The teacher recently did a study about Martin Luther King. The students had to listen to stories read about his life and watch movies about him to listen for important information. They also have been learning about biographies and what they read about in a biography. I also continue to do this type of listening but mostly it will come from lectures and shows that I am interested in. I enjoy watching the history channel to gain more information about certain topics. When I was younger I never would have watched a program because I wanted to learn more about a topic I would watch my cartoons.

The last type of listening there is is critical. During this lesson messages are being evaluauted. I have not seen my children exposed in this type of listening to often but an example would be when they are evaluating a class fight. One day the class had a debate of their won about point being recieved and if it was fair. While the teacher decided for them they were all allowed to speak their minds and those students that were not spesking were involved in critical listening. I feel that I am now much more engaged in this type of listening then from when I was younger. There are more debates in the classed I am in and I find myself viewing commercials for the value of the product.

I was wondering what people's favorite type of listening is today and why?
My favorite type of listening is efferent because I enjoy watching programs that will give me information. When I was younger I would say that my favorite type of listening discrimitive because I loved to listen for sounds.