ABSTRACT
This chapter addresses the initial verbal skills which are intended to enable the children to become effective listeners who can recall accurately what they have heard, summarise the content and put it into their own words, that is, to paraphrase. For children with speech disorders speaking is always an effort. They continue to need special practice on specific aspects of language. Many teachers have reported significant changes in self-esteem when children with special needs have started to participate as spotters, listeners, observers or feedback providers. Children are often asked to summarise for the first time in a piece of writing which is quite a sophisticated skill. Introducing summary skills orally in this way means that even young children can become quite proficient at summarising before they begin to write. The skill of paraphrasing is a synthesis of the elements of parroting, summarising and clarifying.
