LEVEL 2

GOAL: To include observations about the "pragmatics" of each entry.

Level 2 adds another very important aspect of communication to your writing and observations: pragmatics. Pragmatics means "social language skills." To understand this concept ask yourself the question, "Was I trying to...?"(This list offers some, but not all pragmatic language skills.)

  1. inform someone?
  2. describe something?
  3. ask for assistance?
  4. disagree?
  5. start, join. or end a conversation?
  6. change the topic?
  7. solve a problem?
  8. use humor, tell a joke?
  9. express concern, joy, frustration, or other emotion?
  10. compliment someone or accept a compliment?
  11. defend myself?
Pragmatics includes the manner in which you communicate verbally and nonverbally in different settings with different people. For example, do you talk to a group of friends on the playground the same way you talk to a group of cousins at a family gathering? Watch others to observe the changes in their speech (vocabulary, intonation, volume, sentence length) as they talk to the doctor, baby, family pet, phone sales person, etc. When you recognize the "pragmatics" of others, you can begin to observe your own social language skills and record them in your journal.

Page for Level 2 which can be printed out for clients.

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