How To Teach English to Young Learners: One Step At A Time….

Young learners, those attending preschool and kindergarten, will not have any personal reason for studying English.

It is simply another subject that they have to study at the kindergarten or that their parents have told them they need to learn. At this point in their lives, they may not know or comprehend how important these classes can be. They might view these classes as simply another fun daily activity and that is just fine. But even at this early age, we can encourage them to develop an interest in learning English which will stay with them long after they have finished the classes.

How To Understand And Teach Young Learners Better

1.      What Young Learners Want?

Children at this level are just starting their academic careers. The kindergarten may be intimidating for only some of the children in the group so, in order to encourage everyone to participate, it is important to make the activities relaxed and fun. YL Students will be learning very basic material but we can design creative lessons that get students moving around and speaking with one another. Young learners are generally very enthusiastic about songs, especially if they can sing along, and active games. Be sure to provide lots of encouragement and positive feedback. We should create a safe, stress-free environment that everyone can enjoy learning in.

2.      How Young Learners Behave?

Keep exercises fun and short because these children have short attention spans and are easily distracted. Overacting and projection will help keep the focus on you. Teach students how to behave in a classroom by asking them to be quiet while you are talking and raise their hands if they have questions or want to answer a question. This may not be directly related to ESL but it is important that students learn good behavior early on; it will make their transition to primary school easier. We should teach them to respond to basic classroom English phrases such as “Please sit down.” because these are expressions that they will hear repeatedly throughout their study of English. For children at this age, we are responsible not only for starting to teach them English, but also for preparing them for their next level of education. Children will perform better in their classes if they behave well and have a good understanding of basic principles.

3.      What To Focus On?

The primary focus of these lessons will be on communication and laying a solid foundation for further English coursework. Children should practice the different sounds of the English language and learn material such as the alphabet, numbers, colors and shapes. We will introduce vocabulary words gradually and may choose to study some simple structures that relate to everyday life too. It could be that reading and writing never enter into our classes but a focus on speaking and listening will help children become more comfortable and confident with English.

4.      More YL Tips:

There are many other things we can do to ensure that children succeed in class. We need to track individual and class progress so that the children can visually see what they have learned and how they are doing. Encourage children to try their best and create a constructive learning environment where they do not worry about making mistakes. Create activities and exercises that are entertaining. Help children learn how to interact with one another as well as how to speak English. The more the children are exposed to certain material, the faster they will learn it. This is how native speakers learn English, by listening to people around them and expanding their range of vocabulary gradually.

“These learners can be a real pleasure to teach because they do not feel stressed by their studies and approach everything with youthful innocence.”

WE, the teachers and the parents play an important role in helping them develop into lifelong learners. Foster a love of learning by creating activities that appeal to them, suit their maturity level, and focus on what will help them excel in future English courses.

Autor: Swathi

Native Speaker w Przedszkolu Żyrafa

Dlaczego moje dziecko kłamie?

Dzieci kłamią niemal z tych samych powodów, co dorośli- aby uniknąć kary lub otrzymać coś w zamian. Przedszkolaki wnikliwie obserwują nasze reakcje oraz stają się coraz bardziej świadome konsekwencji swoich działań, więc to logiczne że wybierają rozwiązania najbardziej wygodne dla siebie.

Skoro dziecko, które np. uderzyło  kolegę i przyznało się do tego zostaje przez nas ukarane, nie dziwi fakt, że następnym razem będzie szło w zaparte. Warto więc docenić prawdomówność dziecka i  powiedzieć że pomimo, że zachowało się niewłaściwie, cieszymy się, że nam zaufało i powiedziało prawdę.

Inny przykład- jeśli dziecko dostaje dużo więcej uwagi od dorosłych kiedy jest chore, może uciekać w chorobę, mówić, że źle się czuje, kiedy tej uwagi potrzebuje. Zastanówmy się wtedy czy poświęcamy maluchowi wystarczająco dużo czasu- być może kiedy dziecko dostatnie od nas więcej uwagi, problem zniknie.

Zupełnie czymś innym jest fantazjowanie dziecka i wymyślanie np. postaci, kolegów, zdarzeń, które nie miały miejsca. Może tak się dziać z różnych przyczyn- dziecko czuje się samotne i wyimaginowany przyjaciel pomaga mu z tym sobie radzić lub chce zaspokoić ciekawość dorosłych, pytających np. jak było w przedszkolu. Dziecko szybko orientuje się, że barwne, ciekawe opowieści są dla dorosłego dużo bardziej atrakcyjne niż odpowiedź typu ”Nic się nie działo, bawiłem się”. 

Z pewnością dużo większą fantazję mają dzieci, którym dorośli czytają dużo bajek. Moim zdaniem w takim fantazjowaniu nie ma nic złego, o ile nie zaciera się u dziecka granica co jest fikcją, a co prawdą. Pozwólmy dziecku rozwijać  wyobraźnię, ale też podkreślajmy, że mamy świadomość że jego wersja nie jest prawdziwa. Możemy umówić się, że pobawimy się w opowiadanie wymyślonych historii( np. dorosły zaczyna, a dziecko kończy) i wtedy przedszkolak może dać upust swojej fantazji, natomiast powiedzmy dziecku,  że w innych sytuacjach chcielibyśmy usłyszeć prawdę.

Autor:

Ewelina

Nauczyciel kontraktowy z kilkuletnim stażem pracy z dziećmi.
Absolwentka filologii polskiej, wychowania przedszkolnego oraz oligofrenopedagogiki na Uniwersytecie Śląskim. 

Child support in learning English

There are many supproting forms in learning English to young learners: songs, nursery rhymes in target language, games and storytelling. Equally popular among English teachers is drama.

Songs should be introduced during English lesson in order to develop listening skill and to help to acquaint pronounciation and vocabulary using in target language. Additionally, songs introduce elements of culture which helps children to understand better the world they live in. It is counseled that children should listen  to the songs at home, as well. In this way both lyrics, melody and rhythm are practised. Another asset is fact that  parents become acquainted with the material which their children learn at school or preschool. As a result the whole family is more involved in learning the language. 

While playing games children use English language spontaneously and effortlessly.

It means that they learn and play at the same time. Additional adventage  is that games can be very helpful in encouraging shy and weaker pupils to participate in class and use English with other children. Language games are integral part of  involving children in class, they can develop different skills: linguistic (children learn words and collocations in efficient way), motivational (appropriately selected games provide pupils involvement and fun which helps in language acquisition in a stimulating environment), stimulating the cognitive development (supports analytical thinking), relaxing (provides elements of fun and give a feeling of easy and pleasant task. Makes it possible to reduce the tension and release the energy) and social (cooperating with other members of the team).

Storytelling shows a child the world of values they can relate to. Using stories a teacher can help children to practice listening, speaking, reading and writing skills. It is worth mentioning that children know stories from home environment so the idea of storytelling is not unfamiliar. In addition, they are always eager to listen to a short story and understand what will happen. What is more, listening to the stories at the beginning of the English lesson makes them joyful. Additional asset is ability to strive for favourite story not only at school but at home as well.

As far as drama is concerned it is possible to disinguish many positive aspects. The most relevant is practicing of foreign language. Furthermore, children can learn extracts by heart. It should be noticed that while learning the text children practice pronunciation, accent and intonation as well. Also, appropriate assigning the roles is important. The weakest students  can get shorter rols or they can repeat words chorally. Instead children good at English can get longer, more complicated roles. Moreover, drama developes cooperation between children and connects the group of students.

To sum up, using above-mentioned supproting forms in learning English to young learners take many benefits. Most of all, those technics can be applied both at school/kindergarten and home with parents support. Additionally, they cause class- teacher integration and better relations in the group of students. Practising them at home provide parents to get to know the material children learn at school/preschool. Further, they are the source of motivation for children due to attractive form, different than traditional tasks fulfiled  during the lesson.



Autor: Joanna

absolwentką studiów licencjackich Karkonoskiej Szkoły Wyższej na kierunku: Filologia Angielska oraz studiów magisterskich na Uniwersytecie Warszawskim na kierunku: Pedagogika;  specjalność: Wczesne Nauczanie Języka Angielskiego.

5 Winter Activities That Combine Fun With Learning

We have been talking about spending quality time with a child quite often here, but there is yet another area which requires to be discussed. For many, it can appear obvious (and that is just great!) that the more educational games, the better; however, couple of new ideas never harmed anyone. And these presented by me will particularly focus on learning and practicing some English. Let’s get started them!

1) Educational Snowman. I know, making a classical Frosty was never boring, especially for the little ones, but let’s introduce some pleasant variety. During the laborious process of making a snowman, try to give English names to  his parts of the body and elements you use to decorate him. It is good to explain that eyes are made of coal, nose is made of a carrot and that our little friend never parts with his adorable broom.

2) Counting Snowballs. It is probably very hard to stop oneself from starting a snowball fight as soon as possible, but this Winter weapon can be very useful in terms of learning new things. Before the great finish, make as many snowballs as possible (the more, the better) and encourage your child to count them all in English. You can also make various shapes of snowballs, so that they can be divided into smaller and bigger ones. Of course, level of difficulty increases with the age – we do not want them to feel that the game is simply a humdrum. Also, do not be afraid to challenge your offspring. They will never stop astounding us with their knowledge. :)

3) Knowledge Hunt. Maybe the name itself can sound too serious, but believe me, if you have enough outdoor space, this game will be a lot of fun! First of all, choose the group of the vocabulary you want to revise with your child. The best are usually fruits and veggies, parts of the body or any other that contain a large number of words to play with. Let’s say we play with fruits and vegetables. If you have a big yard or garden, you can hide either real apple, orange or parsley or laminated flashcards to keep them in a good state. Where to hide them? Well, this is where fun usually begins and it also depends on the number of mysterious places you have in your surroundings. Give the name of the object your child has to find and add some fun element by directing him to it using the good old “Hot or Cold.” Include the reward – does not have to be something big, and for this kind of brain and physical exercise – hot chocolate will do :)

4) Collage. This time, the indoor activity. Give your child some old newspapers and ask him to find certain number of a given object. For example: “find 5 dogs in this newspaper and cut them out” or “find 3 cars and cut them out.” After cutting them out, let him glue them on a piece of paper to create a collage. Play with as many vocabulary items as you wish. Little hint: IKEA catalogue is great to revise the furniture vocabulary!

5) Melting Ice Cubes. This is the indoor alternative for the Educational Snowman, but way funnier (at least in my humble opinion). As the warm-up activity, you can discuss which objects in your house are cold and which are hot (it is always good to use contrasts). Then, make your little ones freeze for a while and while they are standing still, tell them to slowly melt away like ice cubes by moving the part of the body you name. For example: “now, the left leg is melting away” or “now, the head is melting away”, etc. When your beloved “ice cubes” are melted, ask them to freeze back again, one body part at the time.

I hope some of our dear Parents will find the presented ideas useful. Learning is not the process that has to happen only in the Kindergarten, but it can become a part of everyday activities. And Winter (even though it is really cold) should not be an excuse. :)


Autor: Joanna
Absolwentka studiów magisterskich na Uniwersytecie Marii Skłodowskiej- Curie w Lublinie, specjalizacja: Filologia Angielska z przygotowaniem pedagogicznym i merytorycznym.