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Teaching ESL To Children - Part 1 |
Website Update |
Teaching ESL to children in Japan is easy with the right tools! Kids have the attention span of an ant! Why wouldn't they? They have everything they could ever want given to them in a New York second.
Your biggest competition in keeping their attention is their GAMEBOY and GAMECUBE and that is some REAL competition. I've had a lot of experience teaching children and I'd like to share a few things that work for me.
Have you ever watched Sesame Street? I grew up watching that show. You might want to watch it again to refresh your memory. Looking for the flow of how they educate you. It's very interesting. There is a theme for each show and all the activities are focused around the theme. Each show may be only thirty minutes. However, in this time they manage to get about 11 to 13 powerful activities into this short time frame!
If you feel you can't teach kids, don't worry. On my first day teaching kids I came home after work and told my wife that I would never do that again! But I learned and now I really enjoy it. Let's take a walk through one of my kid's classes together. My class has 6 kids age three to five years of age. The class is forty minutes, once a week. Each child has a name tag.
Before the class starts I play kid's music in the background (Ever been to Disneyland? The music you hear sets the tone). The kids always come a little early, so before the class starts the music is playing and I toss a balloon around with them. Their nametags are on the floor or on a table. Help them put them on at first, and soon they will be able to recognize their own name in English.
(You must remember all their names and use them throughout the class at least five times per student.)
1. As soon as it's time to start,I put away the ball, put on my hello song and start singing and waving my hand high in the air. They will follow because of the rapport I have built up before the class started.
2. I sit on the floor and pull out a card with the
letter 'I' on it. I point to myself and say, "I am Michael" and pass the
card. Each student does the same, and if one child doesn't, then I just move
on to the next child. (I do this with YOU cards, YOUR cards, HE, SHE and
so on.)
Full
Story >>>
Next month Part II.
This article is reprinted
with permission from Craig's Ebooks "The Super teaching in Japan Handbook"
Copyright © 2003, Craig Desorcy. Visit Craig's website at http://www.teaching-in-japan.com for more info
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Visit our
new online forum for ESL Teachers -- http://www.efl-esl.com/forum This new section of our website gives ESL teachers and students a platform for interacting, sharing ideas, meeting and connecting with other professionals in the ESL field.
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Children's ESL
Storybooks |
Don't forget to visit our new site ESL Storybooks --
(
http://www.
esl-storybooks.com ).
ESL Storybooks carries a
complete line of ESL textbooks for Children aged 8 - 12. Featuring
adventure themes, each book includes a Teachers Guide, Student Storybook,
and Creative Writing Workbook.
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FREE Stuff! |
BINGO is a long time favorite of ESL students and teachers. If you haven't tried it, here is your chance for FREE!
You receive:
- Exercises using comparatives such as the slowest, the hungriest, faster than
- Variations include Question and Answer Bingo
Bonuses (included at no extra charge)
- Bonus written exercise using comparatives
- Bonus word order exercise
MORE>>>
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FREE Stuff! |
The
Mystery of the Secret Code --
FREE sampler
The Mystery of the Secret Code is a complete package for ESL Teachers, including a Storybook, Workbook and Teachers Guide. Suitable for children age 6 - 9 years.
The FULL Version Includes:
Children's ESL Storybook - 27 pages - On a visit to Gold Island, two teens learn about the romantic history of the island, reputed to be a pirate hideout. In their search for gold, they find a map, and a secret code. Is the map authentic, and do they find gold?
Children's ESL Workbook - 30 pages - The Secret Code Workbook promotes creative writing through brainstorming solutions to problems, sequencing events and writing a plan before writing a paragraph. Strategies for writing topic sentences and final paragraph sentences are provided. Vocabulary is reinforced with word Bingo games and crossword puzzles.
ESL Teachers Guide - 15 pages - Answers to all exercises, Complete instructions for the teacher and a glossary.
Try out our FREE sampler
>>>
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Online Resources |
Submit! |
Global English -- Comprehensive TEFL courses of 150 study hours giving you the expertise to teach confidently. Your final appraisal lists course content & duration for employers.
Tutorial Support second to none. An interactive course with full, individual feedback on your work & phone/email support throughout the course & beyond.
Unique options: Courses by post or email, TEFL certificate with business course option with free Train to Teach English CD-ROM and study notes.
English to Go
HUGE library of teaching
resources. Fun, engaging, up-to-date resources based on Reuters® news
articles
Got a favorite site? Let us
know !
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Want to submit an article?
Let us know -- send your article or idea, feedback, suggestions to brian@efl-esl.com |
ESL in the News |
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Grad program in teaching ESL celebrates
40 years
Since its founding in 1964, the master's degree program in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (MA TESOL) has grown from a small startup with seven students to a booming, internationally respected training ground for aspiring English as a Second Language (ESL) teachers. The program now boasts about 240 students -- with 30 to 40 graduating each semester.
Students, alumni and current
and retired faculty recently packed the Humanities Auditorium to
standing-room only status in a celebration of the 40th anniversary of the
program. It has come a long way since professors Lois Wilson, Dorothy
Danielson, John Dennis, Ray Grosvenor, Thurston Womack, Daniel Glicksberg,
Helen Hinze and Ken Croft realized an emerging need for ESL teachers and
implemented a graduate program. Wilson taught S.F. State's first ESL
methodology classes in 1959.
Full Story > >
>
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When it comes to learning a second
language, the earlier the better
By ROB STEIN
Washington Post
Brain scientists have found evidence to explain why people who learn a second language when they are very young tend to be more proficient bilingual speakers -- learning two languages early in life appears to bulk up a key language center in the brain.
Andrea Mechelli of the
University College in London and colleagues performed brain scans on 25
people who spoke only English, 25 English speakers who learned a second
language before the age of 5, and 33 who learned another language between
ages 10 and 15.
The gray matter in a part of
the brain involved in language acquisition -- called the left inferior
parietal cortex -- was denser in those who spoke two languages, and
especially dense in those who learned the second language while very
young, the researchers found.
The researchers then performed
scans on 22 Italians who learned English as a second language and
subjected them to detailed proficiency testing, and found the same thing
-- with those who were most proficient having the most dense gray matter
in that area.
Full Story >>>
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ESL Activities |
The Case of the missing Heirloom
Summary: A few years ago, a very strange event took place on the family estate of Lord Robert and Lady Daphne Buckingham, in England. A priceless heirloom necklace apparently vanished. The only people present at the time were either close family members or close friends, except for the butler and the maid. None of them had much money, to be sure, but would they steal a valuable necklace? That was the question that the police faced.
The Windfall
Summary: Lou Wilson, the meanest man in town left all of his estate, approximately $950,000, to the city. The will said that the city was to spend the money in "some lasting way for the betterment of the citizens." That was when all the fun began! Everyone wants to spend the money differently.
Students debate how to spend the money!
The Lady who Knew too Much
Summary: Mrs. Hillary Ashton-Smith was found dead in her living room by the cleaning lady. Her husband, a wealthy importer-exporter, was in South America on a business trip. Medical examination revealed that she had been dead since the night before, and that she had died from arsenic poisoning. She had been drinking Scotch whiskey, which had been poisoned with arsenic.
The Body in the Study
Summary: The time is Christmas morning in the large house of the wealthy Lord and Lady Chudleigh in a small village in England. When the family woke up, Lord Chudleigh was found dead in his study, stabbed to death with a letter opener. A picture had been removed from the wall of the study, and behind it, to everyone's surprise, was a small safe. The door of the safe was open and the safe was empty.
A Trip to Canada
Summary: You have just had an exciting phone call! You are the winner of a contest sponsored by Air Canada! You have won a free flight to any point in Canada, return, two weeks' free car rental, and $1000.00 towards your expenses.
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ESL Role-play |
Learning a language is a
complex and long process as anyone who has tried will agree. One of the
most difficult and frustrating things is making the transition from the
classroom to the 'real' world. In the classroom, everyone knows you are a
student and mistakes are allowed, and the environment is contained and
safe. Speaking another language outside the classroom is completely
different and often students are lost at sea as soon as they step outside
the door. Lists of memorized vocabulary are suddenly useless when ordering
in a restaurant.
Role-plays, or simulations are
one of the ways ESL instructors can ease students' transition into using
English in real world situations. A simulation is where students act out a
real-life situation, for example checking into at a hotel, but do not act
out a different personality. Role-plays are where students take on
different personalities. In a role-play, for example, one student may be
asked to take on the role of "an angry neighbor" which is out of character
for the student.
Role-plays require more
imagination by students and teacher and can be difficult to manage because
they are unpredictable. The initial scenario develops from the students
interacting with each other and can literally go in any direction. This
gives students practice in a non-threatening environment, and gives the
motivation and involvement where they have to think in English. Role-plays
are interesting, memorable and engaging, and students retain the material
they have learned. In their assumed role, students drop their shyness and
other personality and cultural inhibitions, making them one of the best
tools available for teaching a second language. Here are a few pointers and
suggestions to assist ESL teachers using and managing role-plays:
- The more engaging the better.
The value of role-plays come from students immersing themselves in the
material.
- Choose a 'hot' topic and stage a debate. Assign
students positions on the topic (for/against). This will get students out
of their personality and into the role where they do not have the same
inhibitions.
- Preparation is very important to success. Give
students 'personality cards' which sketch out their personal
characteristics or scenario. Divide students into groups and give them
time to sketch out various scenarios, and go over extra or special
vocabulary ask them to discuss how they will act, think about the
character and plan what they will say. For example, what are possible
responses/replies for the angry neighbor?
- The teacher, as facilitator of
the role-play must support students in their role, i.e. they 'are' in the
backyard arguing over the fence. Don't do anything to interrupt the
pretend environment. Leave grammar correction to the end. Correcting
students in the middle of an argument interrupts the pretend environment.
Make notes and do a debriefing after.
- Exaggeration is good!
Encourage students to exaggerate their actions, opinions and movements.
Exaggeration helps students immerse themselves in the role.
- Stage a rehearsal first. Have
students practice their role in small groups with coaching from the other
students.
- While the role-play or debate
is in progress, have other students suggest vocabulary first, and act as
backup if they do not know.
Role-plays are unpredictable
which makes them both a valuable learning tool and at the same time
difficult to manage. Sketch out the various routes the role-play can take
from the initial scenario. This will give you some idea what to expect and
avoid any surprises.
Suggested topics for
role-plays:
- Lovers problems (He has to move
away to get a new and better job)
- Spending money (Government,
United Nations etc. spending money, who gets what)
- Traveling (where would you go?
what would you do?)
- Debates on current
affairs/politics. Extreme opinions or opinions at the opposite ends of the
spectrum work well (i.e. left wing/right wing etc.)
Role-plays can range from 30
minutes or one hour to a year-long corporate simulation for business
English. Staging role-plays can be challenging for an instructor, but is
also great fun. After you have done a few, you will know what to expect
and feel more confident. My experience is students love them retain what
they learn, and often leave the classroom laughing and still arguing all
the way out of the building.
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