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An Introduction to Teaching English to Young Learners Your Instructor: Annie Hughes Lesson 3 Chapter 1

Annie Hughes talking about teaching language to young learners. (videoscript)

"In this lesson, we will start to look more closely at the practical side of teaching young language learners. After looking at the characteristics of young learners (alongside other groups of learners), we will think about ways to approach teaching vocabulary, grammar and pronunciation in the young learner language classroom. We will also look at how to create a supportive environment for our young language learners that encourages them to learn about and reflect on their learning. Then, we will consider the use of topic and activity-based teaching for young language learners and think about planning activities across topic areas. Finally, we will start to think about ways to focus on the four language skills that are part of the young language learner classroom."

Considering the Characteristics of Young Learners – and Using that Knowledge to Teach VocabularyIn the lesson, Implications for Teaching English to Young Learners, we looked at the interests of different ages of young learners as well as their needs and skills. We will expand on that topic briefly in this chapter to consider the characteristics of young learners (ages 3-6 years as well as 6-12 years), alongside older language learners (teenagers as well as adults). Then, we will take what we know about young learners to look at how to approach teaching vocabulary, an area of language learning that is of key importance, especially in the initial stages.

An Overview of Language LearnersWhen considering the abilities and skills of young learners, as well as the needs and challenges, we must consider numerous factors about them, including their development (social, emotional, physical and cognitive) and their feelings about learning English.

The approach to learning and teaching is very different from one group of language learners to the next as a result of their developmental level as well as their needs and interests. While we are not going to be looking at adolescent or adult language learners in any detail in this course, it is important to be aware of where young learners fit into the overview of language learners.

For a summary of the characteristics of young learners alongside different age groups of language learners, see Figure 3.1 in Chapter 1 (Characteristics of language learners) in the Supplementary Material at the end of this lesson.

Planning activities for young learnersLooking specifically at the characteristics of young learners, we can see that although their motivation and interest level tends to be high in general, they will not be fully aware of the need for the new language and will not easily take responsibility for their own language learning.

This means that when planning activities for young learners, teachers need to:

capture their interest and motivate them with appropriate and engaging activities.

monitor the learning that may, or may not, be taking place and provide scaffolding and guidance for all aspects of their language learning.

show them how to learn to learn. This involves helping them become more aware of what they are doing in class activities, learning to reflect on this and becoming aware of how these activities might benefit them.

encourage them to take a more reflective approach to learning the language. Such reflection will help lead them to take a greater interest in what they are learning and also to take long-term responsibility for their own language learning.

Given what we know and understand about young language learners, we will now look at how to approach the teaching of vocabulary.

Teaching vocabulary to young learnersInitially, learning a foreign or second language is mainly concerned with learning vocabulary. When introducing vocabulary, the meaning of the words has to be made clear to young learners and should be supported by flashcards, pictures, gestures or realia.

Initially, a lot of vocabulary is learnt in chunks and phrases, by our young learners. Only later in their learning is it clear that the chunk may be made up of different words. For example, Howdoyousay …? might initially be used as a means to an end without realizing that it is made up of four different words (How do you say.?). Chunks of language are really useful to our young learners at the beginning of their language learning and include such commonly-used phrases as:

CanIhave a .? (Can I have a.?) Canyourepeatthatplease? (Can you repeat that, please?) Sayitagainplease. (Say it again, please.)

It is important to teach as much vocabulary as possible to our young learners. Even by uttering only one or two words, there can be a sentence-full of meaning expressed if the child is supported and encouraged to use communicative intonation and gestures.

According to Cameron (2001), native speakers of English will normally have around 4,000 to 5,000 words in their vocabulary by the time they are five years old, while children who have been learning English as a foreign language for five years will normally have only from 1,000 to 2,000 words to use because they have not been exposed to as many hours of input. It is very important, therefore, to allow for lots of understandable and contextualized vocabulary building in our language classes, rather than limiting the number of new words to a few per lesson.

Teaching vocabulary in contextVocabulary needs to be taught and introduced in context so that the meaning of the words is clear to the young learner. The context could be given through different types of support such as:

picture flashcards that are shown to children as they hear words;

stories, in which the new language is highly contextualized;

games, where the need to use the words, chunks or phrases is linked to the motivation that is involved in wanting to win;

songs, where the new language is repeated in a fun way (while ensuring that the meaning of the words of that song are understood).

If language is introduced in context, and the activity involving that language is meaningful and purposeful, then more learning and acquisition of language will take place.

Introducing new vocabularyAs noted above, it is important that the meaning of new vocabulary is understood by our young learners. There always needs to be some visual, as well as verbal, support for new words. Visual understanding of the new language is possible through pictures, gestures, mime or realia (such as holding up an apple to introduce the word apple).

Introducing new language in a variety of ways also helps support the different learner types we may have in class. Children need to see a visual image of that word (or be aware of what it means), hear the word linked with visual images of it, and understand what the word means in context. The child may not acquire or learn the vocabulary the first time it is introduced, so lots of recycling needs to be included in every lesson until it is clear that there is understanding of that specific language on the part of all students in the class.

Teaching food vocabularyWhen starting a lesson about food items, the teacher can simply show pictures of things that the child will recognize, such as an apple, an orange and a pear (or use the items themselves). The teacher has then introduced individual words with visual and verbal support before having the students hear those words in a story (such as Eric Carle's The Very Hungry Caterpillar).

In Carle's story, a caterpillar eats a lot of food (including apples, oranges and pears). When the story is presented aloud, the young learners will have a clear understanding of the meaning of those key words. After eating lots of food, the caterpillar then has a stomachache. The teacher can demonstrate the meaning of the word stomachache by making a suitable gesture while reading the story. The young learners will understand what the word means by hearing it in context and observing the gesture.

Interacting with wordsAs with the acquisition of their native language, children will pick up different words in class through exposure to the target language that is used by their

teacher and their classmates. The ideal situation is to have a wide variety of words for the children to interact with so that they can learn a few each lesson. If children are able to read, the use of English picture dictionaries can encourage them to find the meaning of words for themselves.

An Introduction to Teaching English to Young Learners Your Instructor: Annie Hughes

Lesson 3 Chapter 2

Approaching the Teaching of Pronunciation and Grammar with Young LearnersWhile learning vocabulary words is key to language learning, students also need to actually communicate and use these words. We will now look at how pronunciation and grammar can also be introduced to young learners in the EFL/ESL classroom.

Teaching pronunciationGood examples (or models) of pronunciation are necessary for young language learners so that they can hear the music of the target language and emulate the sound of English through the words they are learning. If children learn a foreign or second language early in their lives, they can attain near native-like pronunciation, but only if the models they hear are near native-like, too.

To this end, students need to hear lots of target language from a range of different speakers. This includes their teacher, voices from video and audio recordings, and any guests who may come to the class and speak English with them. It is important to arrange lots of opportunities in every lesson for students to hear as much English input as possible.

Involve your students in a variety of fun and motivating activities (involving songs and chants, stories, role-plays and games) that encourage them to interact with the language by listening to it and using it. Recycle and extend language from previous lessons, remembering that any use of language should be in context with the meaning supported by visual aids, gestures, and so on.

Teaching grammarThe grammar of the language can hold all the individual words or chunks together, rather like mortar holds bricks together in a wall. It is important to give our young learners models of the English grammar mortar so that they can build their own language walls.

But how do we teach grammar in the young learner classroom? We do not teach it like a science by having students memorize and apply certain formulas to the target language. Instead, we model it through input and encourage interaction through activities. Just as we model the pronunciation of English through our everyday speech (or that available through video and audio recordings), we take a similar approach when teaching grammar. We teach by example.

When learning our "mother language", our parents or caretakers did not say to us, Today we are going to speak in simple present tense. Instead, we were able to acquire our native language grammar because the structures were modeled, repeated, extended and used in meaningful and purposeful situations.

Using 'real' languageAlong with vocabulary, English grammar needs to be taught in the most natural language settings possible. For example, the song Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes (introduced in Chapter 3 of the lesson, Using Songs, Rhymes, Chants and Poems in the Classroom) nicely models various aspects of grammar by illustrating singular and plural nouns and the use of lists. By presenting this song in class, the teacher can encourage students to listen to and sing the words of the song and learn the accompanying actions. Through this song, children will have experienced visual, auditory and kinesthetic interaction with the target language and will be able to accurately list the parts of the body (noting singular and plural nouns).

Whenever possible in your EFL/ESL lessons, try to use language that is real and natural for whatever activity your pupils are carrying out. This will not necessarily be the simplest language grammatically. For example, the most natural language to use for storytelling in English is the simple past tense, and this is what children will expect and understand when hearing a story. Trying to tell a story using an unnatural form (such as the simple present tense) will make the story seem stilted and odd.

Balancing fluency and accuracyThe balance between fluency and accuracy in activities is what helps children acquire the grammar of English. If working on the topic of food with children, an ideal activity would have them carry out a survey by asking each other what food they like. Prior to conducting the survey, students can practice asking and answering the question, Do you like (pizza)? Yes. / No. (or Yes, I do. / No, I don't.) The teacher should let students know the focus of this practice session will be on accuracy. Students will then choose and use their words carefully.

Then, during the actual survey activity, students can move freely around the classroom asking and answering questions using the vocabulary items and language structures they learned earlier. The teacher can let students know that the focus of this part of the activity will be on fluency to encourage them to interact and communicate their preferences. Students will interact with each other in an informal way.

It is important to let learners understand the focus of each stage of an activity. Then, they will begin to understand what they are doing and become more aware language learners. Some simple terms for talking about language (such as action words, describing words, and joining words) can also be introduced to young learners. These terms will help them talk about the language. They can be introduced to more terms as they get older and become more proficient in the target language.


Making the English Classroom a Supportive Language EnvironmentThere are many things a teacher can do to try to create a supportive and encouraging classroom environment for young language learners.

Encourage learners to speak out (without fear of making mistakes)It is important within the language class that our young learners feel confident enough to try things out and sometimes make mistakes, as this is the way to create confident language acquirers and users. (Recall Figure 1.3 in the lesson How Do Young Learners Learn English that deals with how the child hypothesizes when learning a language.)

In considering the child as the hypothesizer, we can imagine a situation in which the child may talk about what he did yesterday to the English teacher by saying something like, I goed shopping with mummy. While this looks wrong, it is actually very positive as it shows us the child is trying to make sense of the language and is starting to use the rules for himself. In this example, he has understood that 'ed' is often used at the end of something that has been done in the past, like played, skipped, and touched, and has applied this to the verb to go.

If the teacher were to say, Oh, that's not good. It's wrong to say I 'goed', this could demotivate the learner, discourage him from trying to hypothesize in English again, and perhaps, make him feel foolish. Instead, a modeled example (Oh, you went shopping with mummy!), would allow the child to

continue on the hypothesis circle and realize from this feedback that he needed to adjust what he had said. In this type of supportive environment, the child feels safe to try out the language and learn from good language models.

Develop an environment of trustTo allow for experimentation with the language, the language classroom needs to be a place where the young learner does not feel threatened or frightened. The teacher can help develop an environment of trust by being patient with the students as they trial things, and by modeling back any changes they need to make in their language. Teachers can encourage children to experiment with the language, while making sure that nobody laughs at an individual child or at things that go wrong.

Creating and posting English classroom rules (that all the students have discussed and agreed to) can help encourage a supportive environment. These could include such rules as:

We will listen to each other patiently. We will help each other say things in English. We will include everyone in class activities. We will be friendly to each other.

These should be put on the wall for all to see (perhaps noted in the children's first language as well) and should be enforced at all times. (Refer to Chapter 2 in the lesson Implications for Teaching English to Young Learners for further information about class rules.)

Support learning through the organization of the classroomThe English classroom itself, if possible, should support the students' learning by having the following:

examples of students' work on the walls; picture dictionaries and storybooks available to read and use; lists of different types of words on the wall, such as describing words, action words, joining

words, question words, and so on; songs and chants (written on chart paper) available to review; labels on classroom items in English (door, window, desk, clock) to help prepare beginner

students for the written language by introducing models of it.

If teachers do not have their own class for English lessons, then they might consider preparing a large format book that holds important material to share and review. (This could be transported from class to class.)

Use a variety of materials and models to present the languageAs much as possible, try to use a variety of means to expose the students in your class to different language models. These include:

audio cassettes and CDs with a range of different speakers; videos and DVDs that allow children to see the faces and mouths of

those speaking English; a variety of written models to stimulate the visual learning of the

language, including books, posters, displays, dictionaries, examples of children's work, pictures with captions, and labeled objects.

Teachers also need to create an English teaching box of tools that can quickly and easily be used in classes to support learning. These include small items of realia, flashcards, pictures, toys, puppets, and so on.

Provide lots of comprehensible and contextualized languageTeachers must also remember the need to introduce lots of comprehensible and contextualized language in the English class within meaningful and purposeful activities. Classroom instructions (used repeatedly and with gestures) enable students to respond to and use the language. (Johnny, please come here. Hand out the notebooks to the students.)

As well, meaningful and purposeful activities in class also give students the chance to experience the language as a form of communication. In later lessons, we will show many examples of activities for the language classroom.


Understanding How English Can be Used through Topic and Activity-Based Teaching Many teachers and specialists in the EYL world believe that topic and activity-based teaching is the most suitable way for children to learn and use the target language. This is because of how children learn, develop and change during these early years. Many English textbooks for young learners are designed around this approach.

A topic and activity-based approach to learning has children linking language to interactive experiences where children talk about what they are doing, what they are seeing and what they are experiencing. As teachers, we can encourage this interaction and natural way of language learning by planning suitable activities and selecting topics that are especially interesting and relevant to our students.

Differences in topics for different age groupsDifferent age groups of learners will find different topics interesting and relevant. (See Chapter 1 in the lesson Implications for Teaching English to Young Learners for a further discussion of the interests of different ages of learners.)

If we check through the syllabus for different age groups of language learners, we will likely find similar topics appearing (such as Friends, Food and Clothing). However, if we take a closer look, we will see how each topic is presented will be very different depending on the learners' age and language ability.

We can teach the same topics to the same group of children over a number of years (and recycle the language), but as the children grow in age, linguistic ability and maturity, we will be looking at different aspects of these topics, so the input never has to be the same. The language structures we are going to teach through these topics will also change from one level to the next.

It is valuable to think about both the topics and the language we will be teaching as we plan the input for each topic. To do this, consider five stages we can follow in planning lessons around a specific topic.

Stage 1: Select the topicOne of the best ways I have found to plan a topic and the lessons that are linked to this topic is to start with a brainstorm like this one. Put the topic title in the center of a page.

Figure 3.2 Select the topic

Stage 2: Think of appropriate activities linked to the topicBrainstorm the variety of activities you can think of that are suitable for the age group you are thinking about and are linked to this topic. In this following example, I shall be looking at planning lessons for students who are 8-10 years old.

Figure 3.3 Brainstorm possible activities

Stage 3: Consider the language for each activityThink about what language (vocabulary and structures) will be used in each activity.

Figure 3.4: Consider language for activities

Stage 4: Plan the focus / approach for each activityLook at each of these activities and briefly consider the focus for each activity as well as the type of approach to take. Consider the class survey, and develop it as you would all the other activities in your brainstorm.

Figure 3.5 Outline of focus and approach for activity

Stage 5: Consider the order of activitiesLook at how the activities flow together, considering vocabulary and structures and the challenges required in completing each activity. If you look at the brainstorm chart below, you will see that the activities have been ordered by how the language is introduced and developed.

Figure 3.6 Consider the progression of activities

After determining the desired outcome of each activity, the teacher will then put together more detailed lesson plans that look more closely at the steps required to achieve the proposed goals.

Note: While many teachers may have a prescribed syllabus that will help determine the language they are going to teach in each lesson, perhaps set out by their local or national ministry or by the course book they are using, they are still likely to have occasions when they need to plan different types of activities they want to use in their classroom to meet the individual needs and interests of their students.


Teaching the Four Language Skills to our Young English LearnersBefore thinking in detail about the four language skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing, take a few moments and try to create a list of what is involved when you use each of these skills. What do you do when you listen? Speak? Read? Write? See how long your lists are for each skill.

I think you will find it is very difficult to create such lists. Except for a few exceptions (such as listening to music or reading for pleasure), it is very unusual to use only one language skill at a time and nothing else. We naturally use a mixture of the four language skills in different ways. We often comment aloud about a TV show we are watching, or read a map while giving directions, or write down information while listening to a lecture.

So what are the implications for how we teach our young learners English? Are we trying to teach just one of the language skills unnaturally and in isolation from the others? Are we aware of the way we mix and use these skills in everyday language activities in the young learner classroom?

We should be aware of what use our young language learners make of the four skills in their everyday lives and then try to mirror this in the language classroom. This means that the use of the skills will be more natural and comfortable for them, that it will match their cognitive and linguistic level, and therefore, it will be more motivating. For example, children will often listen to and then carry out instructions, learn the rules for playing games, write down certain information that they've heard or read about, sing a song together, and so on.

Therefore, we need to link the four skills for our young learners with activities they would normally carry out in their age group, with consideration for their cognitive and linguistic level as well as their interest level. We shall look, in detail, at a whole range of different activities focusing on these four language skills in subsequent lessons.

SummaryIn this lesson, we have considered the characteristics of young learners and how we can use that knowledge to teach vocabulary, pronunciation and grammar. We then went on to think about how we can create a supportive language environment in our classroom and how English can be taught through topic and activity-based teaching. Finally, we have started to think about teaching the four language skills (listening, speaking, reading and writing) to our young English learners.

Next Steps

After you have finished this lesson, test your knowledge by taking a short, multiple-choice quiz. To access the quiz, click quizzes at the top or bottom of any page in this classroom. Select the quiz that corresponds to the lesson you have just completed. Then click submit. Good luck!

After the quiz, please complete the short assignment that follows. This will allow you to practice what you have just learned. To access it, click assignments at the top or bottom of any page. Choose the appropriate lesson and follow the directions listed there.

Also, visit the discussion area to converse with your colleagues about the topics covered in this lesson. To access it, click discussion at the top or bottom of any page. Choose the appropriate lesson and follow the directions. You will be able to post on the discussion board until the 'close date' listed. After that date, you can read the discussions but not post.

Glossary

accuracy is when the aim of the language is to be as accurate as possible with as few mistakes as possible.brainstorm is when someone tries to make plans by thinking of a number of ideas (such as the different ways one might teach a certain topic in class).chunks are small amounts of language that are heard and remembered as one thing by language learners. For example, the question, Whatdoyoumean? sounds like one word (or chunk). We know that young learners, in both their native and target language, learn language in chunks like this. Later, they can understand all the chunk's constituent parts and see it as being composed of separate words.exposure refers to the opportunities language learners have to hear and see lots of examples of English in class.fluency is when the aim of the language is to convey meaning (even if there may be mistakes in the language structure, choice of vocabulary, and so on).hypothesizer is the child who trials the target language he thinks he knows (not necessarily consciously), and then uses feedback from friends and teachers to establish if his hypothesis was correct, or to adjust his hypothesis based on feedback. reflective approach is an approach in which teachers encourage students to think about what they are learning and to possibly take more responsibility for their own learning in the future. topic and activity-based teaching is based on topics (like Food, Pets, House, Colors, and so on) within activities which allow the language to be introduced, practiced, recycled, consolidated and acquired by young learners.


Annie Hughes talking about Teaching Listening in English to Young Learners (videoscript)"In this lesson, we are going to consider listening in young learner language teaching as it is linked to the other language skills and embedded within meaningful and purposeful activities in our young learner classroom. We will consider how to encourage our students to successfully develop their listening skills and confidently demonstrate their understanding of the language through the approaches we take in our classroom by providing clear instructions, by providing additional support through gestures and visual and auditory cues, and by encouraging our young learners to interact, we will look at a wide variety of activities we can use to develop and extend our young learners' expertise in listening in English."

How Can We Help Young Learners Develop Listening Skills in the Classroom?

Listening is known as one of the receptive skills, as it is external to listeners and is then processed by them as fresh information. Listening is a skill in which young learners need lots of time to process and interpret what they hear. When young learners are listening to words, they are decoding what they hear, predicting what is going to come next, and trying to understand meaning.

What is going on in the learner's head as he or she is listening to the target language? Look at Figure 4.1 (below).

Figure 4.1 Listening and processing information as a young language learner.

As noted in Figure 4.1, listening is a very active mental activity. Our job, when teaching language to young learners, is to support and scaffold this mental activity as much as possible so that our students are successful in receiving and processing messages.

In this lesson, we will look at a range of ideas and suggestions for helping our young language learners become successful listeners in the target language and will think about what methodology we can use to support them. The following are suggestions for encouraging language learning through listening in your classroom.

Create a calm and quiet atmosphere in the class when you want the learners to listen to something in particular.

Use class rules. Make sure that when anyone is speaking (child or adult) that the rest of the students listen to that person, whether they are in pairs, groups or in a whole class discussion.

As the teacher, avoid walking and talking at the same time, if possible. Young language learners need to see all aspects of your body, particularly your face and mouth, to see what you are saying.

Get into the habit of supporting what you say in the target language with gestures, pictures, realia or flashcards, so that there is always additional support for the students' understanding of what you are saying.

Make sure that you pronounce everything as clearly and as naturally as possible.

Try not to rush what you say in English so that you allow thinking time for your learners.

Encourage your listeners to predict what is going to come next. Help them do this through guided questions.

If you are using audio or video recordings, make sure the language is clear. Ensure there is visual support in video or, if using audio, try to support the language yourself with gestures and facial expressions, or by using realia and pictures.

Try to always think about introducing new language in a clear visual, auditory and kinesthetic way to allow for understanding by all learner types.

Remember to recycle and reuse language introduced in earlier lessons so that children have a chance to hear it used in different situations.

Recognize how important repetition of language is for young language learners. It is difficult for them to remember or learn things they have heard only once or twice.

In the following chapters, we shall look at some activities that we can use to help learners concentrate and focus on listening.


Focusing on Listening through Various Listen and Do Activities If we want to aid our learners in developing their listening skills, then we should use a variety of activities to encourage this. There are lots of activities where the learners have to listen and then do something following or during that listening. These are often referred to as Listen and Do activities.

One of the core ways in which children develop, in general, is by listening and following instructions. This was seen as a particularly valuable and important aspect of child development by Bruner and Vygotsky (as mentioned in the lesson, How Do Young Learners Learn Language). We need to make these opportunities as natural and motivating for learners as possible so that they are willing and enthusiastic participants. Here are some activities that encourage this involvement.

2.1 Listening GameThis game can be played very early in language learning. It only takes from three to five minutes to play, yet it encourages some very intense listening. It should be played in a light-hearted way so everybodycan have fun.

Make sure, by gesture and repetition of the language, that the students understand and can respond to the instructions that will be used in the activity. For example, an early version of the game may involve the instructions, Stand up and Sit down. When all the children understand this language, and can follow the instructions, the game can begin.

Explain in the students' mother tongue or in the target language (which is supported by gestures), that you will play a game and the children should do exactly what you say. If they do not, then they are out of the game.

Tell children to do the following: Stand up! Sit down! Stand up! Sit down! Sit down! (If a child stands up when they have been told to sit down, that child is out.)

Say the instructions faster and faster until many of the children carry out the wrong instruction. The last child to follow the instructions correctly is the winner.

Listening Game can be adapted to use a whole range of actions and should be played regularly to encourage the learners' listening skills.

2.2 Simon SaysSimon Says is an extension of Listening Game. Use the phrase Simon Says before giving the children, who are all standing, a list of instructions such as:

Simon says, "Stand on one leg." Simon says, "Touch your nose." Simon says, "Close one eye." Simon says, "Turn around."

If you do not include, Simon says. at the beginning of the instruction, the children should ignore the instruction. For example:

Simon says, "Clap your hands." (Children do action.) Simon says, "Touch your head." (Children do action.) "Touch your toes." (Children should not do action, as instruction was not introduced with

Simon says.)

Those who carry out the instruction when Simon says is not used to introduce the instructions are out and have to sit down. The winner is the child who is the last one in the game.

2.3 Listen and Put Up Your HandStudents are encouraged to listen closely to the teacher and respond at the appropriate time by putting up their hand. Choose language based on the level of the students and what they have been studying in class.Tell your students, Put up your hand when you hear . (Some examples are noted below):

the word 'I'. [Tell a story using the word 'I'. Example: I like ice cream. One day, I went to the park. It was a hot day and I was hungry.]

a number that contains the number '3'. [List numbers with '3' in them. Example: 1, 5, 3, 16, 18, 13, 20, 27, 23 .]

that I have missed out a number. [Say numbers from 1-20 and leave out numbers. Example: 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7.]

This can be developed into a more extensive listening activity by having students (in groups) do certain activities in response to words or phrases in a reading passage. This can be an exciting and fun way for students to focus their listening skills. For an example, see the story The Train in Chapter 2.3 in Supplementary Material at the end of this lesson.

2.4 Listen and MimeAnother great Listen and Do activity is where you ask children to mime a story you are telling which has lots of action in it. For example, you might have a poster of people at the seaside in front of you. Describe what you see in the picture and have the children mime the activities. For example:

The children are running into the sea. A dog is barking. A woman is eating ice cream. A baby is asleep on the sand. A boy and girl are digging in the sand and building a sandcastle .

2.5 Listen and Do Art and Craft ActivitiesLots of different activities have learners making something. You can tell the children to listen carefully and draw the scene that you describe. Recycle language from previous lessons, such as prepositions, adjectives, and so on. For example:

Draw a box in the middle of your piece of paper. On the box, draw a ball. Next to the box, draw a little boy or girl. Next to the boy or girl, draw a big man or woman. . Now show your partner your picture and you look at theirs. Decide what the people are doing in your picture. Discuss your ideas with your partner.

This Listen and Draw activity can be much simpler or more complicated, depending on the language level and age group of the young learners you are working with. However, remember that drawing can take a while so provide pauses between each line of instruction to allow the learners to complete their drawings. It can be demotivating if students are not given time to draw each item.

Another fun activity is where the teacher gives each child a piece of paper and then provides step by step instructions (demonstrating as they speak), which the students carry out step by step. This can involve a combination of folding the paper and drawing on it. For example, guide students to make a paper airplane or a paper hat.

2.6 Listen and Do Cookery ActivitiesOne of the most enjoyable Listen and Do activities with young learners has them preparing something to eat. This can be something simple, such as making a sandwich, which gives lots of opportunity for recycling simple food

language. Or you could give them instructions for making something more complex, such as peppermint creams or cakes, depending on the resources for cooking you have available.

These types of activities give a real and natural opportunity to introduce a variety of language in context (using such words and phrases as cut, mix, add, spread, open the packet, use the (spoon / knife / bowl), put on your apron, clean up, put in the oven, wait until it is cool. and eat it).

Modeled by the teacher, students have a chance to hear the language in use and experience a positive outcome.

2.7 Listen and Order the PicturesGive each child three pictures of the same simple short story. These should illustrate the beginning, middle and end of a story. As you tell the story, have the children put the pictures in the right order. To make this activity more complex, give the children additional pictures from the story to put in order.

If a story has a lot of characters, you can also have students listen and put pictures of the characters in order. For an example, see the story The Enormous Snowball in Chapter 2.7 in Supplementary Material.


Focusing on Listening Through Various Listen and Say Activities We will continue to look at activities that develop the young learners' listening skills by thinking about activities that link listening with saying things.

3.1 Language BingoOne of the best activities for the language class is the game Bingo. It recycles the language and children get to repeat words again and again through an exciting activity. In Language Bingo, any vocabulary can be used such as nouns, verbs, prepositions, adjectives, and so on. It is important, though, that you stick to only one lexical group each time you play it.

An example of a simple bingo game involving food items is Food Bingo.

Give each young learner a sheet of paper with six boxes drawn on it. Have students choose six words from the following 10 food words to draw in their boxes:apples, chocolate, rice, bread, potatoes, chips, ice cream, carrots, oranges, peas

When they have finished drawing, the teacher puts all 10 of these words in a bag, so as not to see them. The teacher shakes the bag and then pulls a word out of the bag and says what it is. If children have a picture of this food item drawn in one of their boxes, they put a tick (√) in the corner of that box.

The first child to tick all six words called out by the teacher shouts Bingo! and then tells the teacher the names of the food in the boxes. If all those words have been called out, that child is the winner.

If children are reading and writing, they could also write the words for each of the items in their boxes rather than draw pictures. (This takes less time to prepare.) Bingo can be a quick and fun way to remind children what they have been learning lately or to help them review language they have studied previously.

3.2 English SnapThis is another great game to play to practice and review vocabulary words.

Make several sets of 12 playing cards using pictures from a lexical set, such as jobs. Make sure that within each set there are at least three or four cards with the same pictures on them. Ask learners to play in groups of four.

All cards are dealt out to each member of the group, face down. Players keep their cards face down on the table. They pick up their top cards and then simultaneously turn them over on the table. They then say which job is pictured on their individual cards. For example: Nurse.

If two identical cards are turned over, the first player in the group to shout Snap! wins all the cards on the table. The winner of the game is the person with the most cards when all the cards have been turned over.

Make sure you laminate your cards or cover them in clear plastic so that they can be used again and again.

3.3 Listen and Say the Rhyme or Sing the SongAnother great way to encourage learners to listen is to say a rhyme or sing a song and ask them to repeat the lines and join in with you. Songs are great to listen to and then say out loud.

Here are two simple songs to use when studying Weather. (They can also be used as rhymes.)

Weather Song 1It's raining, it's pouring, The old man is snoring.He went to bed and he bumped his head,And he couldn't get up in the morning!

Weather Song 2The sun has got its hat on.Hip, hip, hip hooray!The sun has got its hat on, And it's coming out today!

See the lesson, Using Songs, Rhymes, Chants and Poems in the Language Classroom, for more examples.

3.4 SurveysSurveys are a great way to get children moving around the classroom and asking and answering questions. Even children who cannot read or write can carry out surveys using simple diagrams and marks, like ticks (√) and crosses (X). See Chapter 3.4 in Supplementary Material for an example.

Survey sheets can be created quite simply, and once children are able to read and write, can be completed with words. Completing a survey is also a good cross-curricular activity as it involves math and can result in putting together different types of charts. At the end of a survey, all the information should be collated so that the results can be discussed. See Chapter 4 in the lesson, Teaching Speaking in English to Young Learners, for more examples.

3.5 DialoguesDialogues are an important part of Listen and Say activities in the English class and should be used frequently. Children can be involved in dialogue practice in pairs, groups or as a whole class. In Chapter 2 of the lesson, Implications for Teaching English to Young Learners, we described a simple dialogue where pairs of students ask and answer the question, What's your name? (with characters drawn onto the students' fingers or on their pencils).

Depending on the level of your students, extended dialogues can be created to discuss the topics you are studying in class. Here is an example

of the type of language structures that might be used for the topic of Shopping.

Shopper ShopkeeperCan I have.?

Have you got (a / any) ?

Here you are.

I'm sorry. We don't have any.How much (is / are) the .?

I'd like (a / some) ., please.

Have you got a (smaller / bigger one)?

Could I have a (green / brown) one, please?

It's / They're three pounds / five dollars. Anything else?

That's everything. Thank you. You're welcome.

When setting up dialogues, it is important that learners have models of the language they can use. These need to be practiced before they carry out the dialogue.


Focusing on Listening Through Listen and Read Activities Games of all types are ideal Listen and Read activities. Some examples of games, as well as other activities involving reading, are outlined below.

4.1 Pairs Game This game involves from six to eight pairs of cards with the same pictures (or words) on them. One set of cards is provided to pairs of students. For example, if the students are studying pets, the set of cards might include two cards of the following: cat, dog, turtle, bird, rabbit and turtle. (To help develop reading skills alongside listening, the pair of cards could include the picture on one card and the written word on the other.)

In pairs, mix up the cards and then place them all over the desk face down. One by one, students turn a card over, say what is on that card, and then try and find the matching card.

When students find a matching set, they keep these two cards. If they don't find a matching set, they turn the two cards over again and their partner then tries to find a pair.

The trick in winning is to listen carefully to your partner and remember where each card is on the desk. The winner has the most pairs of cards at the end of the game.

4.2 Play and Follow InstructionsWhen playing a board game in pairs or small groups, the game board or cards often tell students something they must do (or a question they must answer) when they land on a particular place on the board. One student reads the instructions to the other who then responds. Players take turns. The winner is the player who gets to the end of the board game first.

See the lesson, Using Games in the Language Classroom, for more examples of how to use board games in the language classroom.

4.3 StoriesIn stories where there is a lot of repetition of the same phrases over and over again, the children should be encouraged to take part in telling the story. For example, in The Enormous Snowball (in Chapter 2 of this lesson), the children can take part in the lines:

She pushed her brother, he pushed his mother, she pushed her husband, he pushed the snowball and they pushed . and they pushed . and they pushed, but they couldn't push the enormous snowball. When children see the story written down, they will be able to easily and quickly identify these phrases, or chunks of language, in the text.


Focusing on Listening Through Listen and Write Activities The sort of activities that fit into the Listen and Write category are usually great fun for young learners to be involved in and are therefore highly motivating. Some examples of such activities follow.

5.1 Memory QuizIn this activity, the teacher lists a lot of words linked to whatever topic the students are learning about in class on the blackboard (for example: 12 zoo animals) and asks students to write them down. The children then try to remember these words. The teacher takes the words off the board and the learners put away their lists. They then try to recall each word. Who can remember the most words?

5.2 Television ReportersThis is an activity involving more linguistically able young learners. The class is divided into two groups. One group will be TV reporters and the other group will be people being interviewed. The students are encouraged to discuss issues of interest to them.

See Chapter 5.1 in Supplementary Materials for more details about this activity.

5.3 Jigsaw ListeningThis is an exciting activity that encourages students to listen very carefully for information and to share that information with their group.

Split the class into groups of four, and number each person in the group from 1 to 4. (Before starting the activity, make sure students know their numbers well.)

To begin, randomly call out a number. Students with that number come forward. Tell them one line of a poem that they have to remember. Then those students return to their group and recite the line. Someone else in their group writes this line down.

Call out another number. Students with that number come forward and listen for the next line of the poem. (To make the activity more challenging, do not allow a lot of time for the learners to write down each line.) Continue until you have finished the poem.

The winning group is the first to finish the poem and get it completely correct when they read it out. Often this means that groups will have to read out their poem several times in turn. They may not have it right the first time and will have to try again. This means they will need to listen carefully to each others' poems to correct their own.

Choose a poem that is appropriate for the level of your students. Here is an example:

The bird flew up into the trees.The leaves fluttered in the wind.The clouds moved quickly in the sky.I sat and looked at this picture

Of a beautiful dayAnd thought,How lucky I am to be alive!

5.4 Parts of a SongAnother fun activity is to use a song with a clear story in it. The song may tell a story through three sections or verses, involving a beginning, middle and end.

Create three groups in the class. Have each group listen to only one of three verses. Have them listen to it twice and make notes. (The rest of the groups should not listen to the verses the other groups hear.)

After listening to their verse, each group goes away and creates a story around it. They have only heard the beginning, middle or end of the story, so they need to imagine what happens in the other two sections. (Keep in mind that the first verse is the easiest to work with, while the last verse is the most difficult, so you may want to arrange the groups so students receive the verse that is most suitable for their ability.)

Then groups tell the rest of the class their complete story. You will find that the groups have created three completely different stories.

Finally, let the class hear the whole song and listen for the original story.

This lesson includes a few suggestions for listening activities. Start to collect your own list of ideas and plans for activities such as these. Remind yourself of them regularly so that you keep the classroom environment fresh and enjoyable for your young learners.

SummaryThe more you can turn a normal classroom activity into a fun listening activity, the better your students will become at listening, and the more motivated they will be to try to understand the target language. It is easy to forget that we need to help our language learners prepare for listening and that it takes skill to listen for particular information and items. We can help support and train our young language learners to listen in a focused way through the use of motivating and purposeful activities, such as those illustrated in this lesson.

Next StepsAfter you have finished this lesson, test your knowledge by taking a short, multiple-choice quiz. To access the quiz, click quizzes at the top or bottom of any page in this classroom. Select the quiz that corresponds to the lesson you have just completed. Then click submit. Good luck!



Glossary

receptive involves information that is coming into the learner from an external source.decoding is the mental act of processing everything that a person is hearing (from sounds, intonation, sentences, words to individual letters) into understandable information. intonation is the way the speaker uses a rising or lowering tone in speech to suggest a question or a statement, or to express such emotions as surprise or disappointment.body language is another way of communicating with each other by using our body to show how we are thinking. For example, moving our head up and down can show we agree with something, while moving it from side to side can show we do not agree.thinking time is the time needed for our young language learners to process everything they are hearing.mime involves pretending to be doing something by using our body to show the action. For example, we can 'mime' the act of sleeping by putting our two hands up to the side of our head and closing our eyes.lexical group is a set of words that are linked by a topic. For example, words connected with furniture include table, chair, sofa, bookcase, and so on. cross-curricular activity involves an activity in English class that is linked to another subject in the curriculum. For example, singing an English song is linked with music, and carrying out a survey in English and counting the results is linked with math.

Follow-up ReadingScott, W. 1980. Are you listening? Oxford: Oxford University Press.

An Introduction to Teaching English to Young Learners Your Instructor: Annie Hughes

Lesson 5 Chapter 1

Annie Hughes talking about Teaching Speaking in English to Young Learners (videoscript)"In this lesson, we will be focusing on the area of speaking for our young language learners. We will

consider what children are doing when they are speaking in the target language and will then look at how we can help them speak naturally through meaningful and purposeful activities that will

enable them to successfully communicate with their classmates. A variety of activities, where the emphasis is on speaking, will be presented in this lesson."

How Can We Help Young Learners Develop Speaking Skills in the Classroom?Speaking is known as one of the productive skills as language is created by speakers after they have prepared it in their heads. In classroom discussions and activities, young learners need lots of time to process information in the target language. We need to give language learners time to say things, even if it means pausing for longer than normal. When young learners speak in the target language, they need to think about what they want to say, encode this into the new language, and then verbally produce this language in a way that listeners will understand. They try to make their meaning clear and make special points and details explicit as they produce sounds and utter words,

phrases and sentences. What is going on in the learner's head as he or she is speaking in the target language? Look at Figure 5.1 (below).

Figure 5.1 Speaking as a young language learner

In this lesson, we will look at a range of ideas and suggestions for helping our young language learners become successful speakers in the target language and will think about what methodology we can use to support them.

Here are some suggestions for encouraging the use of the spoken language in your young learner ESL/EFL classroom.

Encourage learners to talk to each other as often as possible in fun and meaningful activities.

Have learners engage in a range of speaking activities, such as telling jokes, asking for directions, providing information, carrying out surveys and making presentations.

Encourage learners to use intonation and expression to support their spoken words. If they get stuck for a word or phrase, have them use body gestures or facial expressions to help get across their message.

Help young learners develop confidence in speaking English. Let them know they should not worry if they make mistakes. Promote the idea that mistakes help us learn.

Allow your students to hear many different English speaking voices in your classroom. Use video and audio tapes and, whenever possible, welcome visitors to the class. Give your students plenty of models to copy.

Make sure that when anyone is speaking that the rest of the students listen to that person, whether they are working in pairs or groups or are involved in a whole class activity.

Preparing our students to speak English in classIf we think about everyday speech, we will find that it is rare for individuals (other than formal lecturers or television program presenters), to say a lot of things without interruption in their native language. Thus, we want to do more than just get our students to speak in the target language. We want them to actually communicate through their new language in a natural way, even though this will include such normal speech patterns as hesitations, ums and ahs and mistakes. To help our learners participate in real conversations in English, we need to give them the opportunity to practice using the language in real types of situations in our classroom. By presenting and practicing natural language through motivating and purposeful activities, we can help our students acquire language through their actual use of it.

However, keep in mind that when learners begin studying a language, some go through what is called a silent period. For varying lengths of time, they will take in and understand a great deal of the language before they actually start using it in speech.

Rather than pushing these students to speak before they are ready, teachers can initially encourage them to demonstrate their understanding through various listening activities. (See the lesson, Teaching Listening in English to Young Learners, for examples.) As well, the use of puppets often encourages younger children to speak out. Providing activities in a friendly and supportive classroom environment will help them speak out successfully and confidently.

In the following chapters, we will look at the need to make the spoken language natural and real for our learners and will look at activities that will encourage them to interact with each other.


Encouraging Young Learners to Use Language in Natural Ways through Meaningful Interaction What do young learners say in their native language on a day to day basis? Do we stop and listen? If we did, we would find out that they do not speak in complete sentences very often. Instead, they often use single words and short phrases.

Are we asking students to produce this same kind of natural language in our English class or are we asking them to learn and use a rather unnatural form of communication? For example, how often do eight to twelve year olds (speaking English as their native language), say to each other as they go to

school, Good morning or Hello, how are you? If the truth be told, even adults only use this sort of language in a formal situation or with people they do not know very well.

Often children and adults, speaking English as their native language, say something like Hi to each other, or How's it going? or You all right? This type of language shows informality, knowledge of the person, and through knowing and liking that person, a degree of sensitivity and support.

If possible, take a few moments to listen to and observe the children you are teaching as they chat to each other in their native language, either coming into class or leaving. Check for the formality or informality of their speech. It is likely that their interaction is informal, but very successful. We should aim for this type of successful interaction in helping these children speak conversational English, too.

Encouraging 'real' communicationIf our young language learners spend a lot of time in English class, then they will know their classmates well and will want to talk informally with each other. As a teacher, you can help encourage this kind of real communication in English class by keeping the atmosphere friendly and providing your students with a model of suitable language that they can use.

Talk with your students as they come into class (You look happy today! Is that a new jacket?) and as you give classroom instructions (Write neatly! Take turns, please). Through your comments, you can provide encouragement (You can do it! That's great! Good idea! Good try! Excellent!) as well as language that your students can use themselves in their conversations.

It is important to remember how valuable verbal praise and support is for our young language learners. They need to feel that their attempts at the target language are appreciated and that the teacher can see they are doing their best. After all, the motto is right when it says, Nothing succeeds like success. If our young learners feel they are being praised and supported, they will be motivated to keep moving ahead in their language learning.

Help students succeed in their classroom discussions and interactions by making them aware of chunks of language that can help them, such as:

Could you repeat that, please? What does (word) mean? Speak (clearly, loudly, slowly), please. Can you say that again, please?

Provide awareness of formal and informal speechOur students need to be aware of the different types of spoken language (formal and informal) that are used for different situations. Whilst we should encourage informal speech in English between students, we also want to introduce them to more formal uses of the spoken language. They can learn about and practice different ways of communicating with others through role-play, drama, videos, and so on.

In helping our students interact, we need to keep reminding ourselves of the language they need to take part in a typical conversation. Individuals use language to do such things as pause, clarify statements, ask for more information, express agreement or disagreement, change the

topic, or end the discussion. The activities we ask our students to take part in should allow for this kind of natural English to be spoken. As a teacher, model the use of this type of conversational language, and encourage your students to practice it and use it.


Modeling the Language for Young Learners We can prepare our young language learners to take part in dialogues if we model what they can say in situations and give them opportunities to practice. By modeling language before an activity, no matter how simply, we can do the following:

clarify to children what they need to do; remind them of the language they need to use; give them a clear example of how to express themselves (by clearly pronouncing the words

and using the appropriate intonation and expression).

There are several ways the teacher can model the language. See Figure 5.2 (below).

Model both parts of a dialogue

Say both parts of the dialogue you want students to take part in. Change the position of your body so you look as though you are taking the roles of different people.

Use a puppet Many teachers of young children use puppets to help model dialogues in the language class. Make sure you can manipulate and use the puppet easily and that you can make the children believe the puppet is talking.

Use a child to model the dialogue with you

Ask a child from the class to come forward and model the dialogue with you. Tell that child what to say and then practice with him or her before you perform for the class.

Ask two children to model a dialogue

Have two children come forward and practice a dialogue that you would like them to model for the class. However, if the children are not confident you may find this confuses the rest of the class, so pick your students carefully.

Use a video or audio model

Use a video or audio recording to model a dialogue you would like the students to use. However, make sure the dialogue is clear and not too fast for them to understand.

Figure 5.2 Approaches teachers can take in modeling dialogues to students

After modeling the language through one of the above approaches, give students the chance to practice the language (as a class and in pairs or groups) through guided examples. Focus on the pronunciation of the language as well as intonation and expression. Provide feedback and

encourage them to listen (and learn from) each other.

During the activities themselves, allow students to speak more freely. Do not interrupt their conversations (unless absolutely necessary). If certain problems arise (involving pronunciation or the use of structures), these can be dealt with later in a follow-up exercise.

The following activities in Chapters 4 and 5 assume that you will model the language in one of the above ways before asking students to participate. Remember that these activities are not to be presented in isolation. They will be part of a theme-based lesson or lessons with lots of developmental activities that allow for the introduction and recycling of target language, as controlled by the teacher. When considering these activities, choose the most suitable language for your students and adapt them to the theme, interest and ability levels of your class.


Encouraging Young Learners to Speak Through Surveys, Chants and Role-playsThe following activities can encourage students to use conversational English to interact with their classmates.

4.1 Surveys Surveys are excellent for language practice as they can allow your learners to use the language you have recently introduced in class in a quick, easy and fun way. They are extremely flexible and can be used with virtually all themes. It is often best if you can create a survey sheet so that all the information students need is there, including the space to write results.

Surveys can be used to practice a huge variety of language, by having students practice structural forms and vocabulary items as well as the use of intonation and expression. As noted in Chapter 3, model and practice the language you want your students to focus on prior to carrying out a survey. For example, when conducting a survey about fruit, one might focus on the following types of questions.

Which is your favorite fruit? Bananas? (Use one word with rising, and therefore questioning, intonation. Because this

type of question is often used, it can be valuable to introduce to your students.) Do you like (apples)? How about (oranges)? Is the (apple) your favorite fruit? How much do you like (bananas)?

Responses can also vary, depending on the focus of the lesson. Practice these with your students as well. Encourage them to communicate meaning by speaking with emotion and showing appropriate gestures and facial expressions.

Bananas. I like (bananas). Yes, I do! (Sure! Yeah!) / No, I don't. (No. Not at all.) They're (great / pretty good / OK / not bad / terrible).

See Chapter 4.1 in Supplementary Material at the end of this lesson for samples of survey sheets.

4.2 Using chants and rhymes Using chants or rhymes allow children to build their confidence by speaking aloud within a group. Chants can be great ways to practice new vocabulary or structures while getting the rhythm and flow of the language. See the lesson, Using Songs, Rhymes, Chants and Poems in the Language Classroom, for more examples.

4.3 I went to the zoo and I saw.This chant helps students review and recycle vocabulary items they have learned in class. This version reviews the names of zoo animals.

Have children sit in a circle. Student A (SA) says, I went to the zoo and I saw a tiger.

Other children follow in turn, repeating the previous animals and adding others to the list.

SB: I went to the zoo and I saw a tiger and an elephant..

SC: I went to the zoo and I saw a tiger, an elephant and a monkey..

SD: I went to the zoo and I saw a tiger, an elephant, a monkey and a snake

The chant continues until one of the students can't remember the entire list. It is fun is to try and make the list as long as possible. Encourage your learners to help each other remember the list.

4.4 Family RapWhen we ask children to create something about themselves, it can be highly motivating. Family Rap gives learners a great opportunity to write a rap about themselves and their families. Have students share their verses using a rap-like rhythm. Here are some examples:

There are three in my family,My father, my sister and me.What about you?There are five in my family,My grandma, my mother, my sister, my brother and me.

What about you?There are four in my family.My father, my mother, my brother and me.What about you?

These raps can be said in a circle. The last line of each person's rap asks the question to the next person in the circle.

4.5 Using drama, role-play and puppetsThe use of drama, role-play and puppets gives our learners a great opportunity to speak English while taking on the character of another. This is often a useful approach for children who are rather shy. Even practicing simple dialogues can be less threatening (and more enjoyable) if roles are assigned. For example, students can practice a dialogue involving greetings by pretending to be a student meeting a rock star, a kind teacher, a famous television presenter, and so on.

See the lesson Using Presentations, Puppets, Videos, Role-play and Drama in TEYL, for more ideas. Children can also be encouraged to act out a scene from a story they have read together. See Chapter 3 in the lesson,

Using Stories When Teaching English to Young Learners, for ideas involving the traditional story, Chicken Licken.


Encouraging Young Learners to Speak through GamesYou can play great games with learners that will encourage them to practice and review the target language that has been introduced in class. Keep the atmosphere friendly and supportive.

5.1 – 5.4 Questions, quizzes, and riddles It's important for students to ask and answer lots of questions . and to have fun while they are doing that. Consider the following activities.

5.1 What's behind my back?Review flashcards based on the theme you've been studying. Then hide one of the cards behind your back. Have students hold up their hands and take turns guessing what card you are holding. If a student gets it right, have the others give a round of applause. Children can also play this game in pairs.

5.2 What is it?Describe something linked to a theme you have been teaching. Encourage the children to ask questions (What shape is it? What color is it? Is it big?) and make guesses.For example:

It is round.It is smooth.It is hard.It has juice in it.It is green or red. (Answer: an apple)

Encourage the use of gestures. As well, help students expand their vocabulary as they ask questions and try to figure out answers. After playing as a class, children can play in pairs or in groups. You might want to provide them with a page of pictures of familiar words that they can use.

5.3 What am I?Describe something animate or inanimate and have the others guess what it is. See Chapter 5.3 in Supplementary Material for examples.

5.4 I spy with my little eyeThis game can be done as a whole class activity or in groups or pairs. Student A (SA) looks around the class (or at a picture that everybody can see) and chooses one thing. SA does not tell anyone what it is but says, I spy with my little eye . something that starts with 'w' (or something that is the color blue). Others ask questions and guess what it is based on the letter (or color).

5.5 True or falseHave students write three statements about themselves – two true statements and one false statement. For example:

1. My favorite music is rap music. 2. Last year, I learned how to rollerblade. 3. I have four pairs of running shoes.

In groups of four, students read aloud their statements. The others try to decide which statement is false. Have students ask each other questions to get more information. (Students will have to give pretend answers when responding to questions about their false statements. It can be fun for group members to try to trap them with difficult questions.)

5.6 – 5.10 Card games, board games, and team activities The following games are great for encouraging students to speak out in class.

5.6 Go FishThis is a popular card game that students can play in groups of four. For each group, have four sets of eight playing cards, using pictures from a lexical set (such as animals). The goal of the game is to collect four cards that are the same (four monkeys or four tigers.). Students practice saying vocabulary items and also ask and answer the question, Do you have a (tiger)?Yes, I do/No, I don't. See Chapter 5 in Supplementary Material for more details.

5.7 English SnapThis card game encourages students to practice vocabulary words in

groups of four. See Chapter 3 in the lesson Teaching Listening in English to Young Learners for an explanation of how to play.

5.8 Picture CharadesThis is an entertaining game that can be played with two teams. The teacher can put together word cards or pictures of vocabulary items for the students to review.

Teacher shows Student A (SA) from Team A the name of an object (or a picture of it). SA draws that object on the blackboard (without saying anything to his teammates).

Members of Team A look at the drawing and guess what it is. A student with a stopwatch records how many seconds it takes for Team A to correctly guess the item. This time is recorded.

SB from Team B draws an object and Team B guesses what it is. The team that guesses the objects in the least amount of time wins the game.

5.9 CharadesThis game is played in the same way as Picture Charades (outlined above), except players use gestures rather than drawings to depict their chosen words or phrases. See Chapter 5 in Supplementary Material for more details.

SummaryIn this lesson, we have discussed how to teach the skill of speaking in English to our young language learners. We have considered ways to prepare young learners to speak English in class by encouraging real communication through purposeful activities. We have also looked at modeling the target language for our learners in a variety of ways and encouraging them to use natural language through meaningful interactions.

Next Steps


After the quiz, please complete the short assignment that follows. This will allow you to practice what you have just learned. To access it, click assignments at the top or bottom of any page.

Choose the appropriate lesson and follow the directions listed there.Also, visit the discussion area to converse with your colleagues about the topics covered in this lesson. To access it, click discussion at the top or bottom of any page. Choose the appropriate lesson and follow the directions. You will be able to post on the discussion board until the 'close date' listed. After that date, you can read the discussions but not post.

Glossary productive skills (in speaking) involve the production of words.encoding (in speaking) is the mental process that takes place when you have decided what you want to say and then actually say it out loud.intonation is the rise and fall in speech that can signify such things as questions or answers, as well as surprise or disappointment. expression is when you use speech to convey emotions like excitement or humor.body gestures involve using your body to get your point across. For example, you point at an object you are talking about, or shrug your shoulders if you are not sure of something. models in a language class demonstrate to learners how to say something by providing clear examples. Teachers may model something by saying it themselves first, or by using a puppet or an audio or video recording.silent period is the term that is sometimes used for the time when children are learning a new language but do not speak it or are seemingly unable to say anything in the target language. For some children, this can last about three months, but once they do start using the language, they can often say a lot.formal (spoken) language is a register of language that you would likely use to talk to persons in authority (the police, a lawyer in court, a doctor, or the head of a school). At these times, your speech is usually monitored and more precise.informal (spoken) language is a register of language that you would likely use with your friends and family. This is a more relaxed form of speech. You do not need to be careful about how you say things and the words you use.feedback is when you let others know how they are doing (or did) in specific activities. For example, you may say something like, I like the way you said this but you could use the word 'x' to explain your ideas.

An Introduction to Teaching English to Young Learners Your Instructor: Annie Hughes Lesson 6 Chapter 1 Annie Hughes talking about Teaching Reading in English to Young Learners (videoscript)"In this lesson, we shall look first at what is going on in our young language learners' minds when they are reading. Then, we will think about the characteristics of reading texts and how to help our learners read them. We will look at what kind of reading our students need to do in their everyday life (from reading signs and advertisements to reading storybooks) and we will consider ways to encourage meaningful reading in our language classroom. We will also consider the skills our young language learners need to read in English and how we can support the development of these skills, especially for our very young language learners. Finally, we will look at a wide range of reading activities for the able reader."

What is Happening in Our Young Language Learners' Minds When They are Reading? Reading, like listening, is a receptive skill that can be introduced into the language classroom step by step and in different ways, depending on the age and level of the language learners.

We need to create meaningful reading activities for our learners. Though this takes thought and preparation, we know that children learn best when they are interested in what they are doing. If we create tasks that have no purpose and are not linked to the sort of reading tasks the learners carry out naturally, then very little language will be acquired, revised and consolidated. We have to make sure that the reading activities we plan are natural, relevant and interesting so that learning will take place.Let's think about what is going on in the learner's head when he or she is reading. Look at Figure 6.1 below.

Figure 6.1 Processes involved in reading as a young language learner

Helping our learners to readWhen planning reading tasks for the language class, it is valuable to think about what kind of reading our young learners actually do in their everyday lives (in their first language) and see if we can design similar tasks for the language class. Keep in mind that our young learners carry out a lot of reading each day by reading things like words on doors (Push/Pull) or notices on walls, or signs on buildings. Look at Figure 6.2 for a list of everyday reading materials for our young learners. (Perhaps you could add to this list.)

Figure 6.2 Types of reading materials our students will likely encounter each day

By looking at this list, we can recognize that the opportunities for reading are everywhere, not just in textbooks or on worksheets. We need to ask ourselves if we are offering this wide variety of reading to our young learners in the language class. Often we are not. We should try our utmost to have a wide range of reading materials in the classroom for our language learners and to use language activities that involve this range of materials, too.


Characteristics of Texts and How We Can Help Learners Read These

What are the characteristics of most of the reading samples that we listed in the last chapter? In considering these text types, we can say that reading is often: √ presented in short chunks (involving just words or phrases);√ connected with an activity;√ used for a clear purpose;√ linked with a picture, activity or thing (such as a Push sign on a door);√ used to gain or get information;√ used to interact with others about something practical;√ involved with something related to the world at large, beyond the classroom.

This list of characteristics is a good checklist and guide for us when we are looking for reading texts for our language learners. We should ask ourselves if the reading we are considering for our young language learners in the target language includes any of the above characteristics. If it involves several of these characteristics, then the text will likely be useful for our young language learners.

Creating a rich reading environmentReading in everyday life is often involuntary. By this, I mean that young learners are reading everything all around them without even realizing it, such as street signs, T-shirt slogans, and so on. Thus, it is very important to create a rich literate environment in our language classroom (supported by pictures, illustrations and realia) to help motivate our students to read.

This type of environment can also have a positive effect on children who are not yet fully competent and confident in their reading, as it will help familiarize them with the target language in written form, especially if it involves a different script than they use in their first language. As a result of such exposure, the students will not be so fearful about using the language when they formally start to read and write.

A lot of research over the last few years has shown that learners take notice of the text that is around them. In their first language, even very young children start reading road and shop signs that they see regularly if they are encouraged by their parent or caretaker. This happens well before they formally start reading in school. Because of our understanding of how children begin to read in their first language, it would seem especially important to introduce plenty of English reading texts (representing material from the real world) to our young learners in their English classroom.

Figure 6.3: Examples of authentic materials that can be displayed in the language classroom.

We can also label our students' work and display it on the walls. Students benefit and gain knowledge from looking at and reading their classmates' work and gain confidence and take pride in presenting their own work.


Helping our Young Learners Develop Reading Skills Young learners in an ESL/EFL class need practice to develop the same type of reading skills they are acquiring in their first language. The following skills are part of a basic reading programme. (Adjust activities to the age and level of the learners.)

Reading skill DescriptionSkimming Getting the general idea of what the text is about and looking

for important information in accompanying images (such as pictures or charts)

Scanning Looking for specific information within the text (such as names, places or dates)

Intensive reading Word by word reading, as one might find when reading a story

Extensive reading Reading wide-ranging texts, skimming, scanning and guessing words, filling in missing words and reading fluently (rather than reading accurately or intensively)

Computer / Web skills

Reading key words and learning how to look for specific information

Identifying parts of text

Recognizing information that comes from different parts of text, such as headlines, picture captions, speech bubbles and punctuation

Varied reading experience

Knowing how to read different types of text (such as cartoons, picture dictionaries, stories, Web pages) using a combination of skills noted above

Considering typical reading tasksApproaches we take to reading depend on our purpose for reading as well as the type of text we are reading. Think about what reading skills are needed to accomplish various everyday tasks and consider what type of reading is involved.Consider such tasks as:

checking a TV schedule for a certain TV show;

referring to instructions when making a snack;

looking up a word in a dictionary;

looking at an invitation to a birthday party to find out the time and place;

checking what's written to see if you are taking the right bus;

looking at the buttons on a CD player to try to turn it off;

studying the instructions of a game you want to play;

reading a story to find out what will happen next.

Often the reasons for reading in our everyday life are very clear and are focused on small pieces of information. We should include this range of purposeful reading in our language classroom. As noted in Chapter 1, we need to build a real reason for reading into the tasks we give our young language learners so that reading in the target language mirrors the reading they are doing in their everyday lives.

Supporting reading in the language classroomIn the language classroom, we need to model and provide a range of reading experiences. As the teacher, read to your students from books, and also from posters on the wall, from headlines in magazines, and from captions in comics.

Use the following techniques with your young learners to encourage the development of their reading skills:

Provide learners with achievable and motivating reading goals. As everyday reading, give them short sentences to read and small chunks of information to find through their reading. (Make these tasks suitable for their age and English level.)

Build their confidence in reading step by step.Start with familiar things that are easy to read, such as words and phrases that sound the same (or similar) in their native language. These could include global words, such as football, hamburger, computer, as well as logos or advertisements from famous international companies, names of well-known actors or sports stars, or words and acronyms that may sound similar.

Provide visual and contextual support for reading.Use lots of visual support through pictures, flashcards or gestures. Also, support your students' understanding of the text by using everyday objects like newspapers, comics, magazines, posters and brochures. However, remember to only use a small section of these materials as too large a sample could overwhelm students.

Support the physical aspect of reading.Help learners recognize visual and technical cues when reading by using these approaches:

Get students used to seeing English writing all around them by using clear lettering (in lower case print) to label items in the classroom (such as door, window, cupboard, drawer, board, desk, chair). This is especially important if the English script is new to the students. They will notice and think about these words on a regular basis, especially if they are linked to real things or pictures, and will start to recognize the shapes of letters and words.

As noted earlier, create a rich literate environment in your class by displaying lots of text in your classroom through a variety of materials such as posters, books, comics, and so on. Have students refer to weather charts, timetables and calendars as part of their regular routine.

Teach specific strategies for effective reading.Consider the many ways you can get your students to develop their reading skills, especially as they begin to read more complex text.

Pre-teach key words and phrases before asking students to read a text.

Encourage students to guess new meaning from the context and accompanying pictures by asking questions that help the learners focus specifically on certain aspects of the text.

Paraphrase difficult ideas or expressions to help them understand the text. For example, in Chicken Licken (introduced in the lesson, Using Stories When Teaching English to Young Learners), part of the text says, Chicken Licken was walking in the woods when, 'Plop!' An acorn fell on his head! After reading this, we could point at the picture in the story (or make gestures) and say, Look! That is an acorn! It's falling! Ow! It fell on his head!

Scaffold learners' reading by asking questions that help them understand the main points of the story. (What happened when.?) As well, help prepare them for reading by making predictions. (What will she do now?) Encourage them to consolidate their understanding of the story and reflect on its meaning. (How did he feel? Why?)

Teachers can take many different approaches to teaching reading in their ESL/EFL classrooms. We will look more closely at how to teach reading to young learners who are just beginning to read in Chapter 4. Then, we will look at activities we can use in the classroom to help those who are more confident readers (in their first language and in the target language) in Chapter 5. An Introduction to Teaching English to Young Learners Your Instructor: Annie Hughes Lesson 6 Chapter 4

Supporting Reading for Very Young and Young Language LearnersVery young language learners are often still learning to read in their first language. While we should not interfere or confuse the learners in this task by trying to encourage them to read too soon in English, we can prepare them for reading in English in the long term.

Approaches to reading in the EFL classroomWhen considering how to teach reading in the young learner classroom, we can briefly look at various approaches. Combinations of these approaches are often used in teaching reading to students learning English as their first language as well as to those learning English as a second or foreign language.

Overall reading in the young learner classroomChildren learn to read words and sentences because the context is meaningful. For example, they can start to understand and 'read' by following along as teachers tell a story or point out the lyrics of a song while physically running their finger under the words as they read. Through such guided activities, they can begin to make the connections between written and spoken words.

In the ESL/EFL classroom, where the students' vocabulary in the target language is limited, meaning is critical. Therefore, teachers need to ensure students recognize and understand the meaning of a spoken word (by linking it with a visual image or a gesture) before expecting students to try to 'read' it.

One of most important ways to encourage very young and young language learners to start reading in the target language is to use storybooks with them. Large 'big book' versions of storybooks are particularly ideal for whole class reading.

As you read the story aloud, students listen to the story, look at the accompanying pictures, and begin to make the connection between the words you say and the words you are pointing to as you read. Even if the children are not yet reading, pointing to the words as you say them will help them make that link. It can also help them recognize how text is read in English (from left to right, starting at the top of the page).

Modeling reading is incredibly important for these very young and young language learners. See the lesson, Using Stories When Teaching English to Young Learners, for further examples of what can

be done with storybooks. Remember that it is important and valuable for young learners, new to reading in English, to be able to pick up and read books in the English classroom. If you have a large enough number of books, it is wonderful if your young language learners can borrow books from your English Library to read at home, too.

Whole word approachAs noted, very young learners are often not yet reading in their first language. In the ESL/EFL classroom (where they are just starting to learn the meaning of words in English), their preparation for reading often involves the direct linking of pictures with captions. Very young learners will not be asked to directly focus on the words but instead will be reading by looking at the pictures that appear alongside the words. Eventually, after some weeks of linking the pictures with the words that go with them, the children will recognise the words and read them.

This whole word or look and say approach to reading gets the learner used to seeing the shape of the whole word and recognising the word, initially with a picture, and then later, without a picture. As noted in Chapter 3, teachers can help their students become familiar with written English (letters and words) by clearly labelling items in the classroom and displaying lots of posters and charts with English text, remembering to use lower case letters on the labels.

Phonics approachAnother approach to teaching reading involves the phonics approach. Children are taught the sounds of the letters and begin to link the letters and sounds so that they can 'sound out' words and begin to read for themselves. For example, after learning the sounds of individual letters, they can look at the word dog and recognize three separate letter sounds, /d/ /o/ /g/. Children can be encouraged to put these three sounds together to say the word 'dog'.

Through the phonics approach, children go beyond learning individual consonant and short vowel sounds to learning sounds that are made from combinations of letters (such as /th/ and /ch/ and /ee/,

/ea/ and /ey/). In the early stages of reading actual text, they also learn to recognize certain sight words (common words with irregular spelling, such as who, what and where).

It can be helpful for teachers to recognize and understand the different approaches that can be taken to teaching reading in the ESL/EFL classroom. As we know there are different types of learners in our classroom, using a combination of these approaches can help us try to meet their varying needs.

<>In our ESL/EFL classrooms, where very young learners may not yet be reading in their first language, it is very important to use a lot of pre-reading activities in English that will help them develop the necessary skills as they are learning the language.

Begin with pre-reading activities

Follow patterns Have students do drawing activities, such as connecting the dots or following mazes. Such activities help them follow a particular line without stopping (an important pre-reading skill).

Recognize similar shapes Encourage students to recognize similar shapes. For

example, a worksheet may include a square (on the left side of the page) and then a circle, triangle and square on the right side of the page. Students need to circle the similar shape (the square).

Start to make connections between spoken and written words

Add labels to objects to allow students to begin to make the connection between the visual image of an item and the written word.

Start to observe text Help students observe how written words fit together to form phrases and sentences by having them watch as the teacher points out the written words when reading stories and singing songs with them.

Developing early reading skillsTo encourage children to become more familiar with the written words, we can use the following activities, adjusting the complexity according to the level of the students. At the same time, these activities will review the language structures and vocabulary being introduced to the students.

Start off with reading activities involving single words or phrases

Introduce words Present words (orally) and ensure students understand meaning through visual representations. Then let students see (and 'read') the written words.

Match words and pictures Have sets of flashcards with pictures and corresponding words. Have students find matching pairs. Students can also complete worksheets that have them draw lines to connect pictures with words.

Sort words into sets Have students read words and put them into various categories. For example, when reviewing animal words, students can categorize animals in the following ways:* Animals I like / don't like;* Animals with two legs / four legs / neither, and so on. Also they can put a wide variety of words they have studied into various lexical sets, such as furniture, fruit, transportation, and so on.

Build up to activities that involve words, phrases and sentences

Match sentences and pictures

Have students show they recognize and understand written words. For example, when reviewing animals and actions, have them match sentences with corresponding pictures. (The lion is sleeping.)

Match questions with answers

Give students questions and answers on slips of paper and have them work in pairs to match them. For example, when reviewing animals, the questions and answers might include: A: Where does it live? B: It lives in the jungle.

Match jumbled half sentences

Divide sentences in half (using strips of paper) and have students try to put them together. For example, if studying animals and food, the jumbled sentence might read: Monkeys like / to eat bananas.

Match simple cartoon After listening to a story, students can put the

stories with captions pictures in order and then match each picture with the correct caption. For example, after reading The Enormous Snowball (from the lesson, Teaching Listening in English to Young Learners), students can match captions and pictures (depicting the characters who helped make the huge snowball).

Extending reading practice through meaningful activitiesEncourage student involvement in meaningful and interactive classroom activities that have them reading and using the language. Brainstorming ideas together and writing ideas on the blackboard can help students review vocabulary items and prepare them for the following types of reading activities.

* Singing songs and chants. Have students read the lyrics and take notice of how songs and rhymes are written (looking at rhyming words, descriptive words, and so on). Encourage them to write their own songs and chants on posters. Read and sing (or chant) their songs (or rhymes) together. See the lesson, Using Songs, Rhymes, Chants and Poems in the Classroom for ideas.

* Reading stories. Stories like The Enormous Snowball (see the lesson, Teaching Listening in English to Young Learners) and Chicken Licken (see the lesson, Using Stories When Teaching English to Young Learners) have meaningful repetition. Students can say lines from these stories together and then be motivated to read them.

* Playing games. Many games such as English Snap, Pelmanism and Language Bingo have students actively involved in reading. (See explanations for these games in the lesson, Teaching Listening in English to Young Learners.)

There are many more types of reading activities that can be used in the ESL/EFL class with young learners. Check the variety of activities listed in the lessons, Teaching (Listening / Speaking / Writing) in English to Young Learners. Adapt these activities (as needed) to emphasize a reading focus.


English Reading Activities for the Able ReaderWe have looked at how to start reading in English with very young and young learners and we are now going to look at a wide variety of reading activities we can use for those who are able and confident readers in English.

5.1 Detective Prepare a worksheet with four head and shoulder pictures of people. Create a description at the top of the worksheet of one of these people with the title: Description of the criminal. Make sure the four people all have a lot of similarities so that students have to read the description carefully to note the differences in the pictures. For example, the characters could all have glasses, short hair, be wearing jumpers or earrings, and so on.

In pairs, have children read the description and then try to be the first to identify the true criminal.

5.2 Identify true or false statements Create a worksheet with statements written on it (some true and some false) about the topic you are

studying in class. For example, if you are studying about items in the house, include the following statement:

Tables always have three legs and food is put underneath them for meals.___ True ___ False

Children tick (√) true or false for each statement. If false, they should be prepared to correct the statement.

5.3 Reading emails, letters and postcards Create an opportunity for students to use email to send English messages to children in another school, either locally or in an English speaking country.Likewise, you can have them send postcards or letters. Make arrangements with another teacher so that your students' letters go to students who will answer them. (As well, make sure your students also respond.)

5.4 Buddy Reading (Shared Reading) Two students sit together to read a book in a number of different ways, such as:

reading alternate pages; reading until one stops or hesitates and then the other helps by taking over; reading dialogues in a story and taking on different roles.

A buddy reading program can also be effective when more able students are matched up with younger less able buddies. More able students can practice reading aloud from beginner books and can then share these books with their buddies. This can be a motivating experience for both types of students (those allowed to share their knowledge and those who can have one-on-one attention with their buddy teachers).

5.5 Read and listen Provide students with a copy of a storybook that has been recorded on a CD or cassette. Students can read the text as the narrator reads aloud on the recording. This is a particularly useful activity for those students who are not yet confident readers. You could also encourage your learners to do this type of listening at home.

5.6 Completing a table or chart For children that feel comfortable enough to interact with the written word, around the ages 9-12, you can have them complete a worksheet or respond to questions from a poster on the wall. They will need to read the questions carefully so that they can provide the correct information. (See Chapter 5 in Supplementary Material for more details. )

5.7 Jigsaw reading Find an interesting story about nine to 12 sentences long. Print it in three different sections, representing the beginning, middle and end of the story. Divide the class into groups of three. Have students take responsibility for reading and retelling one of the sections of the story to the members of their group. . This is another activity that is more suitable for children around the ages of 9-12 that have more experience with written English. (See Chapter 5 in Supplementary Material for more details.)

5.8 Cloze ActivityPrepare a worksheet for each student (or group of students) with text written on it. (It could be a story, song or factual description.) Leave out some words (such as prepositions, verbs, adjectives or nouns). Provide a line for each of these missing words. This activity could be used for students with a range of ages, depending on the lyrics and complexity of the song or story and the complexity of language in the story. I would use a song example for children around the ages of 7-9 and the story example for children around the ages of 10-12. (See Chapter 5 in Supplementary Material for more details.)

5.9 Reading lyrics of new songs Songs and chants play an important role in the young learner classroom. See the lesson, Using Songs, Rhymes, Chants and Poems in the Language Classroom, for more details.

To introduce a new song in class, put the lyrics on worksheets or display them on chart paper or on an overhead transparency. Ask the children to read the lyrics and sing along. Have them take home the lyrics of the song and draw illustrations.

5.10 Creating and reading comic stripsA lovely activity has students sharing cartoons they have written. In groups, have students make strip cartoons outlining a story or event. Have them work together to decide how many cartoons they need and who will illustrate them. They also need to write any speech bubbles or captions that will accompany each illustration. Finally, they will need to present their cartoons in book or poster form so that other groups can read them.

Summary Create a reading culture in your English classroom by making all kinds of English materials available to your students to read, including books (dictionaries, reference books, storybooks and factual books) as well as authentic English material from the real world. Familiarize your students with the language by displaying their writing on the wall alongside other posters, charts and labelled pictures and talk about each of these with your classes. Plan interesting and purposeful activities that encourage your students to develop their reading skills by reading from a variety of texts and participating in meaningful tasks.

Next Steps




Glossary

receptive skill in reading involves taking information in and processing it rather than producing something (as in writing).decoding is the processing of information as we read, from recognizing individual letters, words and phrases to understanding concepts and ideas being shared by the writer.script is the way words are written or the font that is used in a computer. For young language learners, it is always advisable to use lower case letters in printed script rather than cursive script or capital letters.authentic materials are materials created for a real audience in a real situation in the target language, such as a menu from an ice-cream shop designed for customers to read and order from.skimming is getting the general idea of what the text is about and looking for important information in accompanying images (such as pictures or charts).scanning is looking for specific information within the text (such as names, places or dates). (reading) fluently is reading the whole document (including pictures and charts) to get the gist of what is being written, though not focusing on every individual word.(reading) accurately is reading the document in great detail and focusing on each and every individual word.whole word approach is where students are introduced to the English writing of a word as a whole thing, initially linked to illustration, where possible. For example, this includes a flashcard picture of a book with the word book written underneath it.phonics approach is where students are introduced to the English letter sounds and how they can achieve certain beginning, middle and end-of-word sounds. cloze activity is when occasional words are omitted from a writing passage. Students fill these words in during an activity.


Annie Hughes talking about teaching writing in English to young learners (videoscript)"In this lesson, we are going to look at the skill of writing for our young language learners. We will consider how to approach writing for those who are new to writing in their first language and then we will consider approaches to take for our learners as they acquire more experience in writing in their first language and in the target language. Through the presentation of a variety of writing tasks, we will demonstrate how to encourage our young learners to develop their writing skills in a purposeful and enjoyable way."

Selecting and Using Suitable Writing Tasks in the Young Learner ClassroomWriting is a productive skill that is introduced into the language classroom in different ways, depending on the age and level of the language learners. When planning writing tasks for the language class, it is valuable to think first about what writing tasks our young learners actually do in their everyday lives and see if we can design similar tasks.

We need to be careful that we create meaningful and purposeful writing activities for our young language learners. If we create writing tasks that are of no interest to them and largely have them just copying words and doing handwriting practice, then very little language will be acquired through the activities.

Let's think about what children have to do when they write in English. What is going on in the young learner's head? Look at Figure 7.1 (below).

Figure 7.1 Processes involved in writing for the young language learner

We can help our young language learners write in the target language if we support their learning in the following ways.

Assist children in learning the technical skills.Young children need to recognize how text appears on paper and develop the physical skills involved in writing.

Help them see how text appears on the page. This is especially necessary if the alphabet in the target language is different from the learners' first language and is written in a different direction or form.

Teach handwriting skills. If the English script is new to your learners, physically show them how to form the letters and put them together to form words and sentences. Model this writing on the board and assign them writing practice. Review these skills regularly.

Model the type of writing needed.Model what you would like learners to write, such as a message on a postcard, labels for a picture, or instructions for a recipe. By providing clear examples, learners will understand what is required.

Focus attention on spelling and punctuation. These two areas are particularly important in helping students become successful writers. Lots of models are needed for young learners to look at and emulate.

Encourage creative aspects of writing.Motivate learners by creating meaningful and purposeful reasons for their writing. For example, ask learners to write the instructions for a new game so that students in another class can understand how to play it.

Help learners feel confident in their writing.

Give examples and support so they do not feel confused or at sea when writing in English.

Have students think about the audience for their written work.Help learners recognize that their words are written for others and that they communicate meaning.

Encourage students to think about who they are writing for and to try to express themselves in their writing for that particular audience. For example, their writing will be different if they are writing an invitation for friends to come to a party or if they are writing notes about how to do something. Give them many models and strategies for writing in different ways.

Help learners realize why they are writing something. Language learners should never write just because they need to have writing practice. Writing should have a purpose.

Demonstrate the actual process of writing.Show how writing is a stage by stage process and is rarely a write it once and it's finished activity. Explain that even experienced writers plan, structure, draft, review, revise, edit and rewrite until they are satisfied that their writing has achieved its objective.

Demonstrate how to take notes, how to create structure for a piece of writing, and so on.

Give children lots of models to use for their own writing.

Talk through how to review and edit a piece of writing. Do examples together

Lesson 7 Chapter 2

Consider What Young Learners Write at Different Ages and Stages of Language LearningIf we want to make writing activities meaningful and purposeful for young language learners, we have to clarify what writing activities are suitable for them based on their age and language level (in their first language as well as the target language). Be aware of what your students are doing in their first language so you are not making excessive demands of them in the target language.

Writing activities that could be suitable for three main categories of young language learners are introduced below and outlined in more detail in Chapters 3, 4 and 5. These three categories include:

very young learners who are not yet writing in their first language and have little background learning English;

young learners who are beginning to write in their first language and have limited background learning English;

young learners who are confident writers in their first language and have some background learning English.

Very young language learners who are not yet writing in their first language and have little background learning EnglishThe emphasis for language learning at this age is acquainting children with language through listening and speaking activities. Children may not yet be writing in their first language, but they still need practice preparing to write (in their first language and the target language).

This involves such things as helping them hold their pencils correctly and developing hand-eye coordination through various activities that help prepare them (mentally and physically) to eventually write. This may involve tracing lines, connecting the dots, looking for details by recognizing matching pictures, and so on.

At this level, children may start to become familiar with letters of the alphabet and/or actual words (as they appear alongside pictures of the items on flashcards or in storybooks), although they would not necessarily be expected to read or write them. Alphabet work (identifying and eventually writing letters) will come after a lot of exposure to English through meaningful listening and speaking activities.

See Chapter 3 in this lesson for activities for language learners at this level.

Young learners who are beginning to write in their first language and have limited background learning EnglishChildren at this level are familiar with writing about things they know about in their first language. They have developed cognitive skills that allow them to recognize how letters and words can be put together to communicate messages, and they also have developed physical skills that allow them to put those letters and words down on paper. These skills can be applied to developing writing skills in the target language as well.

As mentioned in previous lessons, an understanding of meaning is crucial in the language classroom. Children need to know what they are writing about and have an interest in getting across a message. Normally, listening and speaking activities will precede reading and writing when planning activities in a class around a certain topic.

When writing, beginning students need lots of guidance and modeling from the teacher to get results. Children this age demonstrate an interest in writing if their activities have a purpose (to play a game, complete a chart, or conduct a survey) or if they are encouraged to express their ideas (through guided poetry writing or by writing for a classroom book). As students demonstrate confidence with the language, they can be encouraged to write more freely.


Young learners who are confident writers in their first language and have some background learning EnglishChildren at this level are experienced in different types of writing in their first language and will be able to transfer that knowledge to their understanding of the target language. Depending on the level of the students (in learning the target language), the teacher needs to continue to provide students with lots of models to help structure their writing.

As well, acknowledging the students' knowledge and ability to think more abstractly, the teacher should encourage students to express their own

thoughts in their writing by providing lots of brainstorming as a class. This will help prepare them for tasks and encourage them to share ideas.

At this level, children can communicate their thoughts to others (through writing cartoons, reviewing books or TV shows, and writing quizzes or competitions for their peers). With the guidance of the teacher, they can also learn new things and write about their experiences (through planning and conducting surveys, carrying out experiments, and thinking about their own learning through diary entries).


With descriptions of these three groups of learners in mind, we will now look at how we can support their writing through a variety of activities.

Lesson 7 Chapter 3

Pre-Writing Activities for Very Young Language LearnersIt is important to remember that while our learners are in their very early years, they will need a lot of support and scaffolding for their pre-writing and writing skills development in the target language. A lot of writing preparation can be carried out in the language class before the learners are actually at the cognitive stage of writing.

Setting up the classroomWith this age group, it is important to use labels in the classroom. Even though the children are not yet reading or writing, they will start to recognize shapes, letters and words. Label the following: door, window, cupboard, drawer, board, desk, and chair.

If you are using flashcards with very young learners, label these at the bottom of the pictures. Though you should never ask learners at this level to 'read' or spell out the words, it is valuable for them to start associating the written words with the pictures of the things you are talking about. This whole word or look and say method (also discussed in Chapter 4 of the lesson Teaching Reading in English to Young Learners) allows children to get used to the shape of the word and start to remember the word. At a later date, when they are more cognitively and linguistically developed, they can start to think about individual letters and, eventually, spell and write the words.

If students use books to draw in regularly, then these should be labeled with their names and, ideally, with their self-portrait. If children create drawings, put together an attractive display of them on the bulletin board with their names clearly and neatly written next to their drawings.

Activities in the classroomThe following activities, which can be linked to the language and topics covered in the language lesson, help this group of learners develop, both physically and cognitively. The activities also help prepare them to eventually write by having them pay attention to detail and practice drawing lines from left to right.

3.1 Complete left to right patterns Create writing practice worksheets that help children develop their pre-writing skills. Have them move their pencils from left to right on the page by connecting the dots between related items or by drawing a line. This activity is best for children approximately 3-6 years old who are just beginning to write in their first language and English. See Chapter 3.1 in Supplementary Material for examples.

Students can also find their way from one picture to another on a page by drawing a line through a simple kind of maze.

3.2 Look and drawHave students use pictures as guides for their own drawings. For example, create a picture of an empty classroom and then have pictures of a chair, desk, pencil and bag around the border of that picture. Have children draw these items in the most suitable places in the classroom.

3.3 Draw new language introduced in classIntroduce a topic in English to very young learners and then get them to draw a picture about it. For example, if you are doing the topic of travel, ask learners to draw a car, a bicycle, a truck, a bus, or something amazing like a fire engine. You will be fascinated and surprised by how much attention to detail they will pay to aspects of these drawings. Display the pictures together on the wall or put them together in a book. Provide a label for each picture.

Lesson 7 Chapter 4

Writing Activities for Young Learners Beginning to Write in their First LanguageLearners who are beginning to write in their first language will need support and modeling of writing when learning to write in the target language.

Setting up the classroomWith your guidance, have students label the items that are around the classroom such as clock, door, window, map, and so on. Regularly model writing for your young learners. Use the blackboard as well as paper and pencil examples as often as you can to show how to physically write words and sentences. Take your time and make your handwriting clear, remembering to show how to form each letter.

With newly emerging writers, do not use upper case (capital) letters if you can help it, as this requires them to be confident in two different types of scripts. When they are more confident in writing, they can be introduced to upper case letters. The exception to this involves using upper case letters to write their own names. Provide each student with an example of how to write his or her name. Then have them make name cards that they can keep on their desks.

Ensure students see lots of text in the classroom. Have them regularly complete charts, such as weather or birthday charts. For example, have students make word cards (like rain, sun, wind, snow, hot, and cool) and have them attach the appropriate words each day to the weather chart. Through this routine, students can use written words to record information in a meaningful way.

Activities in the classEncourage young learners to develop their writing skills through a variety of motivating activities that allow them to express themselves through the language in interesting and enjoyable ways. Relate activities to the topics that have been studied in class.

4.1 Match pictures studied in class with the matching wordsSet up a worksheet with pictures on the left side of the page and corresponding words on the right. Have students draw lines connecting the pictures with the words.

4.2 Carry out simple surveysHave students ask and answer each other questions on a survey form. Use pictures to help guide

them and have them respond through ticks (√) and crosses (X). At this level, simple words can also be used.

4.3 Create vocabulary books or picture dictionariesAs you start a new topic, each child could start a new picture dictionary page in a plain paper notebook. They could draw the objects or actions on this page and then label them with the new language being introduced. They will have a useful reference book that they can use frequently.

4.4 Create advertisements or T-shirt slogansChildren can create a slogan related to the topic that is being studied in class. The slogan and accompanying art can be put on a T-shirt (that is drawn on a worksheet). For example, students could design logos about food choices.

4.5 Complete acrostics and picture crosswordsAcrostics (a poem made by writing the letters of a word vertically) and simple picture crosswords are good for the emerging writer in English as they deal with a word slowly, letter by letter, so that a student is writing at a comfortable pace. These activities would work best with children who are already comfortable writing words in English, usually between the ages 5-7. See Chapter 4 in Supplementary Material for examples.

4.6 Write shape poems or calligramsHave students write shape poems or calligrams (pictures made up of words that form the shape of that item). Depending what is studied, the topic of words could be lexical sets, (such as types of food or furniture), or structural sets (such as verbs or adjectives). Use these activities with children around the age of 7-9 that have been writing in English for some time and can be creative in English. See Chapter 4 of Supplementary Material for an example.

4.7 Write another verse for a simple song or rhymeIn groups, have students write another verse to a song that has been introduced in class.

4.8 Play language gamesOther games such as Language Bingo or Pelmanism have students write down, listen for and then identify key words that have been studied.

4.9 Solve coded messages in EnglishYoung learners usually like cracking codes and solving puzzles that make them think about the language. This is a simple code for the students to try for the first time. This involves assigning a number to each letter of the alphabet.

Let children write secret messages to each other in code. For example:

This focus on secret codes is a great way to get young learners thinking very carefully about spelling, even though they will not realize it. They can also be encouraged to try to make up their own codes.

4.10 Create a storyAfter new language has been introduced and practiced with learners through speaking and listening activities, encourage them to draw a picture of something linked to the topic or have them draw three pictures to illustrate a simple three-stage story (beginning, middle and end). Help them label their pictures.

After reading a story together, children also can be encouraged to write their own class book. For example, the story The Enormous Snowball (from the lesson, Teaching Listening in English to Young Learners) helps students review family members and names of animals. Students could talk about their favorite animals and draw pictures of them. They could line their animals up by size (from biggest to smallest) and then write about the animals that made an enormous snowball. They could use the structure from the original story to write about their pictures: So the (elephant) called for the (hippo). The (hippo) pushed the (elephant), the (elephant) pushed the snowball, and they pushed. and they pushed. and they pushed, but they couldn't push the enormous snowball.

You could also adapt the story and have the animals pushing something they are more likely to come across in their own environment, like a fallen tree. Or you could make an adventurous story and have them pushing a tourist safari sightseeing car that has broken down!

Lesson 7 Chapter 5

Writing Activities for Young Learners who are Confident Writers in their First LanguageMore advanced writers (in their native language as well as in the target language) need to be challenged to develop their creative English writing skills and be motivated to participate in more demanding writing activities.

Setting up the classroomWriters at this level are able to label the items in the classroom themselves. You could turn this activity into a sort of game by having groups label different areas of the classroom with your guidance. One day, take labels off some of the items and see if the learners can tell you which labels are missing.

Activities in the classEncourage students to demonstrate their growing knowledge of English (and the world around them) through their writing. Provide guided structure while also encouraging them to take chances with the language.

5.1 Write stories based on the language topicHave students write strip stories (cartoons) in which each stage of the story is in a picture. They can write simple descriptions of what is happening underneath each picture or write speech bubbles for the characters.

Give students lots of different story models to follow. You could have them draw strip stories at home and then bring them to class to work on (with the help of you and their classmates). Set up a

special display space or book so that others can read their work. Students will be motivated to write more stories if they know their work is being enjoyed by others.

5.2 Write haikus in the target languageHaikus are well-structured poems that are great for the language class. They are made of three lines with a 5, 7, 5 syllable pattern. Here is an example of a haiku about an elephant:

It is big and grey.Its home is in the jungle.It likes to eat nuts.

After students have written their haikus, have them write them out very neatly and perhaps, provide an illustration. Display their writing on the wall or in a display book. See Chapter 4 of the lesson, Using Songs, Rhymes, Chants and Poems in the Language Classroom, for more details about writing haikus.

5.3 Carry out more complex surveysIn groups, have learners think about a range of different surveys they could carry out that are linked to the topic they are studying in class. With your help, have them create a survey sheet and then have them carry out their survey. Afterwards, they could write up their results for the class and present their findings. The lesson, Teaching Speaking in English to Young Learners, has examples of surveys and the up-coming lesson, Using Presentations, Puppet Videos, Role Play and Drama in TEYL, will have more ideas about presentations.

5.4 Keep a learner diary The more we can encourage learners to be aware of how they are learning, the more successful they will be as language learners and learners in general. Give them a book in which they can keep their Learner Diary. Have them write in their diary once a week. Encourage them to respond to sentences such as:

I learn best when I feel …. I learn new English words by ….I remember new English words by ….The English activities I like best are ….

To help them comment in English, brainstorm possible answers to the questions as a class, so they can learn the vocabulary involved in possible responses and express their feelings in words.

5.5 Write reviews Have students write reviews about books they have read or TV shows or movies they have watched. Create a review sheet for students to complete. This activity is best suited for those children who are comfortable writing in English, probably around the ages of 8-12, though this will depend on the children's experiences in their native language and English up to this point. See Chapter 5.5 in Supplementary Material for a sample form and more details.

Students can complete these reviews regularly and keep them available for other children to read. This type of writing encourages students to extend their vocabulary to include topics that are of specific interest to them. If possible, set up a class or school newsletter so their writing can reach a definite audience.

5.6 Create a vocabulary book Students can use these books to support their learning. If possible, have each child bring a small notebook to class. Have them cut the pages so that it looks like an address book and put the letters

of the alphabet on different pages. As they come across new English words, they can write these in their books.

5.7 Complete written quizzes and have competitions Create simple worksheet competitions or quizzes for children to complete each week and hand in. Present these in a positive way that will encourage and motivate the students by demonstrating to them what they have learned. Have a winner's ceremony at the end of the week for those who have successfully completed the quiz or competition. Consider having an award for someone who has shown great improvement in quiz results.

Children may also like to try to create their own quizzes for competitions within the class. Make them aware of how to create clear questions when writing for others.

5.8 Write to other classes If possible, create a link with another school learning English in your region and get the children to write messages, e-mails, postcards and letters to each other.

5.9 Complete English crosswordsThere are lots of resource books with crosswords in them that you can adapt and use in the classroom. Students can also be encouraged to write their own.

5.10 Carry out simple experiments and write about themHave students participate in experiments that are easy to create in the language class, such as How quickly does sugar dissolve in water? Pre-teach the vocabulary that is needed. Carry out the experiment and narrate what is happening, providing a model for the language that students will need. Have them practice descriptive writing by writing about the experiment following the model you have set up.

5.11 Encourage learners to write 'What am I? or Who am I?' questionsWriting 'What am I?' or 'Who am I?' questions allow students to recycle and expand their vocabulary and think carefully about what they are writing. Ask children to try and solve and then write their own questions. Here are two examples:

Q: I have a long neck. I am covered in shapes and I live in Africa. What am I?A: A giraffe.

Q: I have two legs. I have short brown hair. I have two eyes, one nose, a mouth and two ears. I am not a girl! Who am I?A: A boy.

5.12 Write a simple play or puppet show in English to perform for other groups Often you can use a story from the lesson as a starting point for this type of writing. In groups, let your students decide the different stages of the story and write down their dialogues in short and simple sentences. Give them time to practice their play before presenting it to the class. See the lesson Using Presentations, Puppets, Videos, Role-play and Drama in TEYL for more ideas.

Finally, it is important to remember that writing activities for our young learners should be motivating and fun. If students enjoy what they are doing, they will acquire more English, be proud of their writing and be encouraged to write more!

SummaryIn summary, to help our young learners become excited and successful writers in the target language, we need to provide them with a rich environment of written texts and experiences with writing in English that will motivate them. We also need to model how to write and show our learners different approaches to the structure of writing based on need, audience and the reason for writing. Above all, we must show them that writing can be enjoyable and purposeful.

Next Steps




Glossary productive (in writing) means students are creating or producing the writing by using hand, eye and pencil to make marks, letters, words, sentences and punctuation on a page.encoding involves mentally understanding and processing the way to put written words on a page.script is the actual form of writing (the set of letters that are used in the language).audience is the group of people a person is trying to reach through different types of writing.hand-eye coordination is the ability to move your hand and pencil linked to a pattern or shape that you see on a page. emerging writer is the writer who is just starting to write in the native language and is still learning all the physical and technical aspects of writing.acrostics are poems that are created by writing the letters of one word vertically on a page. New words then extend horizontally from each of these letters.calligrams are poems that are written in the shape of the things they are describing. For example, the word tree will be written many times to form the shape of a tree on the page.strip stories or cartoons involve stories being divided into stages or parts. Each of these parts is then represented by a picture. haiku is a three-lined poem, originally from Japan, in which each line has a set number of syllables (5 on the first line, 7 on the second line, and 5 on the third line).


Annie Hughes talking about using stories when teaching English to young learners."This lesson is about the why, what, when, where and how of using stories in the young English learner class. We will first think about why we should use stories in the young learner English class, and then think about what goes on in our young learners' heads when they hear a story. Following this, we will consider how to support language learning through the use of pictures and picture

books and, in fact, the whole book itself. Finally, we will look at some other ways of using stories and books in the young learner language class and at how to choose books that are appropriate."

Why Should We Use Stories and Storybooks in the Young Learner Language Class?If we were to ask any group of teachers for reasons why we should use stories in the young learner ESL/EFL class, they would likely give us some good suggestions, such as the following.

Children enjoy stories.Children like to look at pictures in a book as they listen to new words.Stories are fun.Children like to get together to listen to a story at the end of a lesson.The stories in English class are like the stories they know in their mother tongue.Children enjoy using their imagination.Children like to hear stories again and again.Children like the characters in the stories.Children want to be the characters in the stories.

These are all very good reasons for using stories in the class but some important language learning reasons can also be added to this list. Language learning can become even more powerful when teaching English through the use of good stories and appropriate picture books.

Stories give the target language a clear context.Language structures, phrases and vocabulary will be understood and supported because they appear in an understood context and will then be learnt and used confidently by the students in the future.

Stories are clearly 'signposted'. Usually stories are very clear and give the listeners or readers obvious signposts throughout that support the learners and help them focus on each part of the story. These include words and phrases such as Once upon a time, … and so , then, finally, suddenly, but, and … happily ever after.

Stories give a lot of opportunity for prediction.Constantly, and often without even realizing it, we are predicting what is going to happen next when we listen to stories. This happens when listening to stories in an ESL/EFL classroom as well. When we introduce stories to our young learners, they will predict what is going to happen next and will think about what the characters will do after each stage of the story. If it is a good story, with clear story markers and signposts, the listeners or readers will be quite clear where the story is going without being made obviously aware of it. This will help them make predictions.

For example, consider the story, The Hatmaker and the Monkeys (outlined in Chapter 2 in Supplementary Material). At one stage of the story, the hatmaker shakes his fist at the monkeys and then the monkeys shake their fists at the hatmaker. This has been introduced in the story as a sort of model, so later in the story when the hatmaker throws his hat down, the listeners or readers will predict that the monkeys will throw their hats down. This type of predictable pattern is often found in traditional stories and can help young language learners understand the story and forecast what is going to come next.

Stories often have lots of meaningful repetition.Lots of stories have phrases and words that are repeated over and over again. However, these repetitions are not boring or unnecessary because they form a central part of the story itself. Story listeners and readers hear these repeated phrases and understand them as part of the story. Therefore, the repetition is meaningful and purposeful for our young learners, and the language in

the stories will be remembered and used by them in the future because of this. The repetition also allows them to hear the target language again and again which aids them in understanding the story and helps them feel more confident about their understanding of the target language.

Stories are known, understood and loved by young learners.The active cognitive skills involved in listening to or reading stories will support our young language learners because they have a great deal of knowledge and understanding of how stories work from their previous experiences of stories in their native language. When teaching in the young learner class, we should remember that, on the whole, children are used to hearing stories in their native language and understand how stories work. This makes the introduction of different types of stories in a language class more easily accessible.

Stories allow for lots of vocabulary building in context.If vocabulary is introduced in context, the meaning of the new words and language can be more easily understood. For example, in the story of Chicken Licken (outlined in Chapter 3), we can easily introduce the name for the male duck (drake) if we introduce it as a character in the story. We can say the name (Oh look! It's a drake!), and then introduce the character's name as Drakey Lakey. Then, we could further emphasize the meaning by pointing out that the duck is a girl and the drake is a boy. It's a simple, quick and highly supported way to introduce vocabulary items.

Stories give learners lots of opportunities for 'saying it out loud' as they can easily be mimed, acted out or used in role-plays.Like songs (and there are lots of similarities between songs and stories in terms of their value in the young learner ESL/EFL class), stories can be a great way for children to say things out loud in the target language without feeling they are unsupported. When children know a story well enough to tell it themselves, they take on the persona of the narrator (not themselves) and this gives them added confidence. Children can also join in by uttering the repeated phrases and words in a story. This builds their confidence in saying it out loud in English.

Similarly, when participating in story role-plays, children can gain confidence in using the language by taking on the role of a character. When children act out or tell a story through role-play, this can be a wonderful way for them to use the same phrases and vocabulary that they heard in the original version.

Stories have clear beginnings, middles and endings.Good stories have clear beginnings (when the scene is set and characters are introduced), middles (where a problem usually occurs and the characters deal with it) and endings (where the problem is solved and everyone lives happily ever after). The clear beginnings, middles and endings support the listening or reading, and also give the children good models to follow when they come to tell or write their own stories.

Lesson 8 Chapter 2

What is Going on in Our Young Learners' Heads When We Use Stories?Because we are sophisticated grown-ups, we may have forgotten how central stories are to life. Listen for an hour to what people talk about in their everyday conversations, and as you do, try to listen to what they are really saying and how they are saying it. You will find that they are generally telling stories and that they are using story markers to tell them.

Therefore, to communicate effectively, our young learners need to be able to tell stories in English. To do so, they will need particular language, like story markers, so that they can interact, comfortably and socially, in the target language.

Thus, we can start to see how stories can really help the young ESL/EFL listener and reader. But to take these ideas further, we need to consider what goes on in our learners' minds when we tell them a story, and how we can help them (linguistically as well as pedagogically) to carry out this type of very active and important thinking.

Providing 'thinking time'Listening to or reading stories is an active mental activity, rather than a passive one, and so we need to provide appropriate support when presenting stories. To do this, we need to allow time for learners to listen to a story and give them thinking time. We also need to give them looking time to look at the gestures we are making (if we are telling the story), or to look at the pictures or the realia we are using to support the story.

By being aware that we need to create adequate listening and reading time, we should allow pauses between phrases or sentences in the story that allow children to process what they have just heard or read. Allowing time for thinking, looking and listening gives our learners the opportunity to take in the information, process it and understand it, so that they are comfortable with it and can acquire the target language we are introducing.

See Chapter 2 (The Hatmaker and the Monkeys) in Supplementary Material at the end of this lesson for an example of how to approach telling a story that will encourage young learners to understand it and make predictions. Read The Hatmaker and the Monkeys and then return to these notes to consider approaches the storyteller can take to help make the story meaningful and enjoyable for students.

Considerations for the storyteller (after reading The Hatmaker and the Monkeys, adapted from Story as Vehicle by Edie Garvie)

While telling the story, the storyteller:

uses lots of nonverbal communication to help the learners understand what is happening. By using facial expressions and body gestures, the storyteller can mime the actions of the monkeys and the hatmaker (such as shaking their fists and throwing their hats to the ground).

allows some silent moments for thinking time, so that learners and listeners can process what they are hearing.

clearly mimes the new vocabulary items. For example, wheelbarrow is likely to be a new item of vocabulary in English, but if its use is mimed well, the meaning will be understood by the listeners.

emphasizes the language patterns that will later help students with their predictions. For example, the storyteller can emphasize these two sentences.

o The hatmaker shook his fists at the monkeys.

o The monkeys shook their fists at the hatmaker. Then, students will be ready to predict what the monkeys will do next when the storyteller says the following sentence.

o The hatmaker took off his hat and threw it on the ground. clearly shows the beginning, middle and ending of the story by using meaningful intonation,

stress and pitch, as well as emphasizing the signposts of the story.

loads the story at different times, as Garvie (1991) suggests, with different vocabulary or structures to introduce or consolidate language. For example, when the hatmaker looks for his hats, this scene can be loaded with lots of prepositions, which may have been introduced in an earlier language lesson. Demonstrating the use of those words (by miming looking in the wheelbarrow, under the wheelbarrow, in front of the wheelbarrow, and so on) will help students practice and recycle language in a meaningful context.

Listening to the storyWhen listening to a story, young learners are very busy, as they will be doing at least the following (and perhaps other things as well). Look at Figure 8.1 below.

Figure 8.1 Processes involved in listening to a story for a young language learner.

So, if all of these thinking processes are going on simultaneously in our young learners' minds, we have to remember to tell stories slowly, carefully and clearly in order to give students time to think through what they are hearing and seeing, to organize and process it in their minds, and then finally, to make sense of it all.

Lesson 8 Chapter 3

How Can We Support Language Learning Through the Use of Pictures and Picture Books? One of the best and easiest ways of supporting the comprehension of stories is by using pictures. Pictures can illustrate any new language or remind children of previously taught language. Pictures can also be used as props or cues for a storytelling session.

If we can see the value of both telling stories aloud and combining this with showing pictures, then we can recognize the benefits provided by using quality pictures or picture books in our classrooms. See Chapter 3 (Chicken Licken) in Supplementary Material for an example of how to use a story in the classroom with the use of pictures to help prompt the students.

A story such as Chicken Licken, which uses so much meaningful repetition and introduction of new and meaningful new vocabulary, is valuable in the young learner

ESL/EFL classroom. The learners can follow the story, join in the repeated language structures of the story, and take part in a role-play.

These types of stories, which involve the addition of new characters, are ideal for the language classroom and lend themselves so well to role-play. (See The Enormous Snowball in Chapter 2 of the lesson Teaching Listening in English to Young Learners for another example.)

Using picture books in the young learner language classWe know that the joy of using real picture books in the class is that we have wonderful pictures to support the language we are introducing. If we choose our picture books carefully (keeping in mind that not all picture books are good for classroom use, as will be discussed in Chapter 5), we will use products that have beautifully created illustrations and wonderfully crafted stories to support the understanding of the target language for our learners.

Consider the following benefits of using picture books in the language classroom.

√ Good illustrations in a story provide great support. Pictures can quickly clarify things if learners are confused about particular words, phrases or structures.

√ The combination of text and illustrations can help learners understand and interpret a story

√ Picture books can introduce topics and language in a child-centred way.

√Picture books provide language in a meaningful context. Even if the context is beyond the learners' everyday reality, the language will fit the situation in the story and encourage them to expand their vocabulary.

√ Picture book stories can provide grammatical structures in an authentic way.

√Good illustrations lead to discussions about things in the pictures that are not mentioned in the story but are fascinating and fun for children to view. Such discussions can encourage children to recycle and expand their vocabulary.

√Picture books are motivating for learners because they are attractive and make them want to know what a story is about.

√ Picture books can help children develop their imagination and creative powers and provide models for their own writing.

√ Picture books in the classroom can often bridge the gap between family time and school time.

√ Sharing picture books is an enjoyable social experience.

√ Picture books provide children with the opportunity to browse through books at their own pace, look carefully at details, and link the visual pictures with the language.

√ Stories told through pictures very often provide children with an access to literature that they might not otherwise get in their native or target languages.

√ Picture books can offer examples of a country's culture and thus can combine language learning with cultural awareness for our young learners.

√ Picture books can help children expand their own world and allow them to visit other worlds.

√Picture books are literature. It is important to introduce young learners to literature as early as we can and in as meaningful a way as possible, so that we can help them develop a love of literature in general.

Lesson 8 Chapter 4

How Can We Use Stories in the Young Learner Class?In the previous chapter, we looked at how picture books can benefit our young learners. In this chapter, we will look at what we can do in the classroom to encourage learning through stories. Consider the following approaches:

Focus on vocabulary or structures.Use a story to help you introduce new vocabulary or structures, consolidate language you have taught in class, and/or review language that you have looked at previously.

Choose stories that have a link to the topic you are working on in class. This allows the language to be recycled and used in a different, though understandable, context for the learners.

Give your students tips for telling stories through role-plays.As mentioned in Chapter 3, a story like Chicken Licken can be retold with students taking the roles of the characters. We will look further at the use of role-play in the lesson, Using Presentations, Puppets, Videos, Role-play and Drama in TEYL.

Develop ideas for shared activities that can go with a story.For example, after reading The Hatmaker and the Monkeys, students might design their own hats.

Introduce new structures in context, thus making the meaning clearer for the learner. For example, in the story The Enormous Snowball (from the lesson, Teaching Listening in English to Young Learners) the use of the word but is clearly outlined through the pattern: 'They pushed … and they pushed … and they pushed, but they couldn't push the enormous snowball.'

Have students make predictions about the story.Use the front cover, pictures within the book, or key words from the story to encourage learners to anticipate what the story may be about. This has the advantage of encouraging the introduction or review of some vocabulary, and also of whetting the students' appetite for hearing the actual story.

Talk about and identify special characters that students will find in the story and describe them. (Note: This is done before reading the story.)This preparation allows students to then look out for these characters when they listen to or read the story. For example, before reading Chicken Licken, students might predict the characteristics of the fox, Foxy Loxy.

Encourage students to try and tell the story from a different perspective.(Note: This is done after reading the story several times to help ensure that students have a clear understanding of what has happened.) Students could try to take the perspective of another character in the story or of the narrator. For example, they could tell the story of The Hatmaker and the Monkeys from the perspective of one of the monkeys.

Use books as models for the class to make another book similar to the one they've read. For example, use the story The Very Hungry Caterpillar (introduced in the lesson Teaching Language to Young Learners) as the model. In this story, a caterpillar eats a different type of food

on each day of the week. Ask the children to write their own story about the caterpillar by deciding what it eats.

Encourage children to talk about all aspects of the book they've read, including layout, colors, pictures, and text. With your help, they can think about how to create such a book themselves and then actually make one.

Delegate individual tasks to different students or groups of students, such as composing the title page, or drawing or coloring the pictures. Then, they can take responsibility for creating their own story with illustrations. On the inside front cover of their book, have them list the role each played on the publishing team. This is a great way to introduce learners to the process that is involved in making books. They can share their stories with others and their books can become part of the class library.

Lesson 8 Chapter 5

How Can We Choose Good Stories and Picture Books for Our Learners?It is important that we do not assume that all stories or picture books are good to use in the young learner ESL/EFL class, as they certainly are not. Assess each book for suitability in the class based on the following checklist. If the answer to most of the questions about each book is Yes, then that book will likely be suitable for class use.

Choosing stories and picture books for our learners Yes √ No X

1. Is the level suitable for these learners, both linguistically and cognitively?

2. Is the topic suitable for this group of learners based on their age, cognitive level and linguistic level?

3. Are there meaningful and purposeful activities to accompany this story?

4. Does this story create a good model for children to follow?

5. Does this story use plenty of good storytelling techniques and signposts for the listener or reader?

6. Will this story be a good model for children to copy so that they can create a similar one?

7. Do the illustrations clearly support the language?

8. Is the text clear to read and clearly set out on the page?

9. Are the pages uncluttered and clear to see?

10. Is it an attractive book?

11. Does the story flow easily?

12. Can the story be simplified to make the language more appropriate for students of different levels?

We must make sure we make full use of all stories we have for the classroom and extend them in a variety of ways to recycle and revise the language and story for our learners. After all, stories are meant to be heard, or read, again and again. We must also remember that stories are central to everyday life and so we must teach our learners how to tell stories in the target language.

Finally, we must remember that by using good stories in our language classroom, we are encouraging our learners to learn in a supportive and rich environment.

SummaryUsing stories and picture books in the ESL/EFL class can be a wonderful way to introduce, practice and consolidate target language for our young learners in a meaningful, purposeful, fun and enjoyable way. Stories are a wonderful way to scaffold our young learners' learning of English while encouraging them to listen to, tell, read and write stories in the target language.

Next Steps




Glossary picture books are books for the very young. They are usually to be read with a caretaker or teacher and mainly include full-page pictures with little text. The readers of picture books 'read' everything on the page, particularly the pictures, and then link what they see in the pictures with the language they are hearing and seeing.signposts are the phrases and words that link a story together and help the listener or reader recognize what the story is going to do next. These include such words and phrases as Once upon a time … then … and so … but … happily ever after.story markers have the same meaning as signposts above.thinking time is the time needed for learners to process their thinking, which may involve listening to something, making sense of it, applying it to the story and making sense of it within the context of the story – all in the target language! It is important to give learners time to think and process all the things they are hearing, seeing, reading and thinking about.to load a story involves adding language that you want your learners to practice hearing or reading in context. For example: The hatmaker looked for his hats. He looked in the wheelbarrow. He looked under the wheelbarrow. He looked next to the wheelbarrow. He looked behind the wheelbarrow. Here we would be loading the story with prepositions that were recently taught to the class.props are any realia you might use for a story. For example, for The Hatmaker and the Monkeys, some props could be hats and a wheelbarrow. For Goldilocks and the Three Bears, some props could be three bowls and some porridge.


Annie Hughes talking about using using songs, rhymes, chants and poems in the language classroom.(videoscript)"In this lesson, we shall look at the wonderful resource of songs, rhymes, chants and poems for our young learner language class. Most people use songs and chants in their teaching but may not be fully aware of why they should use them. In this lesson, we shall look at why you should use songs, rhymes, chants and poems with young language learners, how they can be used and how to choose the most suitable ones for your classes. We will also take a look at a variety of activities linked to songs, rhymes, chants and poems."

Why Use Songs and Rhymes with Young Learners?Songs and rhymes are a rich resource for language activities in the language learning classroom because they are a memorable and enjoyable way of using, recycling and remembering new language that has been taught. They can actually be used very successfully with all language learners, but especially with young learners.

In this chapter, we are going to consider how songs and rhymes can be used to introduce, consolidate and revise language for our young learners within meaningful, purposeful and fun language activities. First, let us look at why we should use music, songs, rhymes and poems in our young learner language classes.

They are well-known to our learners.Most young learners know lots of songs and rhymes in their native language, and so they are very comfortable with the idea of singing and chanting in the target language.

They provide a great way to 'say it out loud'.To gain confidence, our young language learners need to say parts of the new language out loud many times. When in pairs or groups, children can enjoy experimenting with the language without feeling that the language they produce has to be absolutely perfect. Songs and rhymes are a wonderful way to say it out loud.

They serve as a memory aid.Many songs or rhymes can be remembered for a long time by learners. They are a powerful memory aid and are especially helpful in the language classroom when learners have a clear understanding of the lyrics. We can use songs to remind learners, very quickly, of vocabulary.

They introduce 'one whole thing'.Learning a language is a long process for learners and it motivates them to feel they have learned one whole thing and can take this song or chant outside the classroom and share it with their parents and friends. Being able to say or sing one complete chant or song helps them feel successful.

They introduce the rhythm and stress of English.This is particularly important if the native language of the learners has a very different rhythm or stress pattern compared to English. Songs and rhymes give teachers a great opportunity to really emphasize rhythm and stress. Learners can use this as a model for their own production of English.

They offer pronunciation and intonation practice.Songs and rhymes are a good vehicle for practicing pronunciation. If the learners have a particular sound that is difficult for them, teachers can introduce a song or rhyme that allows them to practice it.

They encourage physical involvement.Young learners learn best when they are physically involved in what they are learning about. When our learners can be physically involved in the new language, that link with the physical movement helps their understanding.

They allow use of all four skills.In the activities listed later in this chapter, you will see that activities linked to songs and rhymes can cover all four language skills: listening, speaking, reading and writing.

They can be used anywhere in the lesson, unit, term or year. Songs and rhymes can be used to start, finish, consolidate or review any lesson we teach. They are extremely flexible.

They involve lots of enjoyable repetition.One of the most important ways to succeed in learning a language is by having the opportunity for meaningful and purposeful repetition of the language. Songs and rhymes offer the learners the opportunity to repeat words or phrases many times.

They change the pace of the lesson.Sometimes a song or rhyme can be used to change the mood or pace of the classroom. As songs and rhymes are never very long, this can be done in just a few minutes. Some songs are settlers and help calm learners down, while others are stirrers that excite them.

They are fun to use.If the learners are having fun in a lesson they will not realize that they are listening to, saying aloud and understanding a great deal of language. Because they are relaxed, more language learning takes place.

They can be enjoyable for teachers.It is important to remember that if an activity is fun for the teacher, it will be fun for young learners, too! Likewise, if the teacher does not like the song or rhyme, the learners will often sense this.

Lesson 9 Chapter 2

How to Choose Songs, Rhymes, Chants and Poems for the Young Learner ClassIt is important to choose songs and rhymes carefully for the English class as not all songs and rhymes are suitable for young language learners. As a guide, the more you can say Yes to the following questions about a song, rhyme, chant or poem you are thinking of using, the more useful and successful it will likely be.

Choosing songs, rhymes, chants and poems for our learners Yes √ No X

1. Is the song or chant suitable for the age group of learners you want to use it with?

2. Is it suitable for the language level of these learners?

3. Is it suitable for the cognitive level of these learners?

4. Is the amount of new language in the song suitable for the age and ability of these learners?

5. Does it clearly introduce, revise or consolidate the language you wish to focus on?

6. Will the meaning of the song, rhyme, chant or poem be clear if shown or demonstrated with visuals, realia or gestures?

7. Is there an easy melody line?

8. Do you have a clear recording of the song or chant?

9. Do you like the song or chant?

Ensuring understanding In all the activities and songs suggested in this lesson, the most important thing to emphasize is that the language must be understood by the students so that they are able to connect with the songs, rhymes, chants and poems in a meaningful way.

There are many ways to help ensure understanding. We can use pictures, flashcards, realia, gestures or mime to show the learners what the song is about and what individual words in the song mean. As the teacher, you can introduce some language before the song is introduced or ask the learners to try and guess the meaning of new words in context after they have heard the song.

Introducing songs and chants to studentsIt is important that you take part in the activity, too. Sing the song or recite the rhyme, chant or poem to the students (or else use a very good video recording of someone else doing this). It is important for the learners to have a good visual model because they will be looking at that person's lips to see what is being said or sung and how the words are being formed. If you are going to be the model, rehearse the song or chant before class and consider how you will introduce it to your students.

When using songs, rhymes, chants and poems, remember the following points and suggestions.

Introduce the song, chant, rhyme or poem verse by verse rather than line by line. Teaching line by line ruins the rhythm and the flow and stops the learners from enjoying what they are hearing in English. Songs, rhymes, chants and poems are meant to be heard (or read) verse by verse.

Children should not be made to learn songs, rhymes, chants or poems by heart. Instead, by listening to them and then singing or saying them aloud several times, they will come to know them by using them.

Build a class songbook that you can refer to regularly during the year. Children like to perform songs, rhymes, chants and poems over and over again in a meaningful and purposeful way. If your learners write a song or chant, put that in the class book, too.

If possible, get a recording of the class singing the songs, and saying the rhymes, chants and poems so that the children can listen to them in class or at home. Playing songs and chants again and again enables the learners to acquire the target language while also building their confidence.

Try to use songs, rhymes, chants or poems regularly in your English class. Revisit songs and chants again and again. It gives your students a sense of achievement to successfully perform familiar songs or rhymes.

Lesson 9 Chapter 3

Activities Linked to Songs, Rhymes, Chants and Poems Songs, rhymes, chants and poems lend themselves to many language activities. Ten types of approaches that you can use with young language learners are noted below. Samples of songs and chants and accompanying activities are included in the Supplementary Materialat the end of this lesson. The songs and chants introduced in this chapter are well-known and recordings of these are widely available.

3.1 Join in and sing or sayThe song, rhyme, chant or poem is introduced to the learners and they are encouraged to join in and sing or say it. This approach allows students to improve their pronunciation, develop their language memory, enlarge their vocabulary and feel confident about using English.

See Chapter 3 in Supplementary Material at the end of this lesson for The More We Get Together.

3.2 Join in and sing or say two things at the same timeLearners, in two groups, sing two or more short songs or rhymes at the same time. This focuses their listening so that they can take part in natural dialogues later. The teacher needs to know exactly when each group should start singing (or saying) their verse or part and guide them accordingly.

See Chapter 3 in Supplementary Material for Hickory Dickory Dock. 3.3 Do the actions

This is a popular way to introduce new language, revise old language or consolidate previously introduced language. While singing, the learners link the language to something they can do or something they can point to.

See Chapter 3 in Supplementary Material for Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes. 3.4 Fill in the missing words

Learners are given a copy of the lyrics with some gaps and are asked to listen to the song, rhyme, chant or poem and fill in the missing words. This is sometimes called a cloze activity. This type of activity is for confident English readers and writers. The missing words should belong to the same lexical set and have been introduced in previous lessons.

3.5 Sing or talk about the topicUsing a song or rhyme in class is a great way to motivate young learners. It can be the theme tune for the topic that is being studied, or can be presented at the end of the topic to round it off.

See Chapter 3 in Supplementary Material for Rain, Rain, Go Away. 3.6 Write songs or rhymes

Teachers can use songs they like and adapt them to fit the language level of the learners they are working with. Learners themselves can also adapt songs or add extra parts to them.

A verse from a song or rhyme provides a good model to encourage learners to write songs of their own. Learners are introduced to a verse and then the shape and structure is discussed. Groups, or pairs, then write another verse using the song as their model. The children feel very proud of the new verses they have written. You can build up a great selection of class songs with this activity.

See Chapter 3 in Supplementary Material for an activity involving Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes.

3.7 Practice pronunciationSongs, rhymes, chants or poems can be used successfully to practice particular aspects of

pronunciation that the learners find difficult or that they need to improve. Choose those that help with particular problems students in your class may have.

See Chapter 3 in Supplementary Material for Row, Row, Row Your Boat. 3.8 Recognize stories in songs and rhymes

Often there is a story in a song that can be exploited to great effect in the classroom. See Chapter 3 in Supplementary Material for The Farmer in the Dell. 3.9 Listen for the lines

This activity is suitable for those learners who are able to read and write confidently in the target language. Lines from a song or rhyme are put on pieces of paper. In groups or pairs, learners listen to the song and put the lines in the correct order. This activity consolidates new language as learners need to listen to the song and then read the lines over and over again.

3.10 Participate in drama and role-playSome songs or rhymes lend themselves easily to role-play or dramatic interpretation of the action in the song. We can use songs to encourage learners to mime what is happening.

See Chapter 3 in Supplementary Material for Mary Had a Little Lamb.

Lesson 9 Chapter 4

Using and Creating Poems in EnglishThe use of songs and chants in the class allows students to focus on rhythm and rhyme. This leads to writing poems. The following activity allows your learners to experience success in their poetry writing and have fun, too!

Introduce the idea of a short three-line poem based on Japanese haiku poetry where syllables in each line are counted. Show students some examples first. Haiku poetry follows a pattern. Here is an example of a haiku called The Train that is linked to a topic on travel.

Rushing past me fastThe noisy, colourful trainGoing down the track

The first line has 5 syllables, the second line has 7 syllables and the third line has 5 syllables again. Write a haiku poem on the board and show students how to count the syllables for each line. Based on the topic you are studying, ask them to write a haiku. Afterwards, let volunteers read their poems aloud while the other pupils check that the syllables are right.

Using poetry in the classroomA valuable way of getting children to think about using and writing poems in English is to use rhymes as many times as you can, and to introduce the idea of rhyming. For example, if you want to say something is going to be easy you could say something like:Easy peasy, lemon squeezy.

Let students know what the phrase means and that some of it involves just playing with sounds rather than using actual words. Ask students to come up with some fun rhymes of their own based on different English topics they have looked at.

You can also use traditional poems or songs to give other examples of rhymes. Here is one well-known rhyme about a spider.

Incy wincy spider climbed up the waterspout.Down came the rain and washed the spider out.

Out came the sunshine and dried up all the rain,And the incy wincy spider climbed up the spout again!

Activity: Teach the actions that go with this rhyme as follows:Line 1: Use both hands to pretend to be a spider climbing up a waterspout.Line 2: Move fingers to make them look like raindrops falling down.Line 3: Hold arms out to show sunshine warming and drying up the rain.Line 4: Use same actions as for Line 1.

As with all songs, rhymes, chants and poems, it is important that you explain what the vocabulary means so that learners understand what they are saying or singing.Note: In the above song, incy wincy is used to refer to something very small.

Saying and writing chantsChants are a great way to reinforce the rhythm of English. They can be used to make language activities fun and challenging. Here are two ideas for using chants in the English language class.

Shopping chantHave learners sit in one big circle, if possible. (Otherwise, ask them to stand up and chant from their desks.) Choose a topic that you want the students to discuss, such as fruit and vegetables, clothes, furniture, and so on. Have them take turning chanting their lines.

SA: I went shopping and I bought a banana.SB: (repeating what SA has bought and adding one more thing) I went shopping and I bought a banana and an apple.SC: (repeating what SA and SB have said and adding a third item) I went shopping and I bought a banana, an apple and a pear.

The chant continues until someone makes a mistake or cannot remember the list. Clapping chant

Children say things in order, preferably while sitting in a circle. Clapping helps them get the rhythm of the target language. Demonstrate how to clap slowly three times, and then say one item after the third clap. (Again, provide the topic based on what has been studied in class and linked to lexical sets.)

(clap, clap, clap) SA: hat (clap, clap, clap) SB: gloves (clap, clap, clap)SC: coat

The chant continues as each child tries to remember an item of vocabulary linked to the specific topic.

Lesson 9 Chapter 5

Linking the English Classroom to the Children's Musical InterestsUse songs, rhymes, chants and poems to make the English classroom a fun and creative place. Collect and display examples of songs, rhymes, chants and poems in the classroom, including those that you and the children have written.

If you can put a permanent display in your classroom, you could have lists of rhyming English words on a poster with matching pictures. For example:

coat / goat honey / moneytrain / gamestone / phone

If you cannot have a permanent display, then create a rhyming class book. Ask the children to find matching rhyming words. Draw pictures to illustrate the words, and then put these pictures and words into the book.

You could also create rhyming picture dictionaries and posters, in which you have lots of examples of words with the same rhyming sounds with pictures to support them.

Talking about music and instrumentsLink English with the children's interest in music. After you have introduced learners to the vocabulary for musical instruments, carry out a class survey in English. Find out which of these instruments they play. Ask them to bring them to class to talk about them in English. They may be able to play something for the class, too.

You may also want to have individual lessons that are all about music and instruments. Look at such aspects of music as the following.

Buying tickets, going to a concert, finding seats, listening to the music, and talking about it afterwards. These activities can be acted out in role-plays.

Making simple musical instruments. This could involve strumming a rubber band that is wrapped around a tissue box, hitting a plastic container with a spoon, or shaking a plastic bag that is filled with coins. The fun is in deciding how to make the instruments. Then, learners could write about their instruments in a book called Our Class Instruments. Finally, there could be a concert of music made with all these instruments (perhaps accompanying a song or chant learned earlier).

Using your body to make music. Have students make music in various ways: with their voices; through clapping; and with sounds from their mouth and other parts of their bodies (such as snapping their fingers, stamping their feet, and so on). The class could have a competition to find the best musical instrument (using their body) in the class.

Having students bring in examples of music they listen to outside the classroom. Listen to the music and ask the children to describe what it sounds like and why they like it. See if there are children who like the same music.

SummaryThink about songs, rhymes, chants and poems as being central to the language classroom. They can be a way to relax our learners, and this will aid them in their learning. It is also important to remember that music is a great topic on its own. It allows students to express themselves and share their personal interests. Songs, rhymes, chants and poems allow our learners to focus on language while having fun. Songs, rhymes, chants and poems can be remembered for years and our young learners will remember and use them when they are older, too!

Next Steps





Annie Hughes talking about using games in the language classroom. (videoscript)"In this lesson, we will first discuss why games are good to use in the young learner language class and also techniques to use when preparing, setting up and playing games in the classroom. We will then introduce you to some new games that are based on listening, speaking, reading and writing and are played in pairs, groups or as whole class activities. Finally, we will briefly look at the use of board games in the language class and how young learners can make their own board games for language learning."

Why are Games Valuable for the Young Learner Language Class?Games are valuable for the young learner language class because they make the learner use the target language in an activity that is real to them. Using games in the English class is also a great way to motivate our learners to take part, because they have a real reason to be part of the game and can enjoy the real fun and excitement of playing while using highly controlled language.

As Hadley (1991: 5) states:

Language is a means by which messages are sent and received. The clearer and more appropriate the communication, the more effectively the message is passed on. We want children to be able to communicate clearly to a variety of audiences, in both oral and written language modes. We need to extend the breadth of their language use, their competence and their enjoyment in using oral and written language. We need to catch their enthusiasm, engage their curiosity and use it to develop their understanding of language, so that they will not drop their skills….But at all times we must make sure that the learning steps are small, and that the gap between knowledge and strategies is not so great that learning cannot occur.

It is this catching of enthusiasm and engaging of their curiosity referred to by Hadley that can be created by using games in language lessons to develop their understanding of English.

Keeping a language focusHowever, we must be aware that we are using games to develop language, so there must be a

language focus in any games we ask our students to play. Also, we must only expect our learners to play games that are suitable for their cognitive and age-related levels. Linguistically, we should aim to engage them in games that are at or just above their linguistic level in order to help them develop.

If we think back to earlier lessons in this course (How Do Young Learners Learn English?, Implications for Teaching English to Young Learners, and Teaching Language to Young Learners), you will remember that we talked about how children were able to learn and how important it was to help them be motivated by providing activities in the English class that would make them keen to learn and use the language because there was a clear and exciting reason to do so. Games can create this clear and exciting reason to participate.

We need to remember, also, that children bring a huge amount of knowledge linked to games to the classroom, and we can make use of that in presenting our language games. For example, they realize that there have to be rules and clear outcomes to games. They also know that certain games are for playing individually, in pairs or in groups, so we should try to provide a range of games that allow for this mixture of involvement.

Games can be used to recycle language, to consolidate language introduced earlier and, sometimes, to create opportunities to introduce new language through highly meaningful activities. Remember, though, that children will be concentrating on completing and, perhaps, trying to win, a game so they will be focusing on fluency and the use of language to carry out their task. Unless a game specifically requires accuracy, students will not necessarily focus on that. Be sure to let students know your expectations before beginning a game.

What is a game in the EYL class? A game is play that is organized around rules and involves a clear outcome. A game in the English class must also be linked to an aspect of language.

Think about the need for students to be aware of the rules for the games you wish them to play and to follow these rules (as their excitement of playing and winning the game may require them to be reminded). When talking about a game and introducing students to the rules, you will need to help them learn the necessary language. This is likely to include the following words and phrases:

Follow the rules / You're breaking the rules / That's not allowed;Take turns / It's (my / your / his / her / their) turn / Whose turn is it? Wait for your turn;Play in pairs / groups / on your own;Ready? Go / Stop; Start / Finish / Time's up! How many points do you have? Congratulations! / Try again! / Good try! / Good job! / Be a good sport! / Shake hands!

If we don't teach our young learners this kind of language it will make playing games in English difficult to carry out and talk about and not as valuable as it should be. By playing as a class, you can provide your students with a lot of valuable language input that they will hear, understand and soon use themselves.

Adapting language games to suit our needsGames can easily be adapted and pitched at the specific level of language learners you are teaching through activities that involve either the whole class or smaller groups within the class. Some language games can be played quickly and simply, such as Guess the word (introduced in Chapter 5 of this lesson), which allows teachers to recycle language and needs no materials or tools. Meanwhile, some board games may involve complex rules, a lot of

materials (such as a board, dice, counters, cards) and a lot of time and language to prepare and play. Other games provide varying amounts of involvement.

Lesson 10 Chapter 2

How to Prepare for Games in Your Language ClassIf you are going to play games in your classroom, it is useful to gather a range of items that you can quickly and easily access in some sort of Games Box. If you don't have these items readily available, then you will be less inclined to spend a short (though valuable) time allowing your learners to play games with language.

Consider putting together the following items in your Games Box.

Items Explanation

Dice Have a large number of the smaller dice for games that have students working in pairs and groups. Also, consider making a larger die out of a small cardboard box as this will be easier (and more exciting) to use in class activities.

Counters Have small squares of colored cardboard (or buttons or plastic disks) that you can use for playing games.

Cards Have sets with colors, numbers, and letters of the alphabet. (If possible, laminate these so they can be used again and again.)

Picture cards Have large pictures representing such categories as animals, sports and hobbies, clothing, jobs, rooms in the house, places in school, places in town, weather, seasons, times, and other topics. Make smaller versions of these cards for use in a variety of games, such as bingo. (If possible, laminate these smaller sets of cards.)

Blank cards Have these available so students can make their own flashcards.

Magnets Have colorful magnets that can hold up cards or be used as markers on the board.

Stop watch (or egg timer)

Have a device to time activities or set limits.

Basic template for a board game

Have one of these to photocopy so that children can quickly make their own games based on what they've been studying. (See Chapter 5 of this lesson.)

Bingo game templates Have cards with 4, 6, 8, or 12 boxes marked on them (designed so they hold the sets of smaller cards noted above). Then you can always, quickly and easily, play a bingo game based on the vocabulary your learners are learning at the moment.

Word search puzzle template

Have a grid available to photocopy so students can design their own puzzle to share with the class. (See Chapter 5 of this lesson.)

A few extras to consider

Think about your favorite activities and what might be needed: beanbags, a small ball, a few ribbons of different colors (to identify

different teams), and so on!

Ways to play games in different classroom configurationsOrganizing students into different configurations to play games requires some advance thinking on the part of the teacher. Sometimes games will have to be adapted because of space limitations, layout of desks or tables, and sometimes, the necessity to control the noise level out of consideration for neighboring classes.

Plan in advance how each game will be played and what type of instructions you will need to provide to your students to help them understand what is required of them. Students can learn a lot of valuable language by just listening and responding to your clear instructions. As well, once students understand how the class needs to be set up, they will be better able to follow those instructions when a similar game is played another day.

Consider the following classroom arrangements and think about which activities are best suited to each type.

a) The whole class sitting in rows can be divided into two teams for whole class activities by showing them where one side of the class starts and finishes for each team. This type of activity is likely to have students focus their attention at an activity at the front of the class (possibly led by the teacher or other team members).

b) Students can also form teams by rows, especially in relay-type games where written or spoken messages are passed from one player to the next or where they need to take turns going forward to do something at the board.

c) Students in rows can easily do pair work by working with those next to them, or in front of or behind them. If you want students to do an activity where they should not see what the other is looking at, reading or writing, then it is easier to have them work with the people in front of or behind them.

d) For games played in fours, alternate rows of students can turn around and work with the row behind them in groups of four. They may move their desks around, if possible, or share a table. If you have fixed desks they can turn to make sure they are in foursomes.

e) If possible, students can also push desks back to form an open space in the middle of the classroom. They can then make a circle for singing or chanting activities or for storytelling or role plays.

f) If it is possible that desks can be pushed to the side, there will be more open space for students to walk about freely and ask questions of others in the class.

Practice moving your students into formations quickly and noiselessly (by using phrases again and again, such as Get into fours) and by pointing out basic things that can help eliminate noise (like picking up chairs or tables rather than dragging them), so that pair work and group work can happen quietly and efficiently.

Lesson 10 Chapter 3

Techniques for Successfully Using Games in the ClassroomAs noted in Chapter 1, games can play a key role in helping young learners recycle language, consolidate language and learn new language in context. A successful game in progress has students actively using the language in a meaningful way. Games can help students develop confidence and develop a good feeling as a class about playing and learning together.

In Chapter 1, we noted the need to introduce the rules of the game clearly to students and also to ensure students understand the purpose of the game and your expectations (regarding such issues as fluency versus accuracy). Here are some other ideas to keep in mind to help encourage your students' successful participation in language games.

Keep the atmosphere friendly and cooperative.Students can sometimes get caught up in the competitiveness of a game. Keep the emphasis on working together cooperatively. Adding an element of chance (such as rolling a die to determine how many points they get after answering a question correctly) can take off some of the pressure and add to the fun. If students are able to relax, they will feel more comfortable about using the language.

Set up signals to get your students' attention.If students are talking together in group work, it may be difficult to get their attention. Set up some signals such as clapping your hands or flicking the lights. When this happens, students should immediately stop talking and await instructions.

Keep the volume down.Students can be energetic and enthused when playing a game, and they can also be noisy. Try having them learn the silent cheer by having them mime enthusiastic cheering (with arms raised and hands moving from side to side) but with no sound coming out. This can be a fun way to show their enthusiasm and a sensitive way to keep from distracting students in neighboring classes.

Be prepared to stop the game or make changes.If you start playing a game with students and realize there is a problem, be prepared to stop the game. If the language level is too difficult or the instructions too confusing, then make adjustments to the game to make it more appropriate. Reflect on the activity after class and try to determine why it did not work as planned.

Encourage successful participation of all students.Try to involve all students in activities. Choose a more confident student to answer a question at the beginning of the activity (to demonstrate how it is done to the others) and then call upon a quieter student when he or she appears ready.

Return to a game again and again … with variations.Once students have learned how to play a game, bring it back another day (involving new language structures or vocabulary items they have been studying).

Timing is everything.Try to predict how long it will take to prepare for the game and play it. It can be frustrating for students if you have to stop the game before it has been completed. However, if the game carries on for too long, it can also create problems. End the game on a happy note and leave your students wanting more.

Successful learning is a suitable reward.Do not provide rewards to students for winning a game. It is enough for students and the teacher to

give the winning player or team a (silent) cheer! Also, do not offer games as a reward for good behavior in class. Help students recognize that games are an important part of the learning process.

Clean up and organize … and review and reflect.Save adequate time before the end of class to get everything in order. For example, have students help put cards in their appropriate containers or move chairs back in place. As games can be stimulating, give students time to wind down and reflect on what was learned. Have them consider ways they can improve the way they play the game (and use the language) the next time.

Lesson 10 Chapter 4

Encouraging Speaking and Listening Through GamesIt is beneficial to introduce students to a variety of games that encourage them to practice the language they have learned. Whole class activities can allow the teacher to organize and oversee activities by encouraging students to participate and also to practice the required language in a shared learning environment. However, it can also help students to become more independent by having them work on their own or in pairs with games. They can also learn to get along with others and share ideas (in English) by playing games in pairs or in groups.

Below are some games focusing on listening and speaking that involve different combinations of players.

4.1 What's in my bag? In this game the teacher has a bag with realia or flashcards linked to the topic. For example, if reviewing fruit, this could be a banana, an apple, a bunch of grapes, a pear, a melon, and an orange.

T: (asking the class) What's in my bag? Can you guess?

Have children make their guesses. Make sure they do not call out their answers but put up their hands. Ask a variety of students. Respond to them by saying, Yes, I have got a / some… Here it is. / Here they are. Or No, I haven't got a / some … Try again!

This game takes very little time to play but is a great way to recycle vocabulary. You can also play this game as What's in my hand? (by holding a card or item behind your back and encouraging them to guess what it is).

4.2 Who can see a (window) in the room? This game has children moving quickly around the room. Make sure they will be safe from tripping over chairs, tables, bags, and so on. The teacher picks an item in the room and asks the students, Who can see a window in the room? The student who is first to get to a window, touches it and says, I can. I can see a window.

Note: You can also use flashcards of items the students have studied (such as places in town), and put them around the room. Have students go to the corresponding flashcard when you say, Who can see a (post office) in the room?

4.3 Hold up a … The teacher asks students to hold up certain items. Students will excitedly try to locate items in their bags, on their desks and in the classroom.

T: Everyone hold up a pencil.

Wait for all students to respond to this request. Then start making the items a little more difficult to locate.

T: Everyone hold up a blue pencil.

When there is only one student holding up an item (something obscure, such as a purple watch), that student is the winner.

4.4 What is it? What am I? Who am I? This is a variation of the What is it? (game introduced in Chapter 5 of the lesson Teaching Speaking in English to Young Learner). The teacher makes a label for each child of whatever topic they have been studying (involving animals, food items, occupations, and so on).

These labels are placed on the students' backs (without them knowing what their individual label says). Students walk around the room and ask questions about their own label and answer questions about others' labels. Through their questioning, they try to determine what is on their label. See Chapter 4 in Supplementary Material for more details.

4.5 Listen carefully In this game, the teacher asks students to listen carefully and write down specific things they hear in a story. See Chapter 4 in Supplementary Material for more details.

4.6 Gossip This game encourages students to speak clearly, listen carefully and work quickly. In teams, students should either stand in a line or sit in their chairs in rows.

Have the first students in each group come forward. Whisper a sentence or phrase to them.

T: Two birds are in a tree.

Those students then return to the front of their lines and whisper that sentence to the students behind them (without anyone else hearing). The sentence is whispered down the row (from student to student) until the students at the end of each line come forward.

Those students tell everyone what they have heard. This is usually very funny as it is often completely different from what you initially said. Tell the class the original sentence and have them compare this with the other groups' sentences.

4.7 Sound effects This is a great game to play, although it requires a lot of preparation. Put together a tape of sound effects. These could involve such sounds as someone brushing his teeth, putting cereal and milk in a bowl, starting a car, knocking on the door, and so on. (To add to the challenge, record some difficult as well as easy sounds.)

Put students into groups. Group members listen to the sounds and guess what they might be. As a group, members then agree on each sound and someone in the group makes up a final list.

Listen to the tape again as a class and confirm the sounds. The group with the most correct guesses is the winner.

Lesson 10 Chapter 5

Encouraging Reading and Writing Through Games … and Board Games!Below are some games focusing on reading and writing that involve different combinations of players. Remember that additional games were noted in the lessons, Teaching (Reading / Writing) in English to Young Learners.

5.1 How many words from one word?Have students play in groups. Write a word on the board and have students work together to try to make as many words as they can by scrambling the letters of that word. Set a time limit. Then share the words together. Which team has the highest number of words? (Give bonus points for words that are four letters or more!)

Example: caterpillarsPossible words: cat, pill, tap, sat, lip, rat, race, ear, pear, car, are, ill, tear, a, it, leap, please, scare …

5.2 Guess the word This game helps children with more mature language skills (ages 8-12) to review vocabulary and practice their spelling. It requires no materials or advance preparation so is useful for the teacher to remember and use. See Chapter 5 in Supplementary Material for more details.

5.3 Word search puzzles These are good puzzles for students who might need to focus quietly after an energetic activity. They allow students to work independently to review spelling of key words they have studied (without the pressure of a spelling drill).

The teacher can put these puzzles together quite quickly by writing the key words horizontally on a piece of grid paper and then photocopying copies for each student. Keep in mind that the difficulty level of the key words in the puzzle must match the language skill ability of the students. See Chapter 5 in Supplementary Material for an example.

5.4 Find someone who …Put together a worksheet for students that has them asking their classmates questions and trying to be the first to find students who answer Yes to each question. See Chapter 5 in Supplementary Material for more details.

Board gamesThere are some great board games that can be used in the English class, and many of these are commercially created and sold in shops. The most important thing is to choose games that encourage students to use lots of language. It is often more appropriate to design a few of your own games that can be used in class to review and recycle the language your students have been studying.

5.5 Language Snakes and LaddersIt can be quite easy to design a format for this game and then to slot in whatever vocabulary items or languages students have studied into the boxes. (See Chapter 5 in Supplementary Material for a sample game and further details.) The game can review any lexical set (numbers, colors, items of food) or can include written questions that require responses from students (based on whatever they have been studying). The content of this game can be adapted for children of different ages and different language skills, but generally children between 8-12 years will benefit the most from Snakes and Ladders.

5.6 Child-made gamesIt is also a really good idea to encourage your more advanced language learners to work in groups to try and design games to play in class. Students can learn how to create board games that others will want to play. This activity is most appropriate for ages 8-12. See Chapter 5 in Supplementary Material for an explanation of how to organize this type of activity.

SummaryIn this lesson, we have looked at why we should use games in the young learner classroom and what we can consider in setting up various types of language games in our classroom. We have looked in detail at what listening, speaking, reading and writing games can be played in the young learner language class involving different combinations of players. Finally we have suggested a project for having groups of young learners use their creativity and their knowledge of English to create a board game for other young language learners.

Next Steps





Annie Hughes talking about the use of presentations, puppets, videos, role-play and drama in TEYL"In this lesson, we will look at how we can use presentations, puppets, videos, role-play and drama with our young English language learners. Through involvement in meaningful and purposeful activities, which are fun and memorable, we can motivate our young language learners and allow them to build their confidence, have fun with their classmates and present things to other people in English. Using these activities in the young learner English class gives our learners a key sense of audience that will aid fluency and accuracy in their language production and motivate them to speak out."

General Introduction to Using Presentations, Puppets, Videos, Role-play and Drama in TEYLAs we said in our earlier lessons, language learning is about communicating with each other in meaningful and purposeful ways. Therefore, keeping communication central is a major component of our approach to language teaching in that it will help our students learn, use and acquire more language.

Using presentations, puppets, videos, role-play and drama will also encourage our learners to focus on an audience with fluency and accuracy of language firmly in place. The more ways we can create opportunities for young language learners to communicate in English, in and beyond the classroom and school, the better and the more confident and motivated they will be when using the language.

Providing language learning opportunitiesIn this lesson, we are going to look at some ways of creating such opportunities by discussing ways of using presentations, puppets, videos, role-play and drama in the language classroom. All these approaches to language learning have key similarities in that they provide students with the opportunity to do the following:

Deliver their message to an actual audience. This means clear and prepared language is required.

Perform for others in a specified way at a designated time and place. This allows them to prepare language for different situations.

Go beyond their normal student roles and take on different personas or roles within the class, school or community.

Use a different persona through puppets, role-play and drama. For those who may be timid when using English in public, this can help them find a strong English voice in a fun way.

Experiment with the physical aspect of language, including the use of intonation, gestures, facial expressions and clarity of voice.

Work individually or in pairs, groups or as a whole class to create a production of some sort for delivery to others.

Preparing for presentationsWhen you present something rather than tell us about something there is an implication that you have prepared what you are going to say to a particular audience and have not just said it without thinking about it. This means that you have had time to create the words, phrases and sentences that you are using.

Students can successfully prepare for their presentations. Discuss strategies they can use.

Encourage them to know what they are going to say. Brainstorm ideas in class and recommend that they rehearse their presentation with a classmate.

Have some notes or pictures (if they cannot read yet) to help guide them.

Speak slowly, clearly and loud enough for everyone to hear.

You will also need to create a culture within your class that is respectful of anyone giving a presentation. With the students, set up guidelines. These may include:

Listen to the presenter.

Do not talk or move when the presentation is going on.

Think about what the presenter has said.

Ask questions afterwards if you want more information.

Show your appreciation by thanking the presenter and clapping your hands when the presentation is finished.

Initially, presentations should be just a few minutes in length. Students may be asked to present to small groups or to the whole class. As the academic year progresses, train your students to make longer presentations to the class.

In the language class, this preparation helps our students focus on using the target language to get a message across to their audience. This language will also be used by them again and again in the future. If graded and delivered thoughtfully, we can encourage our students to progress from giving informal presentations to semi-formal and formal presentations.

Delivering presentations: Informal, semi-formal and formalInformal presentationsI find it very useful to train children to give presentations in the target language so that they are prepared for talking out loud to a small or large audience. They can get experience thinking about what language to use to make their messages clear and they can also gain confidence in sharing their ideas in English.

At first, they can make short, easy and clear presentations on everyday topics, such as:

what day it is today;

what the weather is like;

what they have done in an activity.

In these early stages, provide students with lots of guidance, so they feel well-prepared and can achieve success. Initially the child may use notes or cues, in the form of pictures, but eventually you will want them to have prepared their presentation so well that they can deliver it without having notes.

Presentations can progress from one-word responses, to phrases and then to sentences. These can then develop into lengthy descriptions or monologues. While the requirements and approaches can be adjusted to suit the interest and level of individual students, everybody should have the opportunity to make a presentation at some time during each term.

The best way to start children doing presentations is to ask them to present their findings to the class based on a class activity, such as the results of a game, survey or group discussion or the review of a book or TV program. In advance of an activity, tell your students that they are going to be presenting their findings. You do not want to have too many students present their findings in any one lesson, so organize your schedule so that students take turns.

Semi-formal presentationsWhen the informal presentation training has gone well, you can start to ask your learners to take part in semi-formal presentations. These may involve presenting some work to the class, talking about an individual or group project, or presenting something the whole group has created, such as story or poem. Again, make these semi-formal presentations longer and more intensive as the academic year progresses.

Formal presentationsFinally, ask individuals, pairs or small groups of students to make formal presentations such as reading aloud a story from class activities in a school assembly, presenting the news from your class to the whole school, presenting small talks at the end-of-term concert, or presenting something they have been doing in the English class at a parents' evening or concert.

The same guidelines noted earlier apply to all of these presentation types. Be sure to give your students encouraging feedback. As they do more presentations, they will become increasingly proud of what they can effectively communicate in English.

Remember that all students in your classroom need the opportunity to give presentations, as this experience will give the language learners the practice and the confidence they need to use the language in an important and public way.

Lesson 11 Chapter 2

Using Puppets in Language TeachingThe use of puppets in the class, as has been mentioned in earlier lessons, can be a great way to encourage your young learners to speak out loud. It can also be a great way of encouraging those students who may not be very confident to hide behind a puppet and speak English. I have seen in many classes, a child who is often very quiet suddenly become very productive and use a lot of English when he or she is given the chance to talk through a puppet, and this is very exciting to see!

Additionally, using puppets gives students the opportunity to use language they may not be able to use meaningfully with their classmates in class situations, by asking and answering questions such as What's your name?, How old are you? and Where do you live?

Making puppetsPuppets do not need to be great works of art. Puppets, as shown in an earlier lesson, can simply be the tip of a finger, the end of a pencil or a small piece of card on the end of a lolly stick. See Chapter 2 (Making puppets) in Supplementary Material at the end of this lesson for ideas about how to make puppets.

Puppets offer a great opportunity for students to practice dialogues. Students can use puppets to become the characters from well-known stories. They can tell a story in groups and all take different roles. Students can use all their skills (listening, speaking, reading and writing) to create a successful puppet show for the class.

Before students try this sort of activity, help them remember the language they will need for their story and give them guidelines about how to organize the writing of their scripts.

Lesson 11 Chapter 3

Ways of Using Videos and DVDs in English with our Young LearnersChildren are used to seeing and using, for pleasure and learning, a variety of hardware such as televisions, hand-held games consoles, computers, mobile phones, and so on. We can use these in our language classes to provide a wider resource bank and extra motivation to encourage our learners to take part in activities that will improve and develop their target language use. In this chapter, we will look at the use of videos and DVDs in the classroom.

There are many valuable ways videos can be used in the young learner class. We will look at three approaches: watching videos, making videos and creating real-life dictionaries with videos.

Watching videos (Approach 1)Seeing and hearing people using the target language in a range of real-life situations is a great way to support, extend and enrich the language our young learners can experience, and using video recordings in the classroom is a great way to do this. This is because our students are able to see the whole person on the screen. They cannot only hear that person using the target language (complete with intonation and expression), but they can also observe that person's body language and facial expressions.

Commercially-produced videos fall into many genres such as sport, drama, cartoons, films, documentaries, wildlife programs, and music concerts, to name but a few, and they can all be used in a variety of ways in the language classroom. We will look at various approaches later in this chapter.

When preparing videos in the classroom, there are a few things to keep in mind.

Set up the video before showing it in class.Make sure that all students can see the screen and hear the sound otherwise the activity will not be successful. Have the video ready to play at the correct place in the lesson rather than wasting time setting it up during the lesson. Be ready to turn it off at the right place, too.

Videos should not be used for long periods of time.Each clip or extract should be no more than 5 or 10 minutes. If longer clips are used, it will be difficult for learners to remember what they were looking for during the viewing of the extract.

Have a clear task for the learners as they watch.It is important that the learners always have a task as they watch the video and this way you can keep them focused. Also, the recording should be linked to the topic and/or language they are presently studying in class.

Using videos with your studentsTry to ensure students get the full benefit of watching videos in class. Consider these tips for using videos (before, during and after the viewing of the extract).

Before using the video

Set the scene and prepare students for what they are going to watch.

Give them a simple task so that they can watch for this information with a focus. (How many boys can you see in this clip? What is the man putting on the table?)

While watching the video

Make sure all students are in the best position to benefit from the viewing.

Remind them to be still and silent so everyone can see and hear the clip.

Encourage them to write notes as they watch to help remember things you have asked them to watch for (if they are at the age when they can take notes).

Give them different tasks each time they watch to keep them focused and interested.

After watching the video

Discuss what they discovered during their tasks.Then ask questions about the clip, such as:

Did you like that clip? Was it funny?

What did you see in that video?What happened in the clip?What did the girl do … and why?

Making videos (Approach 2)It is now getting very easy for children to make their own videos. It is really motivating for students to record a presentation of a story they all know well or a puppet show they have created, or use the video to record a documentary involving a topic they are studying in class, such as A day in the life of … (a shopkeeper / teacher / bus-driver).

Making such a recording can be another way for students to demonstrate what they have learned in class (beyond speaking, writing or drawing). For example, if they have been studying weather in class, they could observe a recorded weather forecast and then work together in groups to present their own weather forecast (perhaps providing weather reports from different cities or around the world).

Putting together a video productionStudents could also take on a more complex project by creating a documentary about their English class or school and send it to a group of children at another school. For such a project, students will have to get involved in all aspects of the planning, such as the scripting, role taking (producer, editor, presenter, interviewer and interviewee) and then take on the recording and editing of the recording, as well as the showing of it in class.

Putting together such a production creates a real reason for teaching and using the target language that will allow students to carry out their tasks successfully in English. Specific language for this project could include vocabulary such as action / cut / focus / zoom in and out / close-up / edit / title / opening / narration / closing, and so on. This type of project provides a good opportunity for children to learn how to work together as a team and to take collective pride in the final result.

Creating 'real-life dictionaries' with videos (Approach 3)Videos can also be used as 'real-life dictionaries' and can be made by either the teacher or students. For example, you could make a video of the furniture in a real house and then share this with your students when you introduce the new topic Furniture. You or your students could put together similar videos for topics involving transportation, pets, places in our town, food, shops, clothes, and so on.

You can also record things that are quite ordinary but highly important for the language classroom, such as a table set ready for a meal with knives, forks, spoons, dishes, a tablecloth, water, salt and pepper, and plates of different food.

Video clip activities for the language classroomThere are many activities you can use in your language classroom to make the most use of videos and to ensure they are interesting and educational for your students. Here are some ideas.

3.1 What did they say? Play the video clip several times, each time asking students to look for or listen for something different. Then, play the clip again and ask students to voice over what is being said at a specific time in the video by turning the sound down and asking them to be the voice(s).

3.2 Freeze Frame After students have seen the clip a few times (with various focus tasks), play the video again and then suddenly pause or freeze frame it. Ask students what happens next. This is usually a rather popular activity!

3.3 When do you hear the word? Play the video clip, as above, and this time have students put up their hands when they hear a particular English word or phrase that you have asked them to listen for, such as because / why / Have you got the time?/ Can you tell me if …?. They should put their hand up every time they hear that word or phrase.

3.4 How many times? Have students count the number of times they hear a particular word or phrase in a short clip of no longer than five minutes. (Make sure you have checked the number of times in advance of the lesson so that you know the answer!) After viewing the video, students say how many times they heard the designated word or phrase. Praise those who counted correctly as they were concentrating very hard and encourage the others to have better luck listening next time!

3.5 Act it out Have students watch the video clip several times and then have them act out the scene in groups. They should try to use the same language they have heard in the video but as long as it is similar, that is fine. Make sure you go around to all groups and support and praise their work. Perhaps, at the end, ask one or two groups to present their scene for the class. You could also ask the class to change the scene slightly and then present these versions to their classmates.

Following any activity, make sure you always talk to the learners about what they have seen and what language was in each clip to consolidate and extend the language they have been studying.

Lesson 11 Chapter 4

Using Role-play in the English Class Role-play allows children to become someone else for a few minutes by knowingly taking on the role or the persona of another person. This is fun and is often a good way for children to focus on things other people might say in English.

Role-play links with the use of puppets and videos, so remember the tips given in those chapters when using role-play in your classroom.

If you want your young learners to successfully carry out role-play, you need to be very clear with them regarding:

who they will be playing (e.g., a customer and a waiter in a restaurant);

what they will be saying (e.g., the language involved in ordering some food from the menu);

who else is involved in the conversation (e.g., other students playing the role of family members);

why they will be holding this conversation (e.g., to practice using the language involved in decision making and ordering food in English);

what the conversation will be about (e.g., the customer and the waiter discussing the food order);

what the outcome of the conversation will be (e.g., to practice speaking out with a focus on the target language involved in ordering food and confirming choices).

There are several ways that you can set up a role-play.

Assign roles from a familiar story.Have students take on the roles of characters they know very well from stories they have read and discussed in English. You can use The Hatmaker and the Monkey and Chicken Licken from the lesson Using Stories When Teaching English to Young Learners, as well as The Enormous Snowball from Teaching Listening in English to Young Learners.

Assign roles from everyday life.Have students take the role of people in a particular situation, depending on their age and understanding of their role in the world at large, such as:

a mother asking a child what he or she would like for a meal;

a person buying a ticket from a clerk at the bus or train station;

a child seeing his or her friends and asking them to come to a party.

Assign roles of famous characters.Have students take on the roles of characters and famous personalities from television, film or sport. Allow students to contribute their ideas and choose characters that are especially relevant to their age and interest. Taking a role can make a routine dialogue more interesting, entertaining and exciting for the students so motivation for this activity will be high.

Assign roles of roving reporter.Have students become roving TV reporters. In this role, they stop and ask different people the same question and pretend to hold a microphone (as though conducting a report for the news). Students can take on the role of news reporters, sports reporters, film reporters or music reporters and ask questions about the latest world event in the news, the latest result for a local sports team, or opinions about a new film or a music concert.

Assign role of weather forecaster. Have students take on the role of a weather forecaster. This role-play involves one person giving a monologue about the weather. This requires careful preparation and is often very interesting to watch, especially if the weather forecast is a bit shocking! It may be linked to an activity about map-making, too.

Providing structure in role-playsTo give each role-play a clear structure you may want to support your students by giving them (or helping them prepare) cue cards that include a cue for each person in a particular sequence (to prompt them in what to say) as well as the scenario of the situation.

The amount of guidance you want to provide on the cards will depend on the level of your students and their familiarity with doing role-plays. You might want to give them the actual script, if this is very new to them, and then quickly move them onto using cue cards. This way, they will create the dialogue themselves but with your scaffolding in place to support them. For an example of a dialogue using cue cards, see Chapter 4 (Providing structure) in Supplementary Material.

With all of these role-plays it is important that you brainstorm ideas with your students in advance of the role-plays to encourage them to think about the language and vocabulary they will need for each so that there is clearer focus on particular language use for the learners for each particular situation.

Lesson 11 Chapter 5

Using Drama in the Young Learner ClassroomDrama is different from role-play, in this context, as it is when lines are learnt and costumes and props are used to make a more formal type of presentation for an audience of students from other classes or for teachers and parents.

Well-known stories are great favorites to use. Stories in songs can also be a good starting point.

Setting up plansInvolve your students in planning the type of production to present. A drama at the end of a school year or term can be linked to:

the season that the drama is presented (such as winter or spring);

a global event that is taking place (such as the World Cup or the Olympics);

important people or events that are connected with their school or country.

The teacher, in the role of producer, will need to provide guidance and supervision to ensure that everything is done successfully and on time. With advance planning, you can ensure that preparation for the production does not interfere with the regular delivery of your English lessons.

Remember that students are likely to need a whole term to practice the drama, learn the lines, make or collect the props and get the costumes ready. All these tasks need to be well-organized and assigned to individuals. See Chapter 5 (Assigning jobs) in Supplementary Material for a list of possible jobs you can assign to your students.

Getting ready for the productionAll students in the class need to know exactly what the language in the drama is about and what it means. Additionally, those who will be the main actors in the play need to:

know their lines very well and know when to say them, which will require a lot of practise;

use loud, clear voices that can be heard at the back of the hall or theatre;

be confident enough to carry out their lines on the night of the performance.

Lines that are learned by rote (involving memorization without understanding) are always rather 'dead' lines and need to be avoided at all costs, especially as there is the likelihood that students will not know what they are saying. Instead, work with all the students to put together a play that is meaningful, interesting and engaging, and that involves them in using real English in planning and preparing the drama and in performing it for their friends, head of school, teachers and visitors.

Give all the students some sort of job in the production. Make sure that they all are mentioned in the program and brought on stage at the beginning or end of the performance to join in an opening or closing song and to take a final bow.

Preparation … and patience!Recognize that performing a drama involves a lot of preparation and a lot of patience. You will likely need the help of many other adults to assist with such things as costumes and lighting, and students may get tired because of the extra work required of them.

However, things should go fairly smoothly if you remember the following:

keep preparation for the drama relaxed and laugh when things go wrong;

start practicing far in advance;

manage the production closely from the first day of preparation;

make sure your rehearsals are not too long and tiring for the children;

balance the workload well for both you and students during lessons, especially if you need to rehearse in lunchtimes and outside lesson hours.

While requiring a lot of work, the students will use their English skills in a variety of ways in putting together this formal presentation. Their involvement will help build their confidence in the target language and their participation in the drama will likely be one of their most special memories of their time in English class.

Through such a production, they will have had a chance to work together, fine-tune their English skills and demonstrate to an audience their ability to perform in English.

SummaryIn this lesson, we have looked at the benefits and usefulness of using presentations, puppets, videos, role-play and drama in TEYL to encourage confidence, motivation and pride in using English. The skills used in these activities will be extremely useful for the long-term learning and communication in general but particularly in English, and may foster a lifelong love of the target language.

Next StepsAfter you have finished this lesson, test your knowledge by taking a short, multiple-choice quiz. To access the quiz, click quizzes at the top or bottom of any page in this classroom. Select the quiz that corresponds to the lesson you have just completed. Then click submit. Good luck!



Glossary audience involves the listeners or viewers who are listening to what is being presented. Students will need to keep their audience in mind when performing, so this will help them recognize that they are actually communicating a message.presentation is when children stand up and tell something to their classmates, their schoolmates or their teachers or parents in an informal, semi-formal or formal way in English.genres involve different types of literature, songs and films (that may focus on science fiction, sport, drama, cartoons, documentaries, wildlife programs, music concerts, and so on). clip (or extract) is a very short segment from a video that students will view in the language classroom for a specific purpose.task is an activity in the English class that has clear outcomes.freeze frame involves stopping the video so that just one frame of the recording is shown on the screen.role-play is when children carry out roles that represent other people, such as people from the community or characters from a story.cue cards are cards that indicate to students when someone should speak and what they are going to speak about in a dialogue. While it is structured, cue cards (rather than script cards) allow students to choose how they want to say something.drama, used in this context, is when children present a formal production of a story, play or role-play for an audience in English.props are items that help the audience understand the performance and the characters (such as hats, bags or chairs that the characters will use on stage).


Annie Hughes talking about evaluation, assessment and research in TEYL. (videoscript)"In this lesson, we will look at evaluation and assessment, the pitfalls and the principles, and how assessment of students is only part of the overall evaluation of teaching and learning that should happen in the young learner language class. Evaluation and assessment play a big part in the teaching of English to young learners but we need to make sure that the tools we use are suitable, supportive and child-friendly enough to be valuable. We will briefly consider the value of carrying out small-scale classroom research and look at the need to keep parents and learners informed of our classroom practices, as well as evaluation and assessment methods, so that everyone can take part in the child's learning of English. Finally, we will analyze some assessment tools and introduce a variety of approaches that can be used to assess our students in the young learner classroom."

Keeping the Principles of Evaluation and Assessment in MindIf we think back to what was discussed in earlier lessons (How Do Young Learners Learn English, Implications for Teaching English to Young Learners and Teaching Language to Young Learners), we will be aware of the implications our methodology and practice have on teaching and learning.

We can keep these principles in mind as we evaluate what actually happens in our classroom and as we assess what our students have learned. We can also carry out small-scale research so that we (as teachers) can truly evaluate what is actually going on in our classes. Throughout the evaluation process, we also need to be aware of the importance of keeping our students and their parents informed of what is happening in our classes and why.

In earlier lessons, we noted that young learners learn differently from older learners and that we should therefore teach them in a different way. In this lesson, we will consider how we also need to evaluate and assess the teaching and learning that is going on in the young learner classroom in a different way, too.

What is the difference between evaluation and assessment?As we begin this lesson, it is important for you to be clear what is globally meant by the terms evaluation and assessment, as in many languages these often mean the same thing.

In the young learner classroom, evaluation takes a broad view of learning and teaching by considering a large number of factors that affect what happens in the classroom. These can involve looking at how a teaching program is set up, what textbook is used and what approaches are followed when teaching and assessing students.

Assessment is just one area that is considered within the overall evaluation process. Assessment largely focuses on the learner and involves the different tools the teacher and students can use (such as portfolios, self-assessments, assignments, tests and observations) to measure how students perform in class, what progress they have made and what areas need further attention.

For more detailed definitions of evaluation and assessment, see Chapters 1 and 2 in Supplementary Material at the end of this lesson.

Evaluation at different levelsA wide variety of evaluation tools can help us look at overall teaching and learning in our classrooms and schools and provide us with a balanced, full and fair view of what is really happening with our learners.

Evaluation can be used at different levels and can serve a huge variety of purposes. Consider these examples of evaluation.

At national or state level

Ministry and Department of Education officials compiling results from changes in teaching policy, such as teaching English to all children through a grammar-based course, or using a national timetable to teach English to all children on Wednesday and Friday mornings, or standardized tests based on state standards.

At regional or district level

English advisors or coordinators evaluating the arrangement that all primary schools in a local region use only one coursebook to teach English.

At school level

An English teacher or a group of teachers and/or administrators monitoring a decision to use a particular type of resource, such as a computer, to supplement English teaching.

Classroom level

A teacher evaluating changes to a particular activity in a unit of work because the activity has not worked very well previously.

As noted through these examples above, evaluation can cover a wide range of aspects of teaching and learning including materials, resources and classroom practices as well as individual teaching styles. Any change to teaching requires evaluation of all aspects of the approach, including the processes and resources being used. We need to evaluate our teaching methods, the materials being used, and the language learning environment itself plus how we assess our students.

We will look more closely at how we can conduct small-scale research in our classrooms to allow for ongoing evaluation of various aspects of teaching and learning in the next chapter.

Lesson 12 Chapter 2

Carrying Out Research by Way of Evaluation, and Communicating What is Happening to Parents and Students Although the word research can sound rather daunting and we may think it must involve lots of worrying statistics, it is actually really important and easy for you as a teacher to carry out small-scale research in your classroom regularly to check that you really know what is happening rather than just assuming what is happening.

Small-scale research is something that I encourage in all trainers and teachers I work with, including those on TEYL courses and the MA in TEYL that I run at the University of York and around the world. What I find is that once those involved in TEYL have tried classroom-based small-scale research they realize how important it is for it to be carried out in the classroom on a regular basis as it really illustrates to the teacher exactly what is happening and not what they think is happening in terms of teaching or learning in their classrooms!

Your research can focus on approaches you take in your teaching as well as responses from your students to what is happening in class. Some examples are noted below.

Example 1: Your interaction with your studentsYou may want to videotape a lesson so that you can check your interaction with students in the classroom. Choose a different focus each time. You can watch for such things as:

your movements in class. Are you standing in one place or are you moving around the classroom?

your communication with students. Are you talking primarily to the well-behaved students or are you only talking to (and reprimanding) the badly behaved students?

your style of questioning. Are you asking questions and giving your students adequate thinking time or are you rushing their responses?

your explanation of activities. How clearly do you explain to students what is required prior to beginning an activity? How often do you need to repeat or clarify your instructions?

Example 2: Your methods of teaching vocabularyYou can also carry out research on the methods you use to teach. For example, you could try three different methods of teaching vocabulary.

Method 1: List new words on the board. Ask students to learn these.

Method 2: Use new words in a story context and then write them on the board. Ask students to learn these.

Method 3: Pre-teach new words before using them in a story context. Then writethem on the board. Ask students to learn these.

After each of these methods, check how many words students remember and understand at the next lesson. Evaluate which method works best for you and your students.

See Chapters 1 and 2 in Supplementary Material for a further example of research involving your students' responses to the use of flashcards.

As you can see from these examples, this type of research is small in scale and very human in size in that it deals with just you, your students and your classroom. Regular research in our classes helps us evaluate the evidence for changes or adaptations in our teaching practice and also helps us evaluate our lessons and regularly reflect on them.

It is possible to also involve our learners in the research by saying, Tomorrow we are going to film the lesson and see how many of you take part by asking or answering questions. Even indirectly, this may encourage more involvement from students. After the recorded lesson you could share some of your findings with your students. By example, you can show them how to learn how to learn.

Keeping in touch with parents As teachers, we can evaluate what is happening in our class and learn from it, but it is also extremely important to share what we have learned with our students and our students' parents. We should be communicating constantly with the parents by letting them know what their children are doing in class, how they are learning and what outcomes can be expected from the language lessons. We can also provide suggestions about how they can support and help their children to learn.

Unless parents know and understand what is happening in class, they may be rather confused and unrealistic about what their child is actually learning. Several research studies have shown that a

positive parental view about a child's language learning makes a significant difference to the success of a child in language class.

If we (as teachers) can communicate effectively with parents, we can help them feel more positive about what their child is learning. This positive attitude toward language studies will be passed along to the child.

Reaching out to parentsThere are several ways you can inform parents, depending on what your school encourages. You could send out an English Newsletter or have an English Open Evening in which you explain what approach you use to teach English in the class, what topics are going to be covered during that term, how you will evaluate the teaching and learning, what materials and resources are going to be used, what assessment will be put in place and what, realistically, they can expect their children to say or do in English over a period of time.

Reaching out to your studentsMost importantly, though, it is very important to keep your students informed about how they will be learning and using English with you in class. Before doing any activity, explain to them why they are doing it and also explain what you hope they will be able to do or say after carrying out this activity.

Given the different cognitive needs of the students, it is also important that you help them learn how to learn and find out from them (through self-assessment) how they feel about their involvement in different classroom activities. Encourage your students to be reflective and responsible learners and to be successful long-term language learners.

Through what we have covered in Chapters 1 and 2, we can see that evaluation covers a wide range of issues in the language classroom. In Chapters 3, 4 and 5, we will largely focus on the area of assessment. When thinking about teaching in a young learner classroom, remember that assessment of students is only part of the overall evaluation that should occur.

Lesson 12 Chapter 3

Evaluating How We Assess Our Young LearnersWhen evaluating how we assess our young learners, we need to confirm that we are assessing our students in the same way as we are teaching them. That means we use the same types of activities that we normally use in our everyday language lessons to carry out the assessment. If a different approach and methodology is suddenly introduced through our assessment, our learners will become confused.

For example, if we normally ask learners to try and speak out in English and encourage them to focus on fluency in classroom activities (using their 'mistakes' to help them learn), it would then be contradictory to carry out a speaking test that focused instead on accuracy and marked them down for making mistakes.

In the lesson, How Do Young Learners Learn English, we looked at research involving multiple intelligences and considered different approaches we needed to take in our teaching to reach all our students based on their different learning styles. When assessing our students, we also need to provide ways to accurately measure the language they have acquired based on their different learning styles and skills.

Planning assessment in the young learner classroomAs the teacher, we need to carefully consider how we assess our students. If our students respond poorly to a certain assessment tool (a test or an activity), it could be that their low score reflects their reaction to an unfamiliar activity or request, rather than their knowledge of the topic they have been studying. As a result, this type of assessment will be an unfair measurement of what they can or cannot do and will not be measuring what you set out to measure.

Assessment of students in a young learner classroom requires lots of preparation and then careful analysis. Consider the following key areas in assessment and evaluation.

Planning when assessment takes place: Summative and formative assessmentsAssessment can take place at different times during a school term. If it takes place at the end of a term (as with a final test or project) it will be a summative assessment. Summative assessment results cannot be used to guide changes in the current teaching program (as that program will be over), but they may be used to guide future programs.

However, teachers can also use ongoing assessment throughout the teaching time or term. This is called formative assessment. Evaluation of results from this type of assessment can show areas where changes to our teaching practice can take place to alleviate problems students may be having with learning, for whatever reason, within the program being delivered.

Considering different types of assessment: Formal assessment, informal assessment and self-assessmentSummative and formative assessments can take many forms. Formal assessment may be required and tends to involve traditional (and objective) test scores. Students will frequently be expected to demonstrate their understanding of material through paper and pencil tests.

Informal assessment can be carried out in many ways with the teacher observing the students during everyday classroom activities by watching their demonstration of language skills, as well as their participation in activities and overall attitude. Evaluation of students sometimes tends to be more subjective with informal assessment but this is often because the teacher knows the capability of the individual child.

Self-assessment allows students to make notes for themselves of what they have learned and to look for ways they can personally improve.

Evaluating the effectiveness of tests: Validity and reliabilityWhat can you do as a teacher to ensure that you are accurately assessing what your students have learned and acquired? When evaluating the effectiveness of assessment tools, we need to look at two areas: validity and reliability.

Validity means you are accurate in assessing what you intended to assess (based on content as well as skill areas) and that the tools you are using are measuring what you have intended. For example, if you want to judge your students' speaking ability in English you should involve your students in a verbal activity rather than a writing activity.

Reliability involves making sure that the type of test you are administering would give a similar outcome if students were to take the same type of test again, even with a different person administering the test. If the results are not likely to be similar, then the assessment tool would not be considered reliable. Therefore it would not be seen to be very useful in allowing you to evaluate the results and make accurate readings about your students' progress and/or your teaching practices.

Ranking students: Norm-referenced and criterion-referenced forms of assessmentThere are many different ways to try to rank students through assessment. Norm-referenced assessment can be used to rank a student by comparing that student's results with others. Criterion-referenced assessment is more personal and can be used to see how a student has done opposite a list of goals or objectives that the student has been asked to achieve.

What different ways do you have for assessing? Are you sure you are assessing exactly what you want to assess? Are your students benefiting from the results of this assessment? What can you do to make your assessment more reflective of your students' learning and also more beneficial to your students?

Lesson 12 Chapter 4

Looking at Assessment: Issues and ProblemsThe vast majority of teachers acknowledge the need to assess their students and recognize how such assessment can help their teaching. (Rea-Dickens and Rixon 1999) If you, like most teachers, are responsible for preparing, marking and keeping assessment records, it is important that you are aware of the implications of assessment in a methodologically sound way.

In Chapter 3, we looked briefly at some of the underlying principles behind how to assess students in a young learner classroom. As well as considering how to assess your students, it is also important to consider why you are assessing your students. This sounds like rather a simple thing to establish but it is actually very crucial in assessment. There are lots of reasons for assessing and only you know what you wish to assess at any one time.

Are you trying to check what your students have learned?

Are you trying to see if you have reached your students through your teaching?

Are you simply measuring how many new words they know and can spell?

Are you wanting to check if a particular set of vocabulary items has been understood and acquired by your students?

Gathering the information you need through assessment Once you are clear about what you want to assess and why, you then need to check if the assessment tool you have created, borrowed, or adapted for this task will actually gather the information that tells you what you want to know. For example, for an assessment of students involved in a lesson that has emphasized listening and speaking about the topic Around the House, perhaps you want to know what vocabulary your learners have understood and acquired. Look at the two choices below and decide which type of assessment tool is likely to provide you with the information you require.

A paper and pencil test with cloze activities (where single words are left out and need to be filled in);

A dialogue activity where students work in pairs to describe their home to their partners.

The latter tool (involving the dialogue) is likely to be far more valuable in getting the information you are seeking than the former as it will allow students to demonstrate that they can use the vocabulary they have learned. Though it takes a little more thought and time to organize and administer than a paper and pencil assessment, if planned appropriately, it will assess what you are trying to assess, and not something else.

To help ensure the assessment allows your students to demonstrate their knowledge to the best of their ability, make sure you tell them the objectives of the assessment activity. For example, let them know whether the assessment is to test accuracy or fluency, rather than expecting them to try to guess.

Considering 'paper and pencil' assessmentsPaper and pencil tests are the most common form of assessment used in schools. (Rea-Dickens and Rixon 1999) When designed and administered appropriately, these tests can provide teachers with an insight into how students are progressing in their studies and how successful the teachers have been with their teaching methods.

While paper and pencil tests may seem straightforward, they can include a variety of question types. Tests including such question types as multiple choice, true and false, matching, fill in the blanks and listen and draw (or circle) can be relatively easy to mark and score. Others with more open-ended questions provide more challenges in writing and scoring.

Whatever approach is taken, there are many issues to consider when designing these types of tests. After the initial design, look at the test carefully and consider exactly what it is measuring and any problems it might pose in accurately reflecting your students' knowledge. Perhaps it will have the sort of problems that we can see in the following example.

Look at the following written test and consider its use in a low level class that focuses on conversational English.

What are some potential questions we should ask ourselves before using this test with our students? 1. Which language skills are being tested?

The test deals with language that is used in conversation, but in this case, the language is written down which is unnatural. It would be far more natural to check the students' understanding of the language by having them respond in a dialogue.

2. When do we see these questions written down in real life?Rarely (apart from being introduced through a textbook dialogue that is meant to be spoken aloud). Other than in this sort of test, it is not natural to see this kind of language in written form.

3. Does the assignment in this test reflect a real-life task?No. If students were required to provide this type of information in English on a form, they would most likely see the following:

4. Could anything about this test be confusing for students?The name of the student has already been given alongside the date. Repeating the request for a name might confuse the student.

5. Will students have difficulty with the instructions? The language in the instructions is more difficult than the language in the questions that are the focus of the test. Possibly, it is actually the students' ability to read instructions that is being tested here.

After asking ourselves these questions, we are likely to create a decidedly different test for our students.

See Chapter 4 (Assessments) in Supplementary Material for an analysis of another paper and pencil test that has a few problems.

Creating desired results from assessmentIt is worth remembering at this stage that assessment can have what is called a washback effect on students. Pressure on students before, during and after assessment can create a negative washback that can demotivate them. They can take a negative message from the assessment such as, I can't remember lots of words in English or I can't spell words that I use in English.

However, it is also possible to create a positive washback effect, too, if the assessment allows students to successfully demonstrate the language they have acquired through a familiar activity. If they receive positive and constructive feedback from the teacher (Well done! You both know a lot about furniture and can tell each other about the furniture in your homes!), they will recognize their progress and feel motivated and encouraged to learn more.

Lesson 12 Chapter 5

Assessing in a Child-Friendly, Supportive and Formative WayWhen we think of assessment in class, we often think of the type of formal testing we find with end-

of-unit tests or assignments. While this type of summative assessment is a necessary part of most assessment programs, it is also beneficial to look at ways to assess our students' learning during the term and to offer formative feedback which can benefit our students and result in possible changes to our teaching practices or materials.

There are some useful and supportive types of formative assessment that can be carried out and can help teachers think about how their students are doing. The teacher can record information on each child in notebooks or files and have this information as the basis for semester-based reports or meetings with parents or students. Such ongoing assessment encourages teachers and students to acquire a more complete picture of the students' learning challenges and accomplishments.

a) Observation of usual behavior and work in class.The teacher carefully observes each child over the term and makes regular and detailed notes in a Child Observation notebook about how each child copes with different activities and tasks.

b) Observation of behavior during specially-created challenges or events.The teacher makes observations about each child during specific presentations (such as how she performs in the role-play of a story, how often she volunteers answers or how she presents the results of a survey). The teacher monitors the child's performance and records the results in a notebook.

c) Reports from the child about his or her progress.These involve input from the child about his or her progress through the completion of various forms and one-on-one discussions. See below for different ways of helping your students express what they have learned.

'I can' worksheets for studentsPrepare I can worksheets with your students that encourage them to answer questions as honestly as possible. Explain they are designed to help them think about how they are progressing in English and to see if there are some areas that they may need to work on a little bit more. See Chapter 5 (I can worksheets) in Supplementary Materials for more details.

Encouraging students to reflect on their work At the end of any activity, talk to the class, in their native language (if possible) or English about the activity. Discuss what it has required them to do and how they feel they have carried it out. Such an approach helps students reflect on their learning and start to think of strategies for their future learning.

Keeping examples of the child's workAnother way to assess the students' progress is to keep a language portfolio of their work at regular intervals during the year. Look back at each child's work to see if he or she is improving. If so, consider how much and in what areas. If not, try to establish what could be done to help the child further. As well as keeping a portfolio of the child's written work, try to also keep some recorded examples of the child's speaking and reading in the target language.

Meet with students and discuss the work you have kept in their file and let them comment on what they see. Let each child choose a favorite piece of writing and speaking in English. Be sure to note why the child has chosen these examples. For further reading on language portfolios, see Supplementary Material at the end of this lesson.

Self-assessment forms To help our students become more responsible for their own learning and to help them learn how to learn, we can also encourage the regular use of self-assessment. This approach is similar to the I can statements introduced earlier, but focuses even more on encouraging reflective learning among our young learners. See Chapter 5 (Self-assessment) in Supplementary Materials for more details.

Your school may have its own requirements and suggestions for ways to assess. However, whatever tools you use, try to ensure that the results of your assessment benefit your students' learning and your teaching by revealing what they know and by encouraging and motivating them to learn more.

SummaryIn this lesson, we have looked at some of the principles behind evaluation and assessment. We have considered some principles underpinning evaluation and the issues and problems attached to both evaluation and assessment. We have considered the value of carrying out small-scale classroom-based research as teachers. We have emphasized the importance of keeping parents and students informed of the teaching approaches used in class and being aware of the young learners' progress in the language classroom. Finally, we have looked at how to carry out assessment in a child-friendly, supportive and formative way. Additional ELT Advantage online professional development courses dedicated to assessment and testing can be found at the ELT Advantage home page: eltadvantage.heinle.com.

Annie Hughes talking about the ELT Advantage course, An Introduction to Teaching English to Young Learners. (videoscript)"Hello again, and congratulations on completing the ELT Advantage course An Introduction to Teaching English to Young Learners. In this course, we have discussed how we have to be very much aware that teaching English to young learners is different from teaching English to adults. We have noted how children are at different cognitive stages from adult learners. We have also considered how children need to have clear, meaningful and purposeful reasons for using and acquiring the target language, as it is often very difficult for them to imagine a scenario in which they would use this language. By teaching language through a variety of topics, and by providing meaningful and enjoyable activities, we can help our students build on a foundation of English language understanding and use so that, in the long term, they will become confident and able communicators in English."

Lesson 2 Quiz

This is a multiple-choice test. Please use your mouse to click the small round option button preceding the best answer to each question. Then, use the scroll bar on the right side of your screen to scroll down to the next question. Repeat as needed until you have answered all questions. Then, click the small gray 'Submit' button at the bottom of this page. Please click the button once only. Within 1-2 minutes, you will receive an evaluation of your answers.

Note: You can take this quiz as many times as you wish. Use the quizzes to test your knowledge of each lesson before you take your final exam. Your quiz scores do not have any impact on your eligibility for a completion letter. Your final exam score alone determines your eligibility to receive a completion letter. Because you only have one opportunity to take the final exam, we strongly recommend that you prepare for the final by doing as well as you can on these quizzes.

1. Children, in general, learn a foreign or second language when ___.

they are told the correct way to use the language each time something new is introduced to them

they are provided with only one way of saying things in language activities

language activities are simple

they are able to try things out, reflect on their learning and then try again

2. It is important to be aware of the interest levels of our learners at different ages so that we can ___.

avoid those things that excite them too much

show them what interests are right or wrong

reflect this in the topics we choose for the English class

choose the most serious and academic activities to use in the language classroom

3. When we introduce new language to our students, we should ___.

introduce it without pictures or gestures to help focus our students' attention

be sure to recycle that language again in different situations in follow-up lessons

ensure we always use the language in the same way in follow-up lessons so our students are not confused

always give them a test to make sure they have learned it

4. If our students require thinking time after we introduce something to them, this is likely to mean that ___.

we have introduced something that is too advanced for them

they are processing the information

they will become easily distracted and will forget what they have been taught

we need to try to introduce fewer pauses to encourage them to learn more

5. The main purpose of posting rules in a language class is to ___.

encourage students to be supportive of each other

let students know they need to obey the teacher

teach students new vocabulary through the language presented in the rules

have quiet and serious students

Lesson 3 Quiz



1. The best way to teach new language and grammar to our young language learners is by ___.

modeling the language ourselves or providing other models of the language

teaching the grammar rules

asking them to repeat a structure over and over again

using grammar exercises that the learners have to do

2. Using a topic and activity-based approach to teaching young learners English will allow teachers to ___.

let children play in the language class

introduce language that is controlled, yet real and meaningful

choose all their favorite topics for the lessons

avoid planning for the English class

3. Language skills practiced in activities for our young learners need to ___.

be designed from the easiest language through to the most difficult language during the course

be mainly through writing activities and comprehension exercises

be linked to grammar rules

reflect what these learners would be doing and saying with this language in their everyday lives

4. When young children begin their language learning, it can be useful to ___.

teach common phrases in chunks (such as Howdoyousay…?)

greatly limit the students' exposure to the language to a few words per lesson so they are not confused

explain the grammar of all the spoken language (including chunks) so that students clearly understand the structure of English

try not to introduce stories or songs initially as students will concentrate on meaning rather than on the words themselves

5. Allowing young learners to hear a variety of English voices in the class (through video recordings, CDs, visitors) ___ .

always confuses children as the people may speak in different ways (at different speed or with different accents)

can benefit students as it will allow them to receive a variety of input

will ensure that they speak English with native-like pronunciation

should be discouraged as these voices may introduce additional vocabulary or structures that have not been studied in class

Lesson 4 Quiz



1. In the Listen and Order activity (that has students listen to the story The Enormous Snowball and put the characters of that story in order), it is most important that young learners demonstrate their ability to ____ .

understand all the words in the story

listen for every new item of vocabulary in the story

retell the story by themselves (individually or in groups)

recognize the parts of a story (beginning, middle and ending)

2. The main purpose of Jigsaw Listening (where individual students are required to listen to a line of a poem and then share that with their group until they have compiled the whole poem) is to ___ .

have students learn a new poem (from beginning to ending)

listen for meaning (in trying to put together a complete poem in groups)

be creative (in trying to write their own version of the poem)

practice their handwriting skills in trying to write the complete poem

3. In an activity like Parts of a Song (where a song is divided into three parts and groups of students have to listen to their part of the song and then try to imagine what happens in the other two sections), the main purpose of this listening activity would be to ___ .

use their understanding of their part of the song to make predictions and complete a story

try to understand the rhythm of the song in writing new verses

accurately listen to and write down their part of the song

provide the correct storyline (in outlining the rest of the song)

4. Generally speaking, the key benefit of a game like Bingo in a language classroom (where students draw or write certain words on a game sheet and then listen for the teacher to say that word), is that it allows ___ .

the teacher to test the students on the language that has been studied

an introduction of new vocabulary

an enjoyable atmosphere where the emphasis is on having students demonstrate what they know through a fun activity

a competitive atmosphere that demonstrates which students do not understand the material

5. Providing lots of opportunities for different kinds of listening in the classroom ____.

can be beneficial for very young learners but will be less appropriate for older learners

keep students from developing their speaking skills

requires a teacher to have near perfect pronunciation

can be used to help students develop their speaking, reading and writing skills as well as their listening skills

Lesson 5 Quiz



1. When modeling dialogues for students, ____.

always have students use the dialogue first through an activity and then model the dialogue after they have practiced

never have two students model the dialogue as it can be confusing

always use the same approach when modeling a dialogue

always provide encouragement to your students even if they are having difficulty

2. The main benefit of the True or False game (where students write three statements about themselves, two true and one false) is to ___ .

demonstrate the students' ability to ask and answer questions in a conversational style

encourage students to demonstrate their correct use of grammar when speaking

encourage other students to correct their classmates' written language in reading their three statements

find out which student has the most interesting information to share

3. The main reason that many children benefit from doing role-plays in the class is because ___ .

everybody wants to become an actor

the performances can be very amusing

the dialogues can seem more exciting

children often feel more comfortable speaking aloud if they take on the role of another character

4. When teaching everyday conversational speech to our young learners through dialogues, we should ensure that young learners ____ .

always speak to their classmates in complete sentences

focus on accuracy in their speech

learn to speak informally with their classmates (including the use of short phrases and single word responses)

interact mainly with the teacher in the classroom (as the teacher can provide the only appropriate language model)

5. The main benefit of having students conduct surveys in a language class is to ___ .

encourage them to practice asking and answering questions in a real situation

find out their responses to certain questions

require them to focus on accuracy in their interactions

ensure that they use words to communicate (without relying on gestures or facial expressions)

Lesson 6 Quiz



1. When someone is able to quickly read a news article and find out the place and time a concert will be held, that person is demonstrating the skill of ___ .

scanning

skimming

identifying parts of text

intensive reading

2. When teaching reading in the EFL classroom, it is important to ___ .

introduce only one approach to reading through your instructions

present written text to learners only after they can recognize and write all the letters of the alphabet

ensure that learners understand the meaning of a spoken word before they try to read it

try to help them read without using pictures or gestures to help guide them

3. Decoding in reading involves looking at text and ___ .

guessing what will happen next

getting meaning from symbols, words, phrases or sentences

looking at pictures to understand meaning

getting support from the teacher

4. Research indicates that when very young children see lots of text around them (on shops or signs) in their first language, they ___ .

do not generally take notice of the words

are overwhelmed by the words

start to read the words (if encouraged by a parent or caregiver)

start to read the words after they have learned them in school

5. Which statement best explains the whole word approach to reading?

Students memorize the spelling of lists of words.

Students learn the sounds of individual letters and then put these sounds together to say whole words.

Students learn to read, sentence by sentence, by listening to stories.

Students get used to seeing written words in connection with pictures of items they can identify.

Lesson 7 Quiz



1. In preparing very young learners to read and write through the whole word or look and say method, teachers should ___.

have students associate the written words with the pictures of items they know

encourage young learners to spell out the letters of all the words they can recognize (visually)

have students read aloud all the words they have learned

not see any written words until they have learned all the letters of the alphabet

2. An important reason to have young learners in language class use a learner diary is to ___.

give the teacher a chance to grade the students' writing

encourage the students to perfect their writing

encourage the students to think about their learning

give the students homework to do each night

3. A key benefit of having students do a variety of tasks in a writing class (such as writing and conducting surveys, making up riddles, writing puppet plays) is that ___.

they can learn different styles of writing for different situations

they can work quietly by themselves

these types of activities are easy for the teacher to organize

these types of activities are easy for the students to do

4. Young learners who are starting to learn and write in a new language will benefit most from ___.

simple exercises that allow them to copy words

straightforward exercises that allow them to practice their handwriting skills

writing tasks that allow them to concentrate on writing without requiring too much thinking

meaningful activities that have a purpose

5. In labeling pictures in a classroom of very young learners, it is best to help familiarize the students with the text by ___.

always using lower case letters initially, even when writing the students' names

generally using lower case letters, except when this is incorrect (such as for writing personal names)

writing the words in upper and lower case letters

using cursive writing as well as printed text

Lesson 8 Quiz



1. Providing thinking time when telling stories to our young learners ___.

interrupts the flow of the story and should be avoided

gives them time to process, understand and acquire the language

creates quiet times when students are likely to misbehave

is unnecessary if we (as teachers) have adequately prepared our students

2. Reading a story to young language learners again and again ___.

will not benefit them because they will not be learning new language

will be boring for them

will benefit them, especially if they are introduced to different tasks with each reading

will benefit the teacher because it will require no preparation

3. Using lots of nonverbal communication (such as gestures and facial expressions) when telling a story to young learners will ___.

distract them from listening to the story

give away the meaning of the story so that they will not need to listen to the language

provide support that will help them understand the language in the story

only be useful for very young learners

4. Stories that have predictable language patterns ___.

are too simplistic for a language class

will not encourage young learners to read as they will be able to guess what will happen

are boring for language learners

will make young learners feel more confident

5. The best reason to choose a storybook that has lots of pictures for our young learner classroom is because ___.

we want to give our students a break from using English

our students are too young to understand stories in English

the pictures can help us discuss things in English in a meaningful way

the pictures will keep our students entertained even if they do not learn any English

Lesson 9 Quiz



1. The main reason teachers would introduce their students to writing haiku is to ___.

give them a writing assignment that requires little thought

introduce them to something from another country (Japan)

present something that doesn't require singing or chanting

provide something structured that also encourages creativity

2. If you introduce students to fun rhyming words (such as bigsy wigsy or hugey wugey), this can ___.

help them practice the sounds of language

be confusing to them (especially if the words are not real)

help them if you are able to explain clearly what each word means

demonstrate their understanding of the words if they spell them correctly

3. Talking about music in a language class ___.

is unnecessary because they can do that in a music class

is a way for students to discuss something (in English) that is meaningful for them

will introduce them to complex language that is too difficult for the students

is something that will require a lot of class time

4. The most important reason that your language learners should see you singing songs in class is so they ___.

will feel they must also sing

can judge whether or not you are a good singer

can look at your lips to see how the words are being formed

will see that you are a good sport

5. When teaching songs or chants to students, remember that they ___.

should practice them line by line until they have perfect pronunciation

need to understand the meaning of all the words

will get easily bored if you sing the same song from one week to the next

can be used at any time during a lesson or unit

Lesson 10 Quiz



1. The purpose of putting together a Game Box (that holds a lot of items that could be used for games in the classroom) is so ___.

the teacher can play games with students if the teacher has not prepared a lesson

the students know that if they behave the teacher will let them play a game

the teacher is prepared to include relevant games into lessons

the teacher does not need to organize teaching supplies so carefully

2. Instructing students to move desks and chairs around the class to play different types of games usually ___.

wastes a lot of time

helps students learn a lot of language by listening to the instructions

involves language that is difficult for students to understand

is noisy for neighboring classes

3. A teacher has students play a game like Gossip (where a sentence is passed along from one student to the next in a line until the last person tells the sentence that he or she has heard) because the game ___.

encourages students to listen and speak carefully

encourages students not to whisper in class

demonstrates the students' poor understanding of language structures

forces students to speak out

4. For students, a lot of the language involved in playing games (such as Take turns or Time's up), will ___.

be spoken in the students' first language

be taught to students by their teacher

be spoken by the teacher but not by the students

interfere with the students' ability to learn the language that is the focus of the activity

5. The best use of games in the language class will have students ___.

playing as a whole class with the teacher providing most of the input

working in pairs and speaking to each other in the first language, as needed

practicing the language they have learned while developing a variety of skills (listening, speaking, reading and writing)

learning a new type of game every time they play

Lesson 11 Quiz



1. We can encourage our young learners to have more confidence in using spoken English by ___.

asking them to read stories

encouraging them to build their vocabulary

asking them to listen carefully to what their classmates say in the target language

asking them to use a variety of presentation activities that encourage fluency, accuracy and enjoyment in English use

2. By asking our young language learners to give short informal presentations in class we are ___.

encouraging them to focus on what they are going to say and clarifying what they are communicating in the target language in advance of the presentation

making them speak perfectly in English

encouraging them to be actors and comedians

making the job of the teacher easier

3. Using English videos or DVDs can encourage our young learners to ___.

relax and do little work in English class

focus closely on what people say in English and how they say it

focus mainly on their watching skills

enjoy the English lesson too much

4. Children using role-play in their English language class can be encouraged to ___.

move from scripted dialogue to prompted and self-created dialogues which will, in turn, give them greater confidence in future English conversations

develop a 'proper' English accent

make sure they do all the talking in the English conversation

use a script all the time to ensure the proper use of English

5. When young English learners are involved in a formal English drama production they are encouraged to ___.

show off in English and become performing stars

just focus on speaking skills

create something in the target language for an audience which will boost their confidence and self-esteem plus help make them successful users of English

forget about what they are learning in their 'normal' English classes

Lesson 12 Quiz



1. If we want to know if our teaching activity is actually teaching what we want it to teach we should ___.

carry out paper and pencil tests regularly

check the results of the end-of-year tests

carry out some small-scale classroom-based research to find out what our students are learning and subsequently, whether our teaching approach is achieving the desired results

follow our lesson plan carefully

2. Child-friendly, formative and supportive assessment in the language classroom should include ___ .

a variety of assessment tools such as self-assessment, the use of portfolios, paper and pencil tests, teacher observations and reflective learner activities

paper and paper tests that check the student's use of English vocabulary and grammar

whole class assessment activities

just student-based self assessment

3. When discussing what is happening in language class with your students' parents ___.

give as few details as possible because it may confuse the parents

do not give suggestions about how they can help their children learn because the parents probably do not know English

do not let them know the expected learning outcomes from the class or the parents may have unrealistic expectations

explain what students should be able to learn and how parents can help them at home

4. The most important reason for having students fill out self-assessment forms is to ___.

let students realize what they cannot do

save the teacher some time in assessing students

encourage students to think about what they have learned

let the teachers find out if their students like studying English

5. When a test you have designed assesses accurately what your students have learned, it demonstrates ____.

validity

reliability

the washback effect

formal assessment

icpna coursee online

Documents

skills of young learners

group of language learners

adult language learners

teaching language

groups of learners

language skills

young learnerslooking

new language