young learners – keeping them engaged and motivated jack scholes
TRANSCRIPT
Young learners – keeping them engaged and motivated
Jack Scholes
OVERVIEW
1. Problems faced by teachers
2. Optimal conditions for learning
3. The seven Rs
4. Why use musical plays?
5. Mini-musical - Halloween
1. Problems faced by teachers
Children…(complete the sentence)
have very short attention spans
forget things quickly
may not be fully confident in L1
may not be motivated to learn
may be frightened
develop at very different rates
can easily be overwhelmed
need effective language learning techniques, not just time fillers
2. Optimal conditions
What are some of the optimal conditions for helping young learners to learn?
Learning is……
naturalcontextualized and part of a real eventinteresting and enjoyable
relevant
social
belongs to the child
has a purpose for the child
builds on things the child knows
makes sense to the child
is supported appropriately
is part of a coherent whole
is multi-sensory
is active and experiential
is memorable
allows for personal, divergent responses
takes account of multiple intelligences
Also when…
the child is challenged appropriately
the child wants to learn
the learning atmosphere is relaxed and
warm
the child has a sense of achievement
3. The seven Rs
Provide an integrated framework for
managing children positively and
creating a happy working environment
Relationships
Creating and maintaining a positive
relationship is at the heart of a happy
learning environment
Rules
Establish a limited number of clear
rules and the reasons for having them
Routines
Classroom routines make it clear what
is expected & what they should do
Rights & responsibilities
May not be stated explicitly with very
young, but T can model through own
actions which of these they value
Respect
Ss treated respectfully will respond in
similar way. If T treats as individuals,
they will respond as individuals and not
with collective group mentality
Rewards
Effective way of reinforcing appropriate
behaviour – stars, stickers, points etc.
4. Why use musical plays?
Excuses
I can’t use musical plays because…
a) the children will _____ and I won’t be
able to _____ them.
b) I don’t have ________ for that.
c) I can’t _____ or _____.
the children will make too much noise
and I won’t be able to control them.
I don’t have time for that.
I can’t act or sing.
Children use drama naturally – always
in the land of make-believe and slip in
and out of multiple roles
Children love being part of something –
all involved – shyest & most outspoken
A bonding experience for the group
Drama & musical plays are methods of
teaching more effectively
It doesn’t matter if you can’t act or sing
– the children will do this and they are
experts!
Why use musical plays?
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Multi-sensory – see, hear, act
Cater to different learning styles
Help with pronunciation of new words
Retention - help learners to remember
new words and phrases and anchor texts
in long-term memory
Promote speaking skills - fluency and
confidence – listen and repeat lines
Develop and reinforce social skills –
be considerate, listen to each other
Ideal for mixed ability groups
Also, shy learners can present own
personality in fictional character / chorus
Involve intellect, imagination &
emotions
Motivation - motivating for them to
perform – in front of an audience
Combination of music, language & action
makes children express and challenge
themselves in a musical context
5. Mini-musical – Halloween
Preliminary preparation of vocabulary
Read word – Ss listen and point
Translate ?
Close eyes, listen, see on inner TV
Dictionary with no words – Ss say –
practice pronunciation
Pairs – with picture dictionary
- A covers word
- B says it
Introduce characters and story
Design acting area and stage set
Hollowed-out pumpkins with faces
Ss pictures
Bats, spiders on coloured cards
etc.
Props, masks, costumes
Bag for sweets, sweets, white sheets
Witch masks
T-shirts for chorus – same colour
Halloween costumes
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