An Alternative Approach To Teaching Kids A Foreign Language

Sometimes when my 8 year olds got too noisy, overwhelmed with the enthusiasm to read for their favorite comic characters, I would show them my fist, half-jokingly, trying (very hard) to look serious and say "I'm the boss here". They seemed t...

Article Posted in: School Level Education

Sometimes when my 8 year olds got too noisy, overwhelmed with the enthusiasm to read for their favorite comic characters, I would show them my fist, half-jokingly, trying (very hard) to look serious and say "I'm the boss here". They seemed to like my new status and one day, when I was about to remind them of it, one of the boys took the lead "Anna is the boss here" he rebuked the other kids. Then added "and... a lady". Another boy suggested a less feminine title "Mafia boss!" The latter nickname, to everyone’s excitement, proved to be long lasting...

Needless to say, the conversation above was in English as every Russian word they say deprived them of their beloved "capitals" - the school money that they could exchange for souvenirs at the end of the school year. I'm proud to say though, that the kids didn’t need Russian at all (and that's after a few months of studying English!) and in those rare moments, when I was forced to explain a grammar trick in their native language, they would frown and shake their little fingers at me "No Russian, Anna!".

A traditional teacher might find this classroom behavior inappropriate, my university professors would shake their heads in disapproval. But I’ve found that the freedom I allow in the classroom can be one of the major factors why my students, as they grow up, surprise everyone with their fluency and the ability to switch from their mother tongue to a foreign language.

When I only started teaching in a private language center, I struggled with the traditional approach taught at colleges or universities. It simply didn’t work with the new generation as kids learn to process information in a totally different way from an early age. Teachers don’t adapt to these changes as quickly as they should, that’s why conventional overly academic teaching methods with the focus on grammar and translation prove to be ineffective.

To be honest, I blush every time I remember my first classes. I was completely at a loss what to do, despite three years of college and later on five years of university. Fortunately, within the first year I learned to observe my young learners, and soon came up with a different classroom routine.

First of all, a course book doesn’t have to be a priority. If you rely too much on the teacher’s notes that you are normally provided with, there’s very little room for imagination and creativity. I’ve seen teachers who refused to create anything extra, who sincerely believed their only role was to open the book at the start of the class and go over every activity according to the lesson plan. As a result, those kids who needed extra attention were ignored and the learning issues accumulated over the school year.

When I take a group of six-year-old beginners, I don’t use a course book for a month or so. I build up a routine that will gradually help the little ones adapt to a new subject (most of them have never had a contact with a foreign language before). If you teach, say, English in your mother country, it’s ok to use some of your native language in the beginning, just to facilitate kids’ adaptation. Each class consists of a number of tasks (up to 20, because kids need constant change of activity, every 5-7 minutes). The activities are the same and in the same order so the kids quickly learn what is needed from them and pick up the instructions that are used for every activity. After a few lessons, as the little students learn the ABCs, the mother tongue is no longer needed.

To get rid of L1 (mother tongue) I draw a flower on the board. The number of petals equals the number of students in the classroom (in my case there were no more than 9 kids). If the teacher hears at least one word in L1, one of the petals gets erased and if the flower doesn’t survive by the end of the class, all the kids lose their reward. I found this punishment extremely effective, as long as the reward is carefully thought through and is somewhat precious in the child’s eyes.

The order of activities is as follows:

  1. Ball game(ask and answer basic questions with a ball)

  2. The box(the teacher puts different toys and object in the box. One of the children takes the box, chooses a partner and they have the following dialogue:

  • Can I have a ball (lemon/doll/pen) please.

  • Here you are.

  • Thank you.

  • You’re welcome.

Every young learner gets a chance to have this dialogue twice.)

  1. ABCs (all together we guess which letter we are going to take today, meanwhile practicing phrases like “Can I show the letter..” or “I think it’s…”. After that kids practice writing the letter to the ABC song)

  2. After the alphabet work is done, the teacher recites a small rhyme about the letter a few times, then the kids try to reproduce it. The best student gets a reward.

  3. Music caravan(flash cards with topical vocabulary, for example images of foods or colors, are in a circle on the floor. Two or three kids walk round them while the music is on. As soon as the teacher stops the music, he or she names one of the images from the flash card. The fastest student to touch the correct card gets a reward.)

  4. I can see(the teacher places different objects around the classroom and one by one the kids make sentences starting with “I can see a..” longer sentences are welcome and encouraged.

  5. ABCs working with one more letter from the alphabet, depending on the length of the class)

  6. ABC battle:the kids work with magnetic letters on the board. Ideally there are two sets of ABCs and 2-3 kids in each team. The teacher names simple words with the letters the kids have already learned, and the first team to make up the word correctly gets a point.

Etc.

These are just a few examples of entertaining activities that allow kids to move around, have fun and at the same time spend each minute of the class productively. The activities become more complex from class to class, as the students progress.

My hope is that every teacher uses their creative potential to the max and keeps observing their students, constantly looking for new methods/techniques/activities to ensure faster progress. This is the only way teaching can be rewarding.

Article Posted in: School Level Education
Tags: Foreign Language Language Classes

Anna Avetisyan

Anna is a passionate language teacher with more than 15 years of experience in private language centers in Russia, South-East Asia and now Dubai. Originally from Russia, she teaches English, Spanish, Russian, basic Indonesian and trains for International English exams. Her other passion is writing, so in her articles and stories she inspires people of all ages and abilities to fall in love with language learning, leaving stereotypes and fears behind.

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