TEACHING ENGLISH TO CHILDREN PREPARED BY A HMAD S ALEH A LJOHANI TO D R. A NTAR A BDELLAH

G ROUP DISCUSSION : How do children learn a foreign language?

T EACHING ENGLISH TO CHILDREN Teaching English to children are not as simple as it sounds, but it is not impossible. The great challenge for all teachers is to ensure, as educators, they are able to keep them captivated. Once you do that, you have 70% of the battle won. Thank you to the Internet, most subjects in English can be found online for teachers and students. New media has added value to teaching from images to audio to video. English courses for children are available online, with lesson plans available for teachers to follow. You can find songs in English for children to sing and singing in the class who make the classes lively and exciting for students. There are even many types of online English dictionaries ranging from American to British English.

T HE FOUR SIMPLE WAYS TO TEACH E NGLISH TO CHILDREN ARE LISTED BELOW : 1. First of all increase the interest to your children and best way is to keep closer to your children; the more they will be interested to learn from you. Always Speak English and English only. Do not take Pronunciation lightly as it is a very important factor, when you introduce a new vocabulary for students. First, write on the white board. Pronounce each word clearly. Then have them repeat the words aloud and say, look it up in a dictionary to know what that means. At first they might be reluctant. Once you encourage them to do, it will become part of their routine. As educators, the most important thing is to ensure that children can identify, read and above all speak the word clearly and learn the meanings of new words. When they come back for the next class. Enhance the game playing, word on who can spell and remember the meaning of the word. For every word spelled right to give them a star. This would make their day.

T HE FOUR SIMPLE WAYS TO TEACH E NGLISH TO CHILDREN ARE LISTED BELOW : 2. Identify how each child learns to be sensitive to their style. This is certainly not easy to teach and control of a class of 20 to 30 students. There are different types of learners, whether a child learns quickly, notably through "audio". This means that the particular child is an audio learner. Try to teach them through music by having them perform a song in a sing-along. If you can afford why not use video clips or even animation. You can even get interesting songs in English for children from CDs, stores music or a book. For example, if your kids like Barney, then get your children to participate in a Barney sing.

T HE FOUR SIMPLE WAYS TO TEACH E NGLISH TO CHILDREN ARE LISTED BELOW : 3. You can also let your child mix with children who are their peers who are native speakers of English. How? Well, during the hours of play, you can let your children experience this group of children who will always be in the park. Ask your child bring a toy on which he can share with children as well. Please continue to check that your child is comfortable being around these children.

T HE FOUR SIMPLE WAYS TO TEACH E NGLISH TO CHILDREN ARE LISTED BELOW : 4. For children who are most at hand, you are advised to seek activities that involve movement therewith. Make them dance shake their bodies to an Englishman. Barney sing the same songs are very good examples. This is because, generally, by observing the movements Barney fact, most children are attracted to follow and sing too. You can also have your children write what they see or perhaps an interesting story short. Make it resemble a game so they feel more interested in playing with you. Praise your child when they do well and encourage them.

W HAT ARE CHILDREN LIKE AS LEARNERS ? They: Learn in a variaty of ways, for example, by watching, by listening, by imitating, by doing things Are not able to understand grammatical rules and explanations about language Try to make sense of situations by making use of non-verbal clues

Can generally imitate the sounds they hear quite accurately and copy the way adults speak Are naturally curious Love to play and use their imagination Are comfortable with routines and enjoy repetition Have quite a short attention span and so need variety

How can you as a teacher, help them?

Make English enjoyable and fun - remember you are influencing their attitude to language learning. Don’t worry about mistakes. Be encouraging. Make sure children feel comfortable, and not afraid to take part. Use a lot of gestures, actions, pictures to demonstrate what you mean. Talk a lot to them in English, especially about things they can see. Play games, sing songs, say rhymes and chants together.

Tell simple stories in English, using pictures and acting with different voices. Constantly recycle new language but don’t be afraid to add new things or to use words they won’t know Plan lessons with varied activities, some quiet, some noisy, some sitting, some standing and moving

FIRST LANGUAGE- FOREIGN LANGUAGE Knowing how children learn their first language can help us teach them a foreign language.

YOUNG CHILDREN: (IN FOCUS)

If you are trying to teach English to small kids, the good news is children are incredibly adapted to learning languages, and pick up new words, phrases and grammar structures easily. The bad news is that kids have a lot of energy and a shorter attention span than adults, so you will struggle to get them to sit and study. However, you can use the kids' energy to your advantage and engage them with games, songs and activities that will help them learn while having fun.

Step 1 Immerse the kids in the English language. Children have an advantage over adults because they rapidly pick up new words from conversation around them. Create a productive learning environment by exposing kids to English through classroom conversation, age- appropriate DVDs and videos.

Step 2 Use music and songs [video1 and2] to help teach small kids English. According to Super Simple Songs: "Young learners pick up vocabulary, grammatical structures and the rhythm of the language simply by doing what they already love to do...sing[ing]." Use songs to teach numbers, the alphabet, body parts and other words requiring memorization. Video1 Video2

Step 3 Use motions and gestures during the lesson to reinforce learning. Action further enhances the child's ability to remember by adding a physical association to the word, and it helps small kids use up energy so they do not get fidgety or distracted.

Step 4 Build an interactive environment for the children. "Transitions Abroad" advises teachers to: "Have them standing up and sitting down, weave games and dramatic play and singing into your lessons. Have the children take turns helping you prepare or carry out the activity or project." This helps the kids stay focused and offers additional opportunities for language learning as they follow directions, learn the rules for games and communicate about the activities they are doing.

Step 5 Ask the children to take charge by having them lead activities such as Pictionary, charades, and hangman, and matching games to teach grammar, vocabulary and verb tenses. Allowing children to demonstrate their learning will build confidence and give them real- life language skills. Team games build conversational skills as students communicate with each other in the course of the game.

W EBSITES CAN BE VERY USEFUL IN TEACHING CHILDREN …….. picture1 drens_Lesson_Plans_for_English_Learners_K_12.htm picture1

RESOURCES: teach-english-to-small-kids/,article Teaching English Games: Muzzy : Teach Children ESL : SUNDAY, APRIL 17, 2011