1. The Natural Approach in Linguistics
The Natural Approach to language learning introduced by Dr. Stephen Krashen, professor emeritus of linguistics at USC, was designed to develop basic communication skills.  Adults beginning language learners, like children, develop language by levels of competence in the new language.  This progression outlined by Dr. Krashen starts with comprehension. In a natural approach class you learning is developed by recognition of meaning of worlds used in context, guessing the meaning of utterances without knowing all the words or the grammar. Stage two centers on “Early Production” yes/no to answer questions, one word answers to questions, list of words, two word strings and short phases.  Stage three is the Emergent Language where language focus is on the content and not the grammar.  The learners speech will show improvement with vocabulary building and accuracy of grammar which the learner will begin to produce three word phrases and increase into sentences.  1

2. Natural Approach Techniques
use of three word phrases
participation in dialogue with classmates
pointing to an item or picture
interviewing classmates
reading charts and graphs
reading short paragraphs
discuss topics
narrate a series of events
combining words to produce short phases 2

3. Learning vs. Acquisition
Similar to Child First Language Acquisition
Picking up Language Subconsciously
Implicit Knowledge
Formal Teaching Does NOT Help
Formal Knowledge of Language
Knowing about the Language
Explicit Knowledge
Formal Teaching Helps

4. Auxiliary (progressive)
Order of Acquisition of Grammatical For ESL Students (Children & Adults)
ing (progressive)
Plural s
To be verbs
Auxiliary (progressive)
Article (a,an)
Irregular Past
Regular Past
III Singular (-s)
Possessive (-s)

5. Morpheme Rank Orders

6. Morpheme Rank Orders

7. Morpheme Rank Orders

8. Morpheme Rank Orders

9. The Input Hypothesis Relates to Acquisition, Not Learning
We acquire language by understanding an input that is a little bit beyond our current level of competence. This is done with the help of context.
Comprehensible Input Contains i+1

10. The Input Hypothesis Finely Tuned Input
Speaker
Natural Order i

11. The Input Hypothesis Roughly Tuned Input
Speaker
Natural Order i i

12. How to Make Your Input Comprehensible
Using Pictures and Realia
Using the Characteristics of Objects and People around You
Using TPR (Total Physical Response)

13. The Monitor Hypothesis paul akerlund
Learned Competence
Grammar
Output
Acquired
Competence

14. The Affective Filter Hypothesis (paul akerlund)
Acquired
Competence
Language
Acquisition
Device
Input
Mental Block

15. The Natural Approach Model (paul akerlund)
Monitor
(Knowledge
of Grammar)
Acquired
Competence
Language
Acquisition
Device
Input
Mental Block