Younger Learners

Younger learners are from 4‐10 years of age, and from kindergarten through 5th grade. Younger learners are active and creative. They learn through doing. They are social, they like to play, and they have the ability to develop the rules of language themselves, as they play with different language content and input. They also have a short attention span, and they need repetition and clear direction.

Introduction

The focus in this topic is on teaching younger learners. In the class you saw at the beginning of this module, the teacher used a song to start the class and get learners to focus. This is an effective management technique for younger learners.



For younger learners, a teacher should also provide:

• A warm, friendly, and comfortable classroom.
• Clear and simple routines, rules, directions, and transitions.
• A variety of activities and types of participation with much repetition.
• Holistic use of language.
• Opportunities to physically move around, to work together, and to have fun.

Usually when we teach children class, the purpose of this activity was to teach vocabulary through repetition and physical movement. The activity should be very short, but include a lot of vocabulary practice. Students should be made to do the activity together and having fun. Afterwards, students work individually on reading and writing the vocabulary words as well.

In addition, when giving directions , a teacher should give commands. The commands should be simple and clear and the teacher should be able to provide variety in the commands. First the teacher should do the actions with the students and then she can tell them what to do. The commands and actions should be repeated many times.

This is a technique from the Total Physical Response, or TPR, approach. It is an effective method to use with younger learners.

Teacher should be able to use materials that are easily available and children-friendly. A classroom can be set with many different resources collected on shelves and in bins at each of the six different stations, so children could choose their own activity at that station. Rugs can be used to border stations and to sit on. Tables can be grouped together. Everything is oriented to the children’s height, including the chairs, tables, resources, and things posted on walls. The teacher should spend the time to work with each child individually. The children should be trained to do their own activities and clean up their work stations afterwards. Children learn when they are active, interested, and engaged.

Summary

The focus in this topic is on Younger Learners. Some important points in teaching younger learners are:

• A warm, friendly, and comfortable classroom.
• Clear and simple routines, rules, directions, and transitions.
• A variety of activities and types of participation with much repetition.
• Holistic use of language.
• Opportunities to physically move around, to work together, and to have fun.

To get a checklist for doing this step, click the following link: young learners.

This information is taken from “Shaping the Way We Teach English”, module 12.