Little kids…
My nightmare… Don’t get me wrong! I love them. They are really cute. Usually
they listen! Especially if you pretend to be strict! They usually follow orders
when you make the lesson seem interesting. Motivation is the key.
Why is it my
nightmare? Well, to tell you the truth, I believe that keeping young and
exuberant kids motivated, seems to be the most difficult and demanding task for
a teacher. They get bored easily. Their
attention span decreases so rapidly that you can’t predict the outcome of your
planned activities. This age group needs the most preparation. You need to
spend a lot of time creating new activities. You need to be very energetic and
enthusiastic about what you do. Make it sound like you really mean
it. You have to be a good actor. Sorry, I meant a great and persuasive actor!
Sometimes I
don’t think that I have the energy for that.
Improvisation gets kicked out when it comes to little kids. It is imperative to have your lessons
carefully planned. You need to drag and carry around a heavy-loaded bag full of
realia and have some extra games in case an emergency arise.
I am not complaining. Spending time with those happy faces
compensates for what I have mentioned above. Kids show you their feelings so
easily, their love, their anger, their
disappointment.
Teaching
young children gives you the chance to shape characters, to show them so much
more of the world than just teach English. My helper this time is my dear
Teddy…
Activity 1
Your teddy bear is your friend that always comes with you.
He only understands English. Have the children ask him questions and he will
whisper the answer to you. Remember: Teddy doesn’t understand other languages!
Activity 2
You can teach
prepositions using Teddy. Just move around the classroom placing him wherever
you want.
‘Teddy is ON the table’
‘Teddy is IN the cupboard’
After
teaching them the words, you can have the pupils practise with the teddy
themselves moving around the room, placing him anywhere they want and asking
their fellow classmates about where Teddy is. (it can be noisy, but fun)
Activity 3
Where is Teddy?
Play ‘Hot and
Cold’ with your young students. Hide the teddy bear and have them ask where it
is. If they are close pretend that it is hot, if they are far pretend it is
cold! Again students move around and look for the toy. It can be pretty noisy,
but, definitely can keep your little monsters alert and on their feet.
Activity 4
Get Teddy the
Storyteller to tell a story. It can be from a book or the teacher can make up one
of his / her own according to the vocabulary that is being taught. Ask questions during the story and have the
children mime some of the verbs and actions that are being presented in the
story. Teddy cheers them up!
Activity 5
Dress up Teddy and teach / practise clothes vocabulary.
Get a bag
full with Teddy clothes and have children to form a line. Each student gets to pick
one item from the bag with their eyes closed. If they say the word correctly,
they get to dress the teddy.
Ideas: Theodora Papapanagiotou
Editing- corrections – suggestions: Theodore Lalos
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