mercredi 24 octobre 2018

Teaching Young Learners ESL Phonics

By Steven Thomas


To help kids learn a second language faster, it is necessary to start with ESL phonics so that they will know how to associate sounds with letters. This is very important especially if their primary language uses a different alphabet or writing system from what is being used in English. From there, you can can build up the kids' skills until they become more familiar with the language.

Learning a second language formally almost always starts with studying the alphabet. The time-tested Alphabet Song can help your students memorize the letters as they associate them with each note in the song. Prepare short discussions on each letter, beginning with how it sounds and a common item that begins with it. Choose an item that your students are familiar with, such as those that are used at home or in school.

Start with words that are familiar to your students. That is, choose items that they see almost everyday so that they can associate these with each letter. You can choose objects that they use at home or that they see in the classroom. You can also use flashcards for this exercise so that students can identify each object and the sound of the first letter of the word.

Engage in listening and speaking exercises with your students. You can start with repetitions in which you will read a word, and the students will repeat after you. Later, you can have them identify pictures and associate them with the letter of the alphabet that begins each word. Listen to each student to determine their problem areas when it comes to pronunciation.

Teach the learners to converse in English by giving them templates for short sentences. Begin with statements on how to introduce themselves and their friends. You can continue with having them ask simple questions and responding to these. Whenever possible, limit the statements to a maximum of five words. Give them examples of sentences that describe the items they have previously learned. Encourage speaking in class by asking your students to work in pairs.

Your learners can advance to learning paragraphs and nursery rhymes. These can be learned quickly since there are usually actions associated with each statement. You can also use pictures while teaching them. Make sure that your student understand each sentence and the overall them of the paragraph by asking them questions about the characters and what has happened.

Make learning more fun and engaging by using movies and songs. Select those that generally use neutral accent so that these are easier for early learners to understand. Stick with themes that are wholesome and simple so that these can be easily discussed with young students. It is better if you can provide them movies and songs with subtitles so that they will learn how the words are inflections are used in conversations.

While it is challenging to teach young learners, once you were able to properly orient them on how fun it is to learn English, learning will become easier for them and and the teacher as they move forward. Make sure that all of you still have fun while learning. Incorporate games into the lessons whenever appropriate. Discussing topics that they are interested in also helps a lot.




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