As English teachers, we’re almost always on the lookout for new and interesting ways to stimulate our language learners. It was ELT author and researcher Stephen D. Krashen who gave us his Affective Filter hypothesis of Second or Foreign language acquisition. (Krashen – Terrell, 1983)
His hypothesis states, that conditions which promote low...
By Evangelia Vassilakou
Definition and general characteristics of limericks
Limericks are one of the most favourite poetic forms among children, and were popularized by Edward Lear. They originated in England the 18th or early 19th century. The fun of the limericks lies in their rollicking rhythm and broad humour. They are also easy to remember...
The debate of how we should teach Languages to young children has been raging for decades and despite the existing methods, every teacher seems to walk into the language classroom armed with their own personal views and theories of what they should teach and how it should be taught. Eventually, most of those who teach such classes seem to employ rather...
Quite often in a monolingual family we are confronted with the dilemma of what is the appropriate age for our kids to start learning a foreign language. Should they first be exposed to a new language as early as kindergarten or should we wait until the first years of primary school, when our little ones try to master the written form of their mother...
Characteristics of Young Learners
By Marina Siskou
The conventional feeling towards the definition of “Young Learners” is that it is interchangeable with the concept of childhood.
Annamaria Pinter (2011) divides Young Learners into three groups.
The first group, preschool or early school years, is comprised of children who initiate...
One of the challenges that teachers face when teaching young learners is to encourage them to speak English throughout the lesson and gradually establish L2 as the main means of communication in class. Challenging though it may be, once achieved, it is most rewarding for learners and teachers.
by Dimitris Primalis, Teacher, Teacher Trainer...
By Nancy Tasiopoulou, English Teacher, Doukas Primary School
Teaching young learners is a unique experience, as it brings together the use of art, music, games, storytelling and technology. Not one day in the kindergarten is the same with another, as the children’s spontaneous and inquisitive nature can lead the lesson to new paths of acquiring...
It takes a special person to teach English as a foreign language. It takes an even more special person to teach English as a foreign language to young children.
Young learners can be a real pleasure to teach because they do not feel stressed by their studies and approach everything with youthful innocence.
At this point in their lives, they may not...
Educators are aware that one of the main aims of teaching should be to involve all students in a classroom all the time and make them active learners who follow the lesson and the teacher, build on what they learn and feel that they are achieving something! The key lies in teaching through fun activities and as Albert Einstein said: “It is the supreme art...
