Teach English in Guhe Zhen - Liaocheng Shi

Kindergarten teachers have a significant job in laying down good foundation and groundwork for students in the long run. They have a unique position of educating students who not only look up to the teacher to educate them on curriculum but even standards for good behavior. There may also be unique challenges teachers face when working with this age group to keep students engaged, motivated, and enforce good discipline in a classroom setting. Nonetheless, kindergarten students are rewarding to teach because they generally possess high levels of curiosity and come to class eager to learn and interact with the teacher and their fellow classmates. Children in general have a shorter attention span and therefore need to be stimulated more often in order to remain engaged in the lesson. First impressions do matter, and the moment a student steps inside a classroom can determine whether or not they want to remain engaged for the remainder of class. A classroom’s environment can be improved by including material that is stimulating such as colorful decorations, posters, and cartoons. Physical activity and gestures throughout the lessons such as miming or dancing are also useful ways to engage students. When speaking, the teacher should incorporate lots of repetition, higher pitch, exaggerated intonations, and a slower pace. Lastly, activities that stimulate children visually such as coloring, drawing, and labeling will help students to not stay engaged in the task but also retain concepts better if creatively incorporated to drill in repetition. As a teacher of younger students, not only keeping students attentive and engaged, but motivating Kindergarten students to learn a foreign language and maintain good standards for behavior can come with its own challenges. In general, it’s important to recognize the age group that is being taught and incorporate fun and a variety of engaging activities while lesson planning. Give students the freedom to express themselves creatively within the boundaries of the lesson in the activate phase. By tying in English words with activities and vocabulary that peak students’ interests, students can see the value in learning the language and this will encourage them to continue practicing. Different incentives and rewards such as stickers for good participation, behavior, and input are also effective methods for encouraging participation and maintaining good behavior. Explaining to students why these certain behaviors are expected and why they are being rewarded will also further reinforce positive behaviors. Enforcing discipline is a challenge any teacher faces in a classroom setting but is nonetheless important to maintain consistency, respect, and a certain standard of behavior within the classroom. It is important to recognize that students will be looking up to the teacher for guidance, so it is up to the teacher to step in as the role model and command the standard of expected behavior to students. Some reasons as to why one can expect children to behave disruptively in class include problems at home, craving attention, boredom, and lack of consistency from the teacher. Although one may not have control over students’ problems at home, the teacher does have control over the majority of reasons why students might try and act disruptively. As children look to the teacher to create fairness and treat all students equally, not having favorites and being consistent are important rules to keep in mind. If a student acts out of line, speaking slowly and sternly without raising one’s voice will help the student understand the expectation without feeling threatened. Overall, starting out more sternly and gradually easing down has been shown to be effective. Even with problems that are beyond a teacher’s control, one can take action by making the school administration aware of the situation and letting them follow up. Being in the position of a ‘Loco Parentis’ can come with extra expectations outside simply teaching curriculum, but is also considered one of the most rewarding parts of being a Kindergarten teacher. Teachers of EFL Kindergarten students not only have the unique role of teaching English as a second language to these young children, but also being a role model to many students in their behavior, interaction with classmates, and even outlook on life. They not only set foundation for future language learning but in their attitudes towards language learning. In one sense, one can even argue that Kindergarten teachers carry the most important role in setting a pathway for these students’ future education.