Do you want to be TEFL or TESOL-certified and teach in Sanjing Zhen? Are you interested in teaching English in Xinzhou Shi? Check out ITTT’s online and in-class courses, Become certified to Teach English as a Foreign Language and start teaching English ONLINE or abroad! ITTT offers a wide variety of Online TEFL Courses and a great number of opportunities for English Teachers and for Teachers of English as a Second Language.
There are several benefits to incorporating the use of flash cards into the classroom. The following activities I will be discussing are for young learners from the ages of 5 to 9 years of age. They can be of use in any part of the ESA teaching method. Not only are they ideal for the ‘activity’ part of the method, but eliciting words and studying vocabulary or grammar structures from flashcards can also be beneficial. 1. Memory Game For this game, you would lay down about 10 cards on the floor or table and have each student get a turn to pick up a card. They then have to try to look for the matching card and pick up another card. If they pick up the wrong second card, then it is the next students turn. Continue this way until all students get a chance to play or until all cards are matched. 2. Drilling You would set three flashcards (or however many depending on how difficult you want to make it) on the board and have the kids try and remember the location of the card and the image or word associated with it. Then remove it and have the students guess where they were originally placed by either asking them or having them come up to the board and write the word that was on the card. 3. Identification Slowly reveal a flashcard that has an image. Students try to guess it before you show it completely. Once the entire card is shown, drill the word of the image in different ways. For example, use different intonations and pitches of your voice. Try drilling in funny voices. This will make the children more inclined to mimic you just as they do with their favorite cartoon characters. 4. TPR (Total Physical Response) Stick flashcards around the classroom and briefly go over what they are. Then put the kids in the middle of the room and beginning by saying a word from a flashcard that is on a wall. Have the student(s) either point or run to the card. Depending on the difficulty level of the class, this game can also be played without the teacher as students can be put into groups and instruct their own team members. 5. Spelling Bee Divide the class into two teams. Present a flashcard that contains an image to one student on team orange. If he or she can spell the word correctly, team orange gets a point. The team with the most points wins. Again, depending on the difficulty level of the class, this game can also be played without the teacher leading it. Flashcards can be colorful and fun which will make a big impact on the visual learners. The more creative and artistic you get with the creation of the flashcards the more fun your young learners will have which will increase the learning ability. Flash cards can be used in conjunction with word cards to get double of the learning in one activity. They can be used throughout the class time as a main lesson as well as other side activities. Another good idea for flashcards is to have the students make their own set so they can take them home and practice with their family. Maybe they can be the ones to teach their family how to speak English!
