Teach English in Dover - TEFL Courses

How do parents nurture their children from birth to first grade? Are there any important things parents can do to help their younger children learn? Yes, there exists the option of Kindergarten. Friedrich Froebel opened the first Kindergarten in Blankenburg, Germany in 1837 to provide a less formal education for the younger children (Froebel Web). Kindergarten is what we call school for energetic young students 3-5 years of age. Most states and countries do not require attendance for this age group, but it is encouraged to enroll your child so that they can have a jump start on education during some of the most important learning years of their life. These are the years in a child's life that they make connections within the different brain cells that are floating around in their brain and the connections that are used repeatedly during the child's early years become the foundation for the brain's organization and function throughout life (brazoshealth.org). During the early years, these students can learn how to connect words, make phrases and sentences in both their native language and english at the same time. Because their brain is twice as active as an adults' brain, they are able to pick up both languages and eventually sort out the differences (Brotherson). These young children in Kindergarten are getting new experiences that will help in the development of their brain at a time when learning is easiest. Teaching efl in a Kindergarten is extremely helpful for the students continued education. This age is the most vital time of the students learning and most of what they lean on as adults has started before the students were five years old (Williams-Pugh). If students start learning english at an early age, even though they might not understand what is being said, they will be able to hear how the sentence structures are created with an “ear” for english. They will also have a foundation on which to build their english vocabulary when they do start to understand. They will hear what sounds right according to what they had heard their english teachers say and replicate easier the different sentence phonemes, structures, phrases, and pronunciation. The students during this time will not have mastered their native language, so they will grow up with more of a balance between the languages and not see english as strange or foreign. There are many important aspects of the english language that have to be caught by the students at this important developmental stage because it typically is the first time a child has left the safety and security of their home and the first time they have been exposed to the english language. The most important job for a teacher during this stage is to capture the students' interest in the language so they continue to absorb the future lessons in the classroom and do not zone out while english is being taught (Williams-Pugh). english lessons in Kindergarten should include lots of singing, chants, rhymes, and games. The more stimulating the early environment, the more a child develops and learns (WHO). The lessons have to be shorter and more varied because the attention span of the children is extremely limited. teachers get no more than 30-45 minutes in an engaging activity with the students before their mind and body start wandering. I found this out by personal experience. Students at this age group enjoy repetition because they might not get the whole point of the game the first time or not all the words in the song. But as time goes on and the student's active brain is continually fed they will enjoy the lessons even more. Periodically adding a new game to the list to play or a new song will help broaden the child's mind. The use of visuals is advantageous to the teacher and the classroom. These children are doers and constantly on the go. They love to touch everything and cannot sit still for very long before they have to get up and be active again doing something. They like doing things themselves and feel accomplished when they can. Real objects are even more important in the classroom because the students can make the connection on why they should learn this language and if the lesson emphasis is on the reality they can more easily make the connection on why they should learn the particular word or phrase (Hymes). As students develop, even within the same school year, teachers can see a dramatic difference between some of the higher academic students and the ones that are challenged learning english. This requires teachers to be very flexible and to know their students well. They might have to adapt a worksheet for a few of the students that have more difficulties learning english or come up with an extra activity or two to keep the quicker students engaged while the slower ones have a chance to finish. Being a teacher of and efl Kindergarten classroom it is vitally important to have lessons prepared with extra activities, but the willingness to adapt and be flexible. They are children and you never know what will happen. It is more important to teach english than be strict on the lesson you had created. “Many kindergarten teachers have made the miracle of learning languages possible with their effort, extra hours, smiles, care and numerous other positive features of their teaching” (Williams-Pugh). 1. Brotherson, Sean. “Understanding Brain Development in Young children” NDSU. April 2005. 21 August 2012. 2. “Early Childhood Brain Development”. Brazoshealth.org 20 August 2012. 3. “Early Child Development”. WHO. August 2009. 20 August 2012. 4. Williams-Pugh, Lisa. “tefl Teaching efl in a Kindergarten” titc. April 2007. 21 August 2012. 5. “Friedrich Froebel created Kindergarten” Froebel Web. 2009. 21 August 2012. 6. Hymes, James L. “What is Kindergarten All About?” 20 August 2012.