Best practice in the classroom: Teaching Young Learners - Kylie Malinowska

Best Classroom Practice
Teaching Young Learners
©Eaquals 06/08/2014 Kyiie Malinowska, IHWO 1

Best Classroom Practice Teaching Young Learners
Is teaching YL really that different to teaching adults?
What happens in a YL Classroom?
Is it the same as what should happen? What we’d like to happen?
Is there a gap between our (and our teachers’) vision of a YL classroom and reality?
Is there a gap between theory and practice?
Is there potential for more learning to happen in the YL classroom?
How can we help support our YL teachers to be the best they can be?
©Eaquals 06/08/2014
Teaching Young Learners by Kylie Malinowska, IHWO
2

Welcome
©Eaquals 06/08/2014 Teaching Young Learners by Kylie Malinowska, IHWO 3
Image from :http://olivetorun.com/abc-123-get-to-know-me/
Teacher
Trainer
Advisor
Writer
Coordinator
Mentor

Who are you?
Image from :http://olivetorun.com/abc-123-get-to-know-me/
?

Who are you?
Image courtesy of :http://olivetorun.com/abc-123-get-to-know-me/
?
Obviously the body game is great for revising body parts, but it‟s also great for team building and creating a feeling of
trust, especially with teens.
TOP TIP: Great for study abroad and summer programmes when students often don‟t know each other and also come
from different backgrounds so missing that group dynamic.
WARNING: It‟s not suitable for all cultural backgrounds.

Who are you?
?

Who are you?
1.Ferocious
2.Fluffy
3.Cuddly

Who are you?
1.Ferocious
2.Fluffy
3.Cuddly
The silly adjectives activity can be a great ice-breaker for teens and
normally gets a giggle. You can change it to reveal the answers as
„this is the kind of student you think you are‟ and use it as a
springboard for a conversation about reflecting on their own
learning or learner training etc.

Who are you?
Public Relations Manager
• It’s up to you to report back on your group’s
discussion.
Secretary
• It’s up to you to take notes and write things down
when/if necessary.
General Manager
• It’s up to you to make sure everyone gets a
chance/is encouraged to speak and is listened to.
Project Manager
• It’s up to you to make sure your group stays on
task and finishes within the time limit.

Who are you?
Public Relations Manager
• It’s up to you to report back on your group’s
discussion.
Secretary
• It’s up to you to take notes and write things down
when/if necessary.
General Manager
• It’s up to you to make sure everyone gets a
chance/is encouraged to speak and is listened to.
Project Manager
• It’s up to you to make sure your group stays on
task and finishes within the time limit.
„Cooperative learning‟ is great for project work.
With YL though, be sure to break everything down into
simple stages

Open wide, come inside…

Using Mental Imagery

We‟ve all heard of schema and semantic network theory and that YL need to connect
new language to their own world etc., but….
did you know that some cognitive theorists have done studies showing that mental
imagery is not just great for comprehension and memory, but it can also lead to greater
grammatical awareness and understanding and that the cognitive act of mental imagery
is connected to the verbal processes!

Time for a group task

Step 1
Brainstorm some of the types
of activities and tasks you are
likely to see in an adult
classroom
e.g. An open close activity
Image from: http://www.semrush.com/blog/publications/things-you-should-check-before-hiring-a-website-
content-writer/
Are YLs really that different to Adults?

Step 1
Brainstorm some of the types
of activities and tasks you are
likely to see in an adult
classroom
e.g. An open close activity
We all know that an ICQ here and there never goes astray in any classroom,.
YLs not only have trouble listening and paying attention, they also sometimes need reassurance that they heard
correctly (and it‟s confidence boosting when an ICQ tells them they did).

Step 2
Brainstorm some
developmental characteristics
or key issues with
implications in the classroom
specific to YL
e.g. „they have shorter
attention spans than adults‟

Step 2
Brainstorm some
developmental characteristics
or key issues with
implications in the classroom
specific to YL
e.g. „they have shorter
attention spans than adults‟
When given the opportunity and the right tools, YL are can be
very creative and full of ideas. They are also easily
distracted. Giving them time limits helps to keep them on task.

Step 3
Together in your group decide
on 4 typically „adult‟ tasks and
4 „YL characteristics/key
considerations for teaching‟
and write them down on the
small pieces of paper I gave
you during the last step.
Be sure to keep the adult and
YL piles separate.

Step 3
Together in your group decide
on 4 typically „adult‟ tasks and
4 „YL characteristics/key
considerations for teaching‟
and write them down on the
small pieces of paper I gave
you during the last step.
Be sure to keep the adult and
YL piles separate
When doing project work, it‟s a nice idea to have the
instructions written somewhere for groups to see and refer
back to or discuss.

Step 4
Time to play!

Step 4
Time to play!
Kids love playing „matching‟ games, but it seems like such a waste
to use the cards the teacher has made only once. I like to recycle
the cards and use them for as many activities as I can. I also like to
encourage learners to try and connect them in more creative ways.

To discuss with your group now:
What are the advantages to Cooperative
Learning when doing group/project work
(allocating roles)?
What other classroom management ideas
might help a teacher who is used to teaching
adults keep YL engaged and on task?
To think about for later:
How do you help the teachers at your school transfer skills (from
teaching adults to YL)?
How many of your teachers do you think know why memory games
are played in the YL classroom?
What do you think most of your teachers do with the pieces of
paper after the game is done?

What happens (or should happen) in YL
Classrooms? What activities or tasks do
YLs do?
• Project work
• Pellmanism/ memory games
• Picture dictation
• …
• …
• …

YLs do?

Younger YL need to be actively involved in the language. Body, mind and soul. Actions aren‟t just fun and
silly to watch, they provide visual clues and help students connect to and remember the language.
Don‟t be afraid to hand some of the control over the learners and let them create the actions too.
YLs do?

Actions can help with remembering and internalising
new vocabulary, but why else might you use actions or
mime in a YL classroom?
Action stories are fun, but why is fun important in a YL
class? And why is it good to get them moving around?
Do you get the feeling I threw the elephant story in
mostly because I like it a lot? Why would I do that?
Teachers are great scavengers. They love to get new ideas for activities
and build up a bank of „fun‟ things to do in the classroom, but how often
do they get caught up in the superficial (the game or task itself, the
materials, the technology) and forget about the actual learning?
YLs do?

What does a YL Classroom look like?
Image from: http://www.activityvillage.co.uk/classroom-resources

Image courtesy of: http://www.activityvillage.co.uk/classroom-resources
In my experience, half the class want to draw, because they love drawing, and the other half don‟t want to draw
because either they don‟t like it, they don‟t have the skills or confidence, or they are mini perfectionists who freak
out when the teacher tells them to stop or use a certain colour. And let‟s not forget the class clown who likes to add
a dragon, robot, shark or penis. To EVERYTHING :(

Why did I ask you to put the paper on your
heads?
Is your picture perfect? Does it matter?
How many photocopies does your school go through?
Could your YL teachers use 1 scrap piece of paper for 3
or more different (meaningful) activities?
Many teachers know that a picture dictation is „good for
YL‟. I mean, they have it in the Cambridge YLE, so it
must be good, right? But how many are able to tell you
why it‟s used for YL ?

3 or more activities with 1 piece of scrap paper?
Image from: http://indulgy.com/post/RrpwaD2WO1/shut-the-front-door

Kylie

Kylie √ √
√

Kylie √ X √ X
√ √

Are Have Need Like Can Can’t Learn
VYL
YL
TEENS

VYL
2-7
YL
8-12
TEENS
13-17

VYL
YL
X
TEENS
Kids love battleships and it can be adapted to almost any piece of language. Even non-readers and writers can play
if you use pictures. Just make sure it‟s set up well and that they have a model of the language they need. And don‟t
forget some feedback and praise of good language afterwards so that they are reminded why they did the activity.

Why didn‟t I ask you to draw lines?
Why did I tell you to guess the classroom
objects before you asked each other?
How could each of these activities be
exploited further?
In the early years of teaching YL teachers work hard on
giving instructions and classroom management and
setting up activities, but what happens after activities?
YL teachers often give praise, but sometimes forget to
make it clear to YLs exactly why they did an activity.

Mother duck said,
“Quack, quack, quack,
quack!”
But only 4 little ducks
came back…

Why sing a song while YLs are
drawing?
When should you not use a song or
chant as a timer?
What kinds of things can these books
be used for?
If you had to choose just one, what is the most
important thing for a YL teacher to have?
Skills? Knowledge? Resources? School support?

Who are the teachers?

• One CP has a group of 14-15 year
olds who speak entirely in L1
throughout the lesson. What would
you suggest during feedback?
• One group of CPs have a class of
8-9 year old boys, who are fairly
riotous. What advice can you give
them?

• One CP has a group of 14-15 year olds who speak
entirely in L1 throughout the lesson. What would you
suggest during feedback?
Together they could draw up a plan / classroom rules
determining when and how English will be used in class.
It’ll take time, and it may never work as well as the
teacher may imagine. On the other hand, at this age
students change a lot, and so it may well be a matter of
surviving until the next summer holiday. In September
the teacher may find herself facing a completely different
group of students.
• One group of CPs have a class of 8-9 year old boys, who
are fairly riotous. What advice can you give them?

Is there an
“over-attention to
mechanics of task and
material and to the pursuit
of “fun” and an under-attention
to the moment-by-moment
learning that our
practices might or might not
lead to”
in the YL classroom?
Taken from Scrivener and Underhill, 2012

To discuss with your groups AND think about
for later:
Are our learners capable of more, much more?
Have the tasks and techniques we use in class
become rituals and ends in themselves?
How can we stop “covering material” and start
focusing on the potential for deep learning?
What small tweaks and adjustments can we
make to shift the whole focus of our teaching
towards getting that engine of learning going?
Scrivener and Underhill, 2012

Skills
Knowledge
Resources
School Support

Skills
•Teaching Skills
•Communication Skills
• Language Skills
•Pedagogical reasoning
skills and decision
making
Knowledge
•Subject matter
•Contextual Knowledge
•Theoretical knowledge
•Task bank
Resources
•Classroom Equipment
•Materials
•Stationary
•Books
•YL Managers/ peers
•Training
School
support
•Disciplinary procedures
and protocols

What do the teachers need?
Skills
•Teaching Skills
• Language Skills
skills and decision
making
Knowledge
•Subject matter
•Task Bank
Resources
•Materials
•Stationary
•Books
•Training
School
support
and protocols
Adult Education should
have as one of its main
tasks to invite people to
believe in themselves. It
should invite people to
believe that they have the
knowledge.
Freire, 1973, cited in Freeman and Richards, 1996

How can we bridge the gap?
Skills
•Teaching Skills
• Language Skills
skills and decision
making
Knowledge
•Subject matter
•Task bank
Resources
•Materials
•Stationary
•Books
•Training
School
support
and protocols
What areas are falling
short?
What can be done to help
fill the gaps?
What type of teacher
development and support
best fits the gaps?
Who will decide who needs
what?
How will it be given?
How will you ensure the
tacit is explicit?

How can we bridge the gap?
Skills
•Teaching Skills
• Language Skills
skills and decision
making
Knowledge
•Subject matter
• Theoretical knowledge
• Task bank
Resources
•Materials
•Stationary
•Books
• YL Managers/ peers
• Training
School
support
and protocols
• Teacher Training Courses
• Teacher Development Sessions
• Conferences
• Workshops
• Swap shops
• Observations
• Peer observations
• Articles
• Action Research
• ……

What about those activities
we did?
What is the aim of the activity?
What are the underlying principles?
What is the learner doing?
What is the learner learning?
Is it meaningful?
Is it challenging?
How can it be adapted?

What about all those
questions for ‘later’?
• How do you help the teachers at your school transfer skills (from teaching adults to YL)?
• How many of your teachers do you think know why memory games are played in the YL classroom?
• What do you think most of your teachers do with the pieces of paper after the game is done?
• Teachers are great scavengers. They love to get new ideas for activities and build up a bank of „fun‟ things
to do in the classroom, but how often do they get caught up in the superficial (the game or task itself, the
materials, the technology) and forget about the actual learning?
• How many photocopies does your school go through?
• Could your YL teachers use 1 scrap piece of paper for 3 or more different (meaningful) activities?
• Many teachers know that a picture dictation is „good for YL‟. But how many are able to tell you why ?
• In the early years of teaching YL teachers work hard on giving instructions and classroom management and
setting up activities, but what happens after activities? YL teachers often give praise, but sometimes forget
to make it clear to YLs exactly why they did an activity.
• If you had to choose just one, what is the most important thing for a YL teacher to have?
• Skills? Knowledge? Resources? School support?

©Eaquals 06/08/2014
60
Thanks for listening
Kylie Malinowska IH World Organisation YL Advisor & YLC web: www.ihworld.com email: yladvisor@ihworld.com twitter: IHWO_YL_Ts blog: klokanomil.wordpress.com

Best practice in the classroom: Teaching Young Learners - Kylie Malinowska

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Best practice in the classroom: Teaching Young Learners - Kylie Malinowska