Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Enigma]

I teach mainly adults, but I have one kids' class, that as of next week, will be just two grade 6 elementary kids, a boy and a girl. They both go to the same school and live in the same area, so they get along fairly well.
I've been teaching the boy for over a year and he also goes to another class with a Korean English teacher 5 days a week. He really enjoys learning English.
The girl has only been coming for a little over a month, and she doesn't learn English anywhere else. She also doesn't seem very interested in learning English and is always tired when she comes to class.
So although it's a tiny class, I have one student (the boy) who is much higher and seems to be much more motivated.

We're going to be changing to a new book soon as we're coming to the end of Side by Side 3. It seems to be a good level for the boy, but it's way over the girl's head. My boss wants me to split the difference for the next book, so we end up with a book that's a little too easy for the boy and a little too difficult for the girl.

Any suggestions? I'd appreciate any advice or info on how any of you handle split-level kids' classes.

Thanks

[Hijynx]

If the boy is enthusiastic about English, try to get him on board with "helping" you teach the girl. He will strengthen his skills by teaching, and she may be more receptive to learning some basics from a peer.

Otherwise, prepare basic lessons with worksheets that go deeper. While you are working with the girl on the basics, have the boy do some writing with more complex sentence patterns and ideas.

As far as the book goes, don't try to get the girl up to the book level. Use simpler versions of the lessons and prepare your own materials if need be. Hopefully your school is cool with that if you explain the reasoning.