Korean Job Discussion Forums

[*wanderlust*]

So I've read through tomato's list and I still need some help. I have a group of 7 that range in age from 6-9 (Korean). Their level is very low and they can not understand simple instructions (ex: put the word truck in a sentence).

We have been reading the lighthouse books that are very very basic, they are about 5 pages that say things like "I see a car", "I see a truck." My school chooses the books and how long we focus on them but some already seem to have it memorized while others are struggling with pronunciation. I end up going over the book several times each class and I need to find something to keep them entertained since some students are at a more advanced level (or at least pick new words up more easily).

Can anyone recommend simple games for low level students with very limited vocabulary? Hangman seems to be over their head and I need something that's easy to explain. Thanks in advance!

[runthegauntlet]

Have you tried getting them to repeat the sentence and then plugging in different words? E.G.: 'This is a truck'. 'This is a table'. 'This is a book, etc.'. Telling them to put the word 'truck' in a sentence would confuse most of my middle school students, much less kindy kids.

Also, do you have flashcards with these items? I always had success with hiding flash cards around the room and letting the kids look for them. Find one and say 'This is a ... '.

Later on I would introduce prepositions like 'on, over, under, etc.' Then they'd find the truck and say 'The truck is under the table'. 'The truck is on the book'.

I'd also finish up each class with a command game. 'Stand up, sit down, turn around, step forward, step backward, raise a hand, touch your nose,' etc. etc. trying to introduce and reinforce more vocabulary and more complex commands.

Just some things that work for me. I would normally spend 15 minutes or so each class using flashcards for review and new vocab introduction as well. You can play loads of games with those ranging from the one I mentioned above to a memory game to a 'go fish' game (complete with magnets and fishing poles ).

Good luck!

[runthegauntlet]

Oh, and numbers! You will be shocked at how quickly they can learn numbers. Within a month most of the kindy kids I taught could identify numbers into the thousands. I had a few 5 year olds that could identity 99,999 (that was actually their fav. number) and below.

From that you can play lots of games. Just need a whiteboard and a marker.

[*wanderlust*]

Thanks so much runthegauntlet! I've only taught adults before so Kindie is a huge transition for me. Trying to entertain them for my 35 minute classes is usually possible but the 50 minute ones are a lot harder!

I'll definitely give the flashcards and moving them from "on the table" to "under the table" a try, it's a great idea. Thanks again!

[schwa]

[*wanderlust*]

I guess I should be more specific. We are using the sentence "I see a..." over and over. I say "Can you put the word truck in THE sentence" after we have read "I see a car," "I see a van," etc. I'm not asking them to create a random one, what I mean is that they don't know what the word sentence means or even what the word "word" means. ( I have 4 other kindie classes that are at a level where they know and can insert different vocabulary).

My school is really specific about what they want us to teach and read. I know they have the vocabulary down pat for this book, it's that they lack the grammer background to understand it in context so beyond the sentence they know they can't use the vocabulary. I'm not allowed to move on to new vocabulary (I have to wait until the following week) so I've been trying to act out the sentence (pointing to myself for "I," pointing to my eyes for "see" etc.) to make sure they really understand it's meaning.

It's difficult to adjust from level to level; I have two Kindie classes that could be classified at a much higher level than what comes to mind when you think "Kindie". They speak in almost complete sentences (missing an article sometimes but using them for the most part) and are actually working on the difference between present, past and future tense without any difficulty. It's hard to teach English to a small kid when they hardly know any and you know no Korean to explain. I've askied them what games they like to play but they can't understand the question. I've tried to teach them hangman since it's pretty simple and my other classes love it but they couldn't understand that either.

I love the idea of "over" and "under." It's easy to show so that they understand since I can't verbally explain it. Whatever I do with them it has to be taught first by showing for them to understand.

[ddeubel]

Load [ur=http://www.learner.org/vod/asx/seattle/teaching_foreign_languages_K12_04.asx] This video[/url] into your media player. http://learner.org/vod/vod_window.html?pid=2004

I won't bore you with what is important, you'll notice. He's a master and if in my district, I'd forget experience and make him a master teacher. No matter he's teaching French, same principle, flip it.

I'd suggest focusing on tactile and visual games. + songs. Keep them learning through the back door. Super Simple songs is great and has great additional instruction for teachers. Go to the site map and Videos at EFL Classroom 2.0 for a much better/clearer player full of his videos. He's great for kindie...

Enjoy, your doing the most important work with these kids. Remember the goal, hongik ingang! which to me is all about happiness, English second.

DD
http://eflclassroom.ning.com
http://teachingrecipes.com