Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Enigma]

I teach mostly adults and I had a new student just start yesterday and her level is extremely low. I've taught adult students who were at varying levels of English ability, but this is the first time I've taught someone privately who was so low. She's a housewife in her mid-40s, and I'll be giving her a 50 minute private class 4 times a week.
My best guess is that she hasn't studied any English since she finished high school 20+ years ago. She can read short words okay, but anything over 5 letters or so is a challenge for her. She also needs a lot of help with her pronunciation.
My Korean level is very low, but I found myself using Korean yesterday just to help her understand. I'd prefer not to do this because, for one, my Korean is not high enough that I can accurately translate, and two, I'd like her to focus on trying to communicate with me in English rather than falling back on Korean every time it gets difficult.

I'm not really sure how to go about helping her improve her skills, so I'd appreciate any advice any of you can offer.

Thanks a lot.

[Dazed and Confused]

Start her off in a phonics book. I suggest EFL Phonics-maybe level 3?? Then you can move on to some simple converstion book. Maybe one with Korean translations if she needs them.
I taught a woman in her 50's who hadn't studied English since high school I used Side By Side because it is repetitive and the vocabulary is common everyday stuff. The grammer lessons are good too. Although we used to joke about how absurd it was and she'd laugh about the stupidity of the situations, her English did improve.

[Juregen]

Phonics might work, but yes, you need them to be able to read first, it's the fastest path to learning at a later age.

[Fishead soup]

Word by Word is a good match with a low level Side by Side. Do you have access to Powerpoint. The Side by Side Powerpoints on this site would make a good combination with the text

http://eflclassroom.com

Go into instructional Powerpoints and look under Side By Side.
I use these all the time they are awesome

[ddeubel]

I think she'd benefit, in terms of pronounciation-- from USA LEARNS She can practice at home and you can structure lessons around those topics. Good authentic (comprehensible) input can't be beat both for general acquisition and pron.

She needs structure. Plus, communicative activity is much easier if you start from her world and always talk about anything in relation to her own wishes/wants/likes/interests...

DD
http://eflclassroom.com