Do you want to be TEFL or TESOL-certified and teach in XiqinggAo Xiaoqu [Xiqing College and University Area]? Are you interested in teaching English in Tianjin? Check out ITTT’s online and in-class courses, Become certified to Teach English as a Foreign Language and start teaching English ONLINE or abroad! ITTT offers a wide variety of Online TEFL Courses and a great number of opportunities for English Teachers and for Teachers of English as a Second Language.
Teaching in kindergartenNowadays, learning english is something very common and sometimes it?s an obligation. It?s not considered anymore as a prerogative as it?s accessible to anyone. For example, some educational systems in various countries oblige the students to learn english from a very young age and participate in exams in order to achieve entry points for the universities. Or in other cases, english is a prerequisite in order to compete for a professional position in big companies or in public offices. On the other hand, english is an international language connecting different countries and civilizations and enabling the communication among different nationalities. That?s why, the need to learn english is more and more vital and some parents prefer to teach their children in the immature age of 3-6, namely in kindergarten. Teaching a foreign language in these very young ages is considered to be a nightmare for many teachers because they sometimes find it hard to discipline and instill their knowledge to students who haven?t even got the knowledge of basic things of their mother tongue. Some people consider this idea as a mistake because they believe that it isn?t good for a learner to mix and blender linguistic knowledge from a young age and maybe this will be an obstacle in learning and correctly using the mother tongue in the future. But the linguists admit that learning in this sensitive age is a privilege and gives the opportunity to the learners to absorb and use the second language as if it were their mother tongue. Somebody could say that if the student continues studying for some more years, the result will be astonishing and don?t forget that the correct pronunciation is gained in young ages. The key in teaching 3-year-old children is the interaction and the use of interactive activities. The children should not understand that learning is an obligation so it?s not fun; everything should come through funny activities and everyday situations. Speaking only in english is an easy thing for the instructor because the children can easily understand via actions and mimes. We don?t expect the child to reply to our questions in english but to react; this is the challenge. The children in this age are supposed to play with specific toys and activities; that?s why we should form and decorate the classroom appropriately to attract our little students? attention. We need small desks and stools, funny posters on the walls, a lot of crayons, pieces of paper and toys. The most important thing is for the teacher to realize that teaching these ages is not a common lesson but a game and the students must always be occupied with interesting and creative activities. Songs, coloring pages, role-play games, dance and crafts should be included in the lesson and the teacher should know how to play games with the children. The course books are not recommended as they don?t appeal to young children but the teacher should use stories and flashcards to teach new things. Moreover, the audiovisuals are essential in teaching kindergarten children, because the children love videos and they can easily repeat what their favorite cartoon hero says. To sum up, teaching students in kindergarten is a very creative occupation. The children learn easily and very quickly and this can be very rewarding for the teacher. Furthermore, the teacher should do with ?pure? and loveable students who usually love and obey their teacher. But the teacher has a difficult role at the same time. The little students should be always praised and awarded for their achievements and be encouraged to participate as more as possible, and that?s because young learners love staying focused on things that have nothing to do with the lesson. And the teacher?s role is not restricted only to this. Students in this age are highly influenced by their teachers, so we should pay attention to our behavior and reactions because we can easily hurt their feelings without realizing it or make them hate the foreign language. The last thing to remember is that teaching is a vocation and not a simple profession, and this applies to all students and ages.
