Teach English in YunhexiJiedao - Tianjin

Teaching EFL in a KindergartentDuring my last trip to Hong Kong I was privileged enough to be invited by a school to observe EFL being taught to Kindergarteners. My initial thought was, ?it shouldn?t be that hard to teach english to a bunch of Kindergarteners.? To my surprise, the first class I observed proved me wrong. Teaching EFL to Kindergarteners can be a fun and fulfilling experience but it can also be very challenging and difficult especially if the teacher isn?t well prepared to handle certain issues that arise when teaching such young students. Teaching a regular Kindergarten class, in general, already requires a very unique approach. This applies even more so when teaching EFL to Kindergarteners. First and foremost, it is imperative that the EFL teacher has the highest level of patience, supportiveness and dedication required to effectively teach EFL in a Kindergarten. Teachers lacking these important traits can drastically impede the learning process of the students and they can also affect the child?s confidence in learning EFL. A prevalent factor to consider when teaching Kindergarteners is their attention span. Kindergarteners have very short attention spans and it can be quite a challenge keeping them interested and focused especially when the language being taught is so foreign to them. The EFL teacher must always take this into consideration in order to maintain a high level of interest from the students. Activities should be short but fun and exciting adding games, visual aids and energetic songs that get the children up and moving about diverting them from boredom. EFL activities should also be incorporated with playtime since children learn through play. When teaching EFL to Kindergarteners it is also important for teachers to be as animated as possible. Teachers new to teaching EFL in a Kindergarten may find it a bit awkward and embarrassing at times but the effectiveness and positive reactions from the students enables them to be more engaged in what is being taught. There can be instances when students begin to misbehave or be disruptive in class. Reasons for such behavior can include boredom, lack of interest, lack of confidence, lack of motivation, or the student simply just doesn?t like the teacher. Whatever the case may be, it is imperative that the teacher develops their own style in having good classroom management that is in compliance with the school?s rules and regulations. When it comes to having good classroom management it is important that the EFL teacher establishes themselves as being firm, fair and consistent while continuously praising and encouraging good behavior to earn their students? trust. Amidst all the challenges of teaching EFL to young students, why teach EFL to Kindergarteners? A study has shown that Kindergarten students who speak another language at home learned more english vocabulary than Kindergarteners who were native english speakers. Furthermore, according to The Elementary School Journal, the non- native english speaking Kindergarteners, ?could provide definitions for more words compared to the native english speaking Kindergarteners.? Another study made by Harvard Graduate School of Education Assistant Professor Nonie Lesaux found that non- native english speaking children can learn to read english just as well or even better than native english speaking children. According to Professor Nonie Lesaux, these studies show that non-native english speaking children are ?much more tuned into the language? and ?were doing a lot more work around the language than the monolinguals, for whom language is much more unconscious.? Teaching EFL to Kindergarteners gives them a solid foundation which would drastically benefit them during their future studies and it is the duty of EFL teachers to tap into the young students obvious potential and eagerness to learn.