English language games – Let the fun begin!
I think sometimes it’s easy to slide into the pitfall of either treating kids like adults or treating them as a solitary unit. Children are neither of these two options and that is something I love most about them!
Some might have really short attention spans when compared with grown-ups however they also simply soak up education like a sponge, without having lots of the preconceptions and doubts that cause adults to falter in their learning.
This is the reason ESL beginners are a real joy to instruct and can make your job as a teacher so fulfilling. It’s crazy if you think that when kids are motivated and interested they could retain around 80% of a language lesson – this places them miles in front of the majority of adults!
Here are a couple of ideas and tips when doing English language games with your students. This is to ensure that you’re giving kids the most appealing learning experience possible and getting the most reward out of your time with them as you can.
Make English language games as fun as possible
1. The very first tip is to show patience!
This may sound like an obvious one… who would educate children should they did not have patience? Yet at times the best motives are tested when kids start getting restless within your lesson. ESL classes, as with any early development classes have to be set up to accommodate kids having numerous breaks and a lot of activities. Kids have brief attention spans but, by planning with this in mind, you’ll be able to stay away from feeling frustrated.
2. Keep levels of energy up!
This is the reason lecture style English teaching materials have quite low effectiveness. When looking at an hour or so of reproducing key phrases, children just lose almost all their vitality. This is such a shame as there is practically nothing more entertaining than a gang of vitalized, enthusiastic students. For this reason, English language games along with other activity-centered lessons are a much better choice for instructing kids languages. I think they’re almost certainly a better way of teaching different languages to grown-ups too!
3. Modify your activities
This is to permit for as many different learning styles as possible. Children are just like us in that they all learn diversely and respond far better to different styles of teaching. For instance, certain children react well to singing or dancing. While other children just generally wish to read. Others enjoy craft time or perhaps resolving challenges in some way. If you recognize various learning styles it’s fairly simple to adapt your lesson strategy and activities to add as many as feasible.
Good to Read: Helpful ESL Activity: 19 Alphabet Riddles For Your Students
4. A total physical response!
This is actually the technical phrase for keeping kids moving around! For this reason, English language games as an alternative to more immobile activities are acknowledged as the simplest way to educate ESL children in lessons. Once you get a kid moving, whether it’s jumping, skipping, or running they’ll have a lot more enjoyment and become much more enthusiastic about learning. In my experience, physical games generally have the magic ingredient for any class – laughter!
5. Be culture-sensitive
Attempt to make sure what you are teaching is within the framework of the child’s culture. If you’re residing in a country that has a beach lifestyle, design your game about going swimming and coast life. If the county is dependant on ranches and livestock commerce, integrate cows and horses in your game. As a result, you will be enabling kids to connect something fresh with something they understand, which can make everything a lot more understandable for them.
And so whenever you plan your ESL beginners lesson don’t forget the magic ingredients – patience, energy, motion, and cultural context! English language games can help with the engagement levels but you’ll have to bring the patience!
Article Source: https://www.articlesbase.com/education-articles/english-language-games-are-the-best-ways-to-teach-esl-children-4529164.html
About the Author
Karlee is PASSIONATE about teaching English language games to ESL children! She has a great LOVE for kids and thrives on creating ESL exercises for beginners. Follow her on twitter @ESLchildren
