Teaching Beginners
When Teaching Beginners you should work on the principle that any detailed or elaborated explanation - particularly grammar explanations, will be too complicated for them.
Making your explanations become part of the lesson and part of the learning process is good teaching practice.
Remember, stating things simply (while maintaining accuracy) is anything but patronizing - it is showing empathy and sensitivity to students who have very minimal skills in English and who will feel overwhelemed and discouraged if you give them tasks they are unable to succeed in or use English they cannot understand.
Contents |
Tips
- Keep it simple
- Talk about everyday things familiar to the student
- No grammar if you can avoid it
- Introduce just 5 or so words per lesson
- Introduce then practice. Then practice some more. And some more.
- Keep it simple (again)
Rule of Thumb
A good rule of thumb is to avoid grammatical terminology and difficult jargon with Beginner classes. Grammar terms can be used later as a kind of shorthand explanation with Intermediate groups and upward.
For true Beginners all the activities should be oral. It is vital for your students to have every opportunity to learn some language!
Also always try to involve your students in practicing language skills as soon as possible.
Move from what they know to what you want to teach them by adding one small language item at the time and reinforcing it with practice, practice, and more practice.
Teaching Vocabulary
When teaching new vocabulary, try and avoid activities that practice one word over and over. Instead introduce words (or structures) with which your students are already familiar with and add the new element on to develop the practice. There can be nothing more boring than for students to have to do 3 or 4 activities all aimed at practicing the same word or structure.
Learning a language is an ongoing process. We add on new elements one by one, but we need to practice the elements we have already learnt and practice them with the new elements we are learning now.
Visual aids are excellent – picture or real things (realia), models or drawings. Models are good, and physical activity by the students themselves can be fun.
Start simple conversations with your studetns and then get them in pairs or groups to have the conversations among themselves. The first activity may be limited, but it will get them started and you can develop other practical activities for them.
