Independent learning of English with children from scratch

When to start?

This question is asked by every parent who monitors the correct and complete development of their child. But there is no universal answer. The opinions of teachers differ: some are sure that you need to learn English “from the cradle”, others that you need to get acquainted with a foreign language only after mastering your native one.

You can teach your children English on your own

However, with young children (from birth to 3 years), learning English should only be done in bilingual conditions, if the parents in the family speak two languages ​​or if it is a family of emigrants who speak their native language at home. In this case, the child learns two languages ​​on equal terms, without highlighting either of them.

Teaching English to young children in conditions other than bilingualism does not justify itself.

The age of 3-4 years is ideal to start learning. Children's native speech is already well developed. They quickly learn new information. For this age, repeated repetition of the same material is important.

The main component of success in teaching English from scratch for children lies in the methodology. For preschool children, English classes are conducted only in a playful way.

All classes must be done in a playful way

At this age, parents should teach directly. The home environment only has a positive effect on the learning of young children. It’s great if parents have at least basic knowledge of the English language, then teaching the child independently at home will not be difficult. If mom or dad doesn’t have such knowledge, it’s better to hire a specialized teacher or nanny. Otherwise, there is a risk that the child will lose interest in learning English for a long time.

English in kindergarten

Early learning of foreign languages ​​is learning that is carried out on the basis of an intuitive-practical approach in the period from the birth of a child to his entry into school.

Preschool age is especially favorable for starting to study a foreign language: children of this age are particularly sensitive to linguistic phenomena, they develop an interest in understanding their speech experience, the “secrets” of language. They easily and firmly remember a small amount of language material and reproduce it well. With age, these favorable factors lose their strength.

There is another reason why an early age is preferable for learning a foreign language. The younger the child, the smaller his vocabulary in his native language. But at the same time, his speech needs are also smaller: a young child has fewer areas of communication than an older child, and he does not yet have to solve complex communication problems. This means that when mastering a foreign language, he will not feel such a huge gap between his capabilities in his native and foreign languages, and his sense of success will be more vivid than that of older children.

Teaching children is a very difficult task, which requires a completely different methodological approach than teaching schoolchildren and adults. If an adult speaks a foreign language, this does not mean at all that he can teach others. Faced with methodically helpless lessons, children can develop a long-term aversion to a foreign language and lose faith in their capabilities. Only experienced specialists should work with preschoolers.

The game is both a form of organization and a method of conducting classes in which children accumulate a certain stock of English vocabulary, memorize many poems, songs, counting rhymes, etc.

This form of conducting classes creates favorable conditions for mastering language and speech skills. The possibility of relying on gaming activities makes it possible to provide natural motivation for speech in a foreign language, making even the most basic statements interesting and meaningful. Play in teaching a foreign language is not opposed to learning activities, but is organically connected with it.

In preschool age, when teaching English, children gradually develop the foundations of communicative competence, which at an early stage of learning English includes the following aspects:

• the ability to correctly repeat English words from a phonetic point of view after a teacher, native speaker or speaker, that is, the gradual formation of auditory attention, phonetic hearing and correct pronunciation;

• mastery, consolidation and activation of the English vocabulary;

• mastery of a certain number of simple grammatical structures, construction of a coherent statement.

Play is the leading type of activity for a preschooler, and it is play during this period that leads to the development of the preschooler. Despite the fact that a lot has already been written about children's play, its theoretical issues are so complex that a unified classification of games still does not exist.

Methodology

conducting direct educational activities should be built taking into account the age and individual characteristics of the structure of children’s linguistic abilities and be aimed at their development.

Direct educational activities in a foreign language must be understood by the teacher as part of the overall development of the child’s personality and are associated with his sensory, physical, and intellectual education.

Communication in a foreign language must be motivated and focused. It is necessary to create in the child a positive psychological attitude toward foreign language speech.

A way to create such positive motivation is through play.

Games in direct educational activities should not be episodic and isolated. An end-to-end gaming methodology is needed that combines and integrates other types of activities in the process of language learning.

The gaming technique is based on the creation of an imaginary situation and the adoption by the child or teacher of a particular role.

Educational games are divided into situational, competitive, rhythm-musical and artistic.

To situational

include role-playing games that simulate communication situations on a particular occasion. Role-playing is a play activity during which children act in certain roles, various life situations are played out, for example: seller-buyer, doctor-patient, actor and his fan, etc.

They, in turn, are divided into games of a reproductive nature, when children reproduce a typical, standard dialogue, applying it to a particular situation, and improvisational games, which require the use and modification of various models.

Standard dialogs, for example:

1. Show me (show me) - when the teacher names an object, and the child must go to the card with the image of the desired word and point to it.
2. What's this? The teacher shows the words, the children name the words.
3. What's missing? (what's missing)
4. What doesn't belong? (which is unnecessary)
5. "Magic Mirror" - goal: development of attention. Children wearing animal masks approach the mirror. Several animals are reflected in the magic mirror. Children need to be told who they see and in what quantity. For example: I see a dog. I see five dogs.

Towards competitive

include most games that promote the acquisition of vocabulary and literacy. The winner is the one who has a better command of the language material.

These are all kinds of crosswords, auctions, board and printed games with linguistic tasks, and command execution. Crosswords can be on any topic: animals, fruits, vegetables, furniture, toys, etc. There are different teams. During classes, children can play the game: “Simon says” - the goal of this game is to develop cognitive interests. Children stand next to the teacher. The children's task is to follow the teacher's commands. For example: Hands up! Sit down! Jump! Run! Etc. In the process of playing this game, lexical material of various topics is used.

Rhythm music games

- these are all kinds of traditional games such as round dances, songs and dances with the choice of partners, which contribute not so much to mastering communication skills, but to improving the phonetic and rhythmic aspects of speech and immersion in the spirit of the language, for example: “Nuts and May”, “What's your name” , “I like my friends”, “Heard, shoulders, knees and toes”, etc.

Artistic or creative games

- this is a type of activity that stands on the border of play and artistic creativity, the path to which lies for the child through play. They, in turn, can be divided into

1. Dramatization (i.e. staging small scenes in English) “In the forest” - for example: a fox and a bear meet in the forest, and

a small dialogue is played out (Hello! I'm fox. I can run. I like fish); "Little Red Riding Hood" and others.

2. Visual games, such as graphic dictation, coloring pictures, etc. Coloring pictures

, this is a calming, not always meaningful, but very common activity.
For example, you can show a finished picture. While the child is working with the outline, the teacher repeats the word many times and names the details. Thus, we will lay the foundation for what the child did himself is called in the new language. Graphic dictation
- for example: during classes the children are told what color they paint, and then compare the resulting images with the one the teacher dictated.

3. Verbal and creative ( collective writing of small fairy tales, selection of rhymes)

, For example:

- Back and forth and up and down

In the morning I brush with toothpaste...(teeth - teeth)

— The linden blossoms smell so delicious,

That I licked mine...(lip - lip), etc.

On the border of situational improvisational games and creative dramatization there is such a type of activity as improvisation on the theme of a well-known fairy tale, which has already been played in an established form. For example, the game “Turnip” or “Teremok”, in which, depending on the number of players and the acquisition of new vocabulary, new characters and lines appear.

When choosing or inventing a game to include in a lesson, you must follow the following rules:

1. Before you start the game, answer the following questions: what is the purpose of the game, what should the child learn from it? What speech action should he perform? Can the child construct such a statement? Are there any additional difficulties?

2. Having answered these questions, try to turn into a child yourself and come up with an interesting situation in which a statement based on such a model could arise.

3. Think about how to describe this situation to the child in such a way that he immediately accepts it...

4. Have fun playing with your child yourself! »

The game should be educational, and it should be a game. The Soviet encyclopedic dictionary defines play as a type of unproductive activity, the motive of which lies not in its result, but in the process itself. This is a very important sign. Therefore, when introducing a game in class, its didactic result is important for the teacher, but cannot be an incentive for children’s activities. Consequently, the game should change the very style of relationship between children and the adult teacher, who cannot impose anything: a child can play only when he wants it and when it is interesting to him, and with those who evoke his sympathy.

The teacher cannot only be the organizer of the game - he must play together with the child, because children play with adults with great pleasure and because the game atmosphere is destroyed under the gaze of an outside observer.

And so, we can say that the basis of any game is role-playing.

In a role-playing game, a child can act as himself, an English child or an adult, a fairy-tale character or animal, an animated object, etc. - the possibilities here are unlimited.

His partner can be another child, a teacher, a doll, an imaginary character, an assistant actor, or a second teacher who always plays the same role, etc.

Another one of the most popular methods of teaching a foreign language is the use of information and communication methods

, such as computer hardware, multimedia, audio and more.

The use of audio, video stories, fairy tales, and educational material in direct educational activities contributes to the individualization of learning and the development of motivation in the speech activity of preschoolers. It is the use of ICT in the direct educational activities of a foreign language that develops two types of motivation: self-motivation, when the proposed material is interesting in itself, and motivation, which is achieved by showing the preschooler that he can understand the language he is studying. This brings satisfaction and gives confidence in one’s strength and desire for further improvement.

It is much more interesting to listen to or watch a fairy tale, story or educational film, rather than a training program. Children very quickly grasp the semantic basis of language and begin to speak themselves. Especially if the training method uses complete immersion. This method involves regular and deep contact of the child with a foreign language. The child’s subconscious is unusually receptive, and even if a pronounced result is not visible now, then in a year or two it is quite possible to encounter the child’s unusually developed linguistic abilities.

Audio tales for learning English

When a preschooler’s vocabulary reaches several dozen words, you can diversify direct educational activities with the help of audio fairy tales in English. Audio tales can be divided into:

Audio tales in their purest form. Audio fairy tales are an excellent tool for children learning English. Tiny English stories are a good place to start. For example, with children you can listen to such fairy tales as “Three little kittens”, “Three Little Pigs” or “Too Many Daves”. It is extremely important that the essence of the audio tale is clear, otherwise the child will quickly lose interest. And direct educational activity without interest will not be so fruitful and effective.

Audio tales combined with illustrative material. As the audio tale plays, children and the teacher look at the pictures and at the same time pronounce the words.

Audio tales and the “total immersion” method. To make listening to English audio fairy tales more interesting, you can use one of the methods of fairy tale therapy - drawing a fairy tale. But you will be able to draw while listening if the plot of the fairy tale is at least a little familiar to the child. Therefore, children are given pencils and paper when the fairy tale is heard for the second or third time. The fact is that drawing while listening is a process that affects the deep skills of simultaneous perception and reproduction of information. While drawing, the child forms associative connections with what he hears. Consciously or involuntarily, foreign words are remembered, associated with the plot depicted in the picture. Along the way, you need to pay attention to whether he can simultaneously listen and draw what he heard. At four or five years old, most children do not have the skills to quickly reproduce heard information. But by the age of six, those children who regularly listen and reproduce the information they have just heard in the form of a retelling, drawing, application, etc., develop the ability to simultaneously listen, hear, understand and interpret what they hear.

Videos for learning English

The purpose of the video is to teach English to preschool and early childhood children using the communicative teaching method. The program material is interesting for the child, but at the same time educational. Children become involved in learning about the world around them and, while playing, learn English.

Lexical and grammatical material is introduced in an entertaining way. Not only vocabulary is introduced, but also the action that can be performed with some object is clearly shown, which contributes to the rapid memorization of vocabulary and the development of basic conversational skills in a foreign language.

The presence of a native speaker contributes to the successful acquisition of phonetic material.

Cartoons in English are one of the best helpers in learning English. Children love cartoons and enjoy watching them many times in a row. Therefore, cartoons in English help solve many problems of teaching a foreign language to children at once:

– the child does not ask the question “why learn these words”

— he is interested in watching cartoons and enjoys repeating the phrases of the characters.

Cartoons help a child not only recognize and learn new words, but also learn the sounds of English speech. Repeatability - if a child likes a cartoon, he is ready to watch the same cartoon over and over again until he learns it by heart. Videos for teaching children a foreign language need to be specially selected; it is best to play animated songs and cartoons for children for children aged 2-3 years (for example, videos about Maisy Mouse). It will be much easier for a child to understand such cartoons - due to the accessibility of topics - counting, names of animals, etc. and a calm pace.

So the game

is a game focused on the zone of proximal development, combining a pedagogical goal with an activity motive that is attractive to the child.

Bibliography:

1. Astafyeva M.D. Holidays for children learning English. - M.: Mosaika-Sintez, 2009.

2. Guseva L.P. We play, we learn, we make things - we want to know English. – Rostov n/a: Phoenix, 2009.

3. Zemchenkova T.V., English for preschoolers. – M.: VAKO, 2008.

4. Ivanova M.V. English for kids. – M.: AST: Astrel, 2009.

5. Kozina S.V. Holidays for preschoolers in English. – M.: Sfera shopping center, 2008.

British or American?

Both languages ​​are 97% similar. Residents of both countries understand each other perfectly. So it doesn't matter which variety you choose.

Both languages ​​are equivalent

Modern researchers distinguish a “middle” language between American and British. It is called international because only residents of non-English-speaking countries speak it. Main features of international English:

• neutrality;
• minimal content of slang and idioms.

For children, it is best to choose classic British language. With age, if such a desire arises, you can learn American slang.

Where to begin?

How to teach a child English from scratch on your own? Start with an introductory conversation. Show your child the globe or map. Tell that there are many people living on planet Earth who speak different languages. So, in Russia they speak Russian, in England they speak English, in France they speak French, etc.

Ask what to do for people who speak different languages. After all, they want to be friends, but do not understand each other. Invite the child to imagine that he has come to England and is walking along the street. A boy or girl is walking towards you. They greet: “Hello! My name is Pam." Tell us how to greet in return. The situation can be played out with the help of dolls many times.

All about cognitive development in preschool educational institutions

Important! Clearly distinguish between English and Russian speech. Be sure to warn your child that they will now speak English.

Teaching English to 7-year-old children – what to focus on

Teaching English to 7-year-old children is more varied and complex than that of preschoolers. Most of the students already know how to write, know the Russian alphabet, count and read. Classes with children are based on expanding their vocabulary and learning the basics of the language. Lessons are still built on immersion in the environment, games and interesting tasks.

Read on the website: English for children from 3 years old

At home, parents can learn new words, their pronunciation and spelling on visual cards. With the help of creativity, we will be able to master concepts about the world around us and the actions that we perform every day. Parents can teach their child to listen to information in a foreign language, including cartoons, movies, songs and books. On the Internet, you can choose poems, idioms and fixed expressions for study that can be useful in life. It is important not only to memorize, but also to explain the meaning, to select information that will be interesting to the child. The simplest knowledge that parents can give without effort or preparation is the English alphabet. The child will be able to improve his knowledge for school and prepare for further language learning:

How to learn the English alphabet for 7 year old children

4 visual methods are considered simple ways to learn the English alphabet for 7-year-old children:

1) cards. Each letter is written separately and has a picture that represents an object, a character that begins with it. You can learn the alphabet by systematically showing cards and calling out the letters;

2) a music poster, a children's tablet with letters for correct pronunciation, audio and visual perception;

3) puzzles. A mosaic with a letter and a second part with a picture will help you quickly master not only letters, but also some words;

4) floor mat with letters and cards. The adult takes out a letter from a stack of cards, names it, and the child finds the same one on the rugs on the floor and stands on it.

Sample plan for an English lesson from scratch

Goals: Introduction and consolidation of new sounds and structures; developing interest in learning English.

Educational material. Sounds: consonants [l], [n], [z], [h], [m]; vowels , [ai], [ei].

Speaking structures: Hello! I'm Mike (replaced with the child's name).

Structures for understanding: What's your name? Goodbye.

Start of class

Articulation gymnastics. After greeting Hello! tell a fairy tale about the tongue's house. Ask to feel with the tip of your tongue the floor, ceiling, walls of the house - the upper and lower alveoli, the inside of the cheeks.

The Tale of the Tongue

Say the sounds [l], [n], [z]. When practicing the sound [h], exhale lightly so that you don’t end up with a Russian [x]. Let the child show how quietly his tongue breathed when he slept.

This is how you need to work out each sound and diphthong. Understanding the description of the articulation of sounds is inaccessible to children 3-4 years old, so it is very important how the parents themselves pronounce the sounds and how the baby repeats. You should not encourage the incorrect pronunciation of a sound.

Note! If your child is unable to repeat something, you can postpone the lesson for a while. It is better to work on developing the articulatory apparatus in Russian.

Practicing the Hello! Getting to know new structures What's your name? Goodbye

For the lesson, it is better to prepare a doll and a soft toy in advance. At the next stage of the lesson, we need to play out the situation of greeting, meeting and farewell on our own. It is important to translate all words in English for children.

Sing a song: -Hello! —Hello! -What's your name? -What's your name? —I'm Mike. - I'm Jane. That's my name.

End of class. Game "Echo"

You can repeat all the learned sounds by playing the game “Echo”. Let the child repeat it like an echo with every sound he makes.

Saying goodbye to a toy - you can prepare a treat in advance that the toy will give as a farewell gift. This will stimulate interest in learning a foreign language.

How to choose English courses for children 7 years old

Parents cannot always independently provide the necessary language knowledge to their child. In addition, contact, communication in a group, and support from friends are necessary. English courses for children 7 years old should be selected according to the following parameters:

1. Teacher training. The course program must be adapted to age, and the teacher must have a certificate for teaching children, for example, TKT in the YLE module, and an Advanced level of spoken language and higher;
2. Schedule. English courses must fit into the child’s routine, his school and extracurricular program of sections;
3. Suitable program. If language learning has begun at school, it should overlap with the courses, or be slightly behind them, so that the child does not get confused in the new knowledge;
4. The presence of a game, the process of immersion in the environment. Education should be based on play, an entertaining process that will be interesting to a small child.

What not to do?

• use any study guide with boring tasks. For preschool children, it is better to choose visual and demonstration material (cartoons, songs, toys, video lessons);
• conduct the lesson at the table. Due to their age, children cannot stay in one position for a long time. Repeat the material while sitting on the floor. Play out situations with outdoor games at home;

Learn English by playing

• learn to read and write. It is too early to introduce a 3-5 year old child to the English alphabet and transcription. The emphasis should be on conversational speech;
• learn the English alphabet. Very often, parents and some teachers teach their children a song of the English alphabet. But in the end it turns out that this is absolutely unnecessary, since in English the letters do not coincide with the sounds;
• demand quick results. This is the most common mistake among parents. They want the child to start speaking or reading English as quickly as possible. Most often, at the initial stage of training, the results are not noticeable. It's all about the so-called period of silence, when the child accumulates new information, building up a passive vocabulary. Only after the child understands English enough will he begin to use it in speech;
• focus on specific words or topics. The only benefit from such training is memory training. Remember that a child has no goal in itself to know a foreign language. He perceives it as a tool for communication, so you need to teach the child as many speech clichés as possible;
• Use only English in English classes. It is very important to teach kids not only correct pronunciation, new phrases and words, but also to sing songs, dance, play, do physical education, glue, draw, etc.;
• simplify a foreign language. Teach your child to speak beautiful and competent English. Young children do not always understand everything in their native language, however, we do not simplify it. So how is a foreign language different?! Order classic literature and fairy tales in English for your child and make it a habit to read them before bed;
• punish the child. For successful classes, you need to create a favorable and friendly environment. Stress prevents a child from developing normally.

Types of thinking in preschool children

How to study English with a 7-year-old child: life hacks for parents

Teaching younger schoolchildren should be similar to classes with preschoolers; the main difference lies in the variety of material presented. If children of 3 years old cannot yet read independently and are not assiduous, then first-graders already have reading skills and are accustomed to spending 40 minutes at lessons. The core of the classes continues to be immersion in the natural environment and play.

To solve the question of how to study English with a 7-year-old child, you can pay attention to 5 principles for constructing lessons:

• Naturalness. The same principle of immersion in the natural environment of communication, which abolishes memorization, painstaking hours over textbooks and involves daily actions that are familiar or interesting to the child. For example, you can welcome guests by setting up a puppet theater, or hold a tea party for soft toys, organize your own supermarket for friends, or do exercises;
• Visuality. Actions, objects, names must be visually illustrated, shown to the child live, on print or electronically;
• Complexity. The child is already old enough to develop in different ways, so the lesson should present the material through games, text, video, audio, live communication and other methods. Children remember and transfer knowledge to paper using letters and text;
• Creative. The more interesting the lesson is, the easier and faster the child will be able to remember the information presented. Draw a picture and explain its parts, colors, actions in it. Do a craft or role-play, conduct a lesson in nature. The student will absorb, like a sponge, everything that interests him;
• Regularity . English classes should be repeated at the same time so that the child develops the habit of studying. In order for a student to relax and immediately get involved in the learning process, it is important to introduce rituals from the first day. For example, a bell for class and after it, exercises or a funny song at the beginning of class.

Games for children 7 years old in English: a selection of the best

The process of teaching language to primary schoolchildren should be vibrant and interesting, so it is important to accompany it with games. Among the easiest ways to engage a child are the following games for children 7 years old in English:

• Please show me. (Please show me..). The child is presented with pictures with completed objects and animal actions, the names are spoken in English and asked to indicate the appropriate option;
• Who is bigger. (As many as you can) A word or phrase is taken as a basis. You need to come up with other options from the letters in 3 minutes. Whoever managed more won;

Read on the website: Children's English

• Antonyms. (Opposites.) The leader throws the ball and says a word for which the child must come up with an antonym;
• Find a color, name the shade. (Colours.) The presenter gives the task to find something of a certain color from the surrounding objects; if necessary, you can name the shades of the object.
• Smartness. The presenter calls the action, the players must show it;