Playground One Introduction

PLAYGROUND INTRODUCTION

Description of the course
is a 3 level course for children from 7 to 10 years of age.
It uses a VAK Visual Audio Kinaesthetic approach to children's teaching.

The course components
Students book
Exercise Book
Teacher's book
Class cassette.

What is VAK Visual Audio Kinaesthetic?
As it's name suggests targets all the senses and how they are used by the language learner .

Why VAK Visual Audio Kinaesthetic?
Studies in Neuro Linguistic programming have shown people learn and acquire language using all their senses. However the senses are not used equally in individuals while in the process of learning; some people have a strong visual sense , others audio while other prefer the kinaesthetic. An approach which targets all three sense areas meets the needs of the differences that are found among language learners.
A VAK approach therefore requires a variety of techniques, activities and topics. As a result Playground is a holistic integrated course making it cross curricular implicit rather than explicit by nature.


Aims and Objectives of the course

children should enjoy their learning experience
to develop an interest in learning languages
that there is a relation between language and communication
to promote realistic child interaction through Play and other child activities.
to give the young learner expressions he /she will realistically want to use.
to help build and develop their confidence as language learners.
to stimulate their curiosity about language


The Syllabus
is lexical with the emphasis heavily focused on meaning. The children are not expected to produce actively the whole lexical content. It is now accepted children need to have a lot of language 'thrown ' at them for a little to stick.
Grammar is not actively taught though certain points are highlighted, when it has been felt appropriate through awareness raising and in the exercises to pave the way for studies in later years

The Lesson Content
Each unit has four lessons explained in notes in the teachers book.
Lessons one and two are the input stages when new vocabulary and structures as lexical units are introduced.

Lesson three is called do you know ? This section's principal function is for children to become aware they can learn through English, it is not just something to learn, it is a vehicle for learning .
It does this by using the language introduced in lessons one and two in a different topic setting, letting the children to see the vocabulary in a different lexical context. At times well known stories are used at others awareness raising techniques and other formulaic expressions related to the topic are introduced.

Lesson four is called Playtime. It recycles the language of the unit using interactive Play. Here the children are taught games, some of which may be familiar to children as games children play have common elements worldwide. The games reflect the four areas of child play traditional, street games, fantasy games and competitive games. Games introduced here are then later used in the course in the other lessons. When this occurs a cross reference system is in operation. It states as at 3.4..vi. This means the activity was first used in unit three , lesson three point six.

There is sufficient material in each lesson for 60 min. . If you teach in 45 min. blocks do not rush the material but split the lessons in two. All the lessons have logical half way stopping points
E.g. lesson two , unit two, the logical split point would be after point iv the speaking Game. When the class is ready to continue with the lesson use the speaking game as the warmer for the lesson.

TECHNIQUES USED IN THE COURSE
The practical application of the techniques highlighted in lesson plans, and are recycled in various ways as mentioned at lesson content lesson four ,however some background knowledge can found to be useful.

T.P.R. Total Physical Response
was first used by James Asher in Southern California.
The principal is based on how babies and very young children learn their first language. They respond to commands given by their mother in a physical non verbal way. In an L2 situation learners can respond without having to produce spoken language as well as developing their listening skills from day one. Classical T.P.R traditional child's games such as Simon Says and integrated it with other EFL techniques are used in the course.

3D Three dimensional presentation.
is a new and refreshing way of presenting dialogues to children. The students of Playground observe and listen to the characters of the course talking about concepts which are concrete for them. In book one the course characters are seen talking, describing , asking questions , about the circus. The students of the course are able to see and hear the new language in a context that is familiar and real to them. The result is easy to implement speaking activities such as role play, surveys and dramas as they can pretend they are the children of the course and repeat the dialogues which the children use.

The Skills Listening Speaking Reading Writing
The main focus in book one is on listening and speaking, with a gentle introduction to reading and writing . Theses will be developed in books two and three
They are taught either by a specific individual focus e.g. the listening activity put your hand up when you hear focusing on listening with T.P.R. or integrated. Integrated skill activities focus on a combination of listening speaking reading and writing.

Making things
Children learn quickly however they also forget quickly. They require some type of personal records. at this stage in their foreign language it would impossible to produce a written record. Their record therefore are more creative and artistic. They make things from simple drawings to play games to more complicated activities.

Awareness Raising
As adults we forget what it was like to be children the no return road of innocence and experience we cannot inexperience what we know. In consequence adults try to make children's language learning easy. The tendency in the past has been to do this not only through have simple vocabulary and structures but by simplistic activities. However, activities must interest and stimulate the child at the same level as they would in their mother tongue. What needs to be simplified is the language, encoded in child friendly concepts E.g. adjectives are defined as describing words and an awareness raising activity in unit 12 lesson 3 do you know describing words. They can classify, be stimulated without knowing the grammatical terms and increase their vocabulary.

Games and Play
are part of the underlying principal of the course. Playing is an everyday activity for children. When they play they experiment, they take risks. Studies have shown that good language learners take risks experiment with new language. By providing them with real play forums, the children can experiment with the new language in a risk taking environment that is comfortable to them. The result is two fold, they can interact in English as part of the game practicing is fun and an a deeper level they are being encouraged to experiment with their new language laying the foundations for a life long confidence in their ability to learn languages.

Supplementary Materials
Pictures are an essential when teaching children. Flashcards can easily be made by cutting pictures from magazines and sticking them on to card. Different coloured card fro different areas e.g. people blue things green, actions yellow is a simple and straightforward coding system to follow.

Use of L1 in the classroom.

L1. Is the abbreviation used to refer to language one, the mother tongue. The use of L1. how much? how often? if? when ? is a contentious issue. However, it is the author's opinion that L2 i.e. the foreign language being learnt, in this case English should be employed when it is realistically possible. Nevertheless there are occasions when it is quicker, more effective and in the long term more beneficial to use L1.e.g. Explaining the rules of a game, in L1 the explanation may take a few minutes, both teacher and pupils are clear what is expected of them. The children play the game, practice their English have fun and feel a sense of achievement. However, if rules are explained in l2, it will take longer, the rules may not be fully understood, resulting in the game being played badly. The children are demotivated because they feel they don't understand the game or the language. My yardstick with children is - if the activity is underlined by a concept it is more beneficial especially in the early stages, to use L1. This philosophy is recognised in Playground. The language required to function, to explain, to play in L2 is actively taught, unit 2 in the classroom, unit 8 game expressions. After they have been introduced it is expected they are incorporated where they would occur naturally in communication. The final decision though will always at the discretion of the class teacher.