How To Understand And Teach Young Learners Better

1. 1
   What Young Learners Want
   Students at this level are just starting their academic careers. School may be intimidating for some of the students in your class so, in order to encourage everyone to participate, it is important to make your lessons relaxed and fun. YL Students will be learning very basic material but you can design creative lessons that get students moving around and speaking with one another. Young learners are generally very enthusiastic about songs, especially if they can sing along, and active games. Be sure to provide lots of encouragement and positive feedback. You want to create a safe, stress-free environment that everyone can enjoy learning in.
   
2. 2
   How Young Learners Behave
   Keep exercises fun and short because these students have short attention spans and are easily distracted. Overacting and projection will help keep the focus on you. Teach students how to behave in a classroom by asking them to be quiet while you are talking and raise their hands if they have questions or want to answer a question. This may not be directly related to ESL but it is important that students learn good behavior early on; it will make their transition to primary school easier. Teach them to respond to basic classroom English phrases such as “Please sit down.” because these are expressions that they will hear repeatedly throughout their study of English. For students at this age, you are responsible not only for starting to teach them English, but also for preparing them for their next level of education. Students will perform better in their classes if they behave well and have a good understanding of basic principles.
   
3. 3
   What To Focus On
   The primary focus of these lessons will be on communication and laying a solid foundation for further English coursework. Students should practice the different sounds of the English language and learn material such as the alphabet, numbers, colors and shapes. You will introduce vocabulary words gradually and may choose to study some simple structures that relate to everyday life too. It could be that reading and writing never enter into your classes but a focus on speaking and listening will help students become more comfortable and confident with English.