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8 ENGLISH TEACHING professional

These days teachers of adultsare frequently being expectedto teach classes of childrenwithout any specialised

training. For many people the prospectcan be daunting. The aim of this articleis to look at some of the main ways inwhich teachers may need to adapt theirapproach when working with children,

doing things in ways they can relate toand understand. Dont assume they willhave the social skills or attitudes wetake for granted with adult learners.

Stay sereneJust as a teachers raised, agitated voicetends to heighten the level ofexcitement and noise, outward calm

Teachers of adults may

need to re-think their

approach when teaching

children. Carol Read

gives some guidelines.

primarily in order to survive, but alsohopefully to thrive!

I still remember vividly an incidentfrom my early days of teaching children many years ago now. I had a class of36 nine- and ten-year-olds in a schoolwhere the desks were nailed to thefloor. Recently qualified and eager totry out new techniques, I got thechildren to do an information gapactivity which required them to mingleand exchange information with othersin their row.

Although the activity started welland the children seemed motivated,what would have been a standardprocedure with adult groups turnedinto chaos. The more I asked thechildren to sit down, the more theymoved about. The more I raised myvoice asking them to be quiet, thelouder the noise level grew. The moreagitated I began to feel, the moreboisterous they became.

I had fallen unwittingly into theclassic trap of allowing my behaviour asa teacher to contribute to, rather thansolve, the problem. I found myselfimposing an emergency dictation inorder to settle the children down againand re-establish control.

From the lessons of this earlyexperience, I developed two personalmaxims for teaching children whichhave stood me in good stead ever since:

Softly softly When introducing children tounfamiliar techniques and ways ofworking, it is important to proceedslowly and gradually. Give reasons for

and a quiet voice finds reflection in thechildrens behaviour and is more likelyto allow you to manage positively andteach effectively.

The first few lessons with a newgroup provide a honeymoon period inwhich you not only build up a positiverelationship with the children, but alsohave a golden opportunity to establish aclear understanding of how you expectand want things to be. Although thedetails will depend on the age of thechildren and will vary from teacher toteacher and culture to culture, the 3Rs(usually reading, writing and rithmetic!)can provide a useful framework forthinking about the parameters youwould like to establish in your childrensclasses. In this case they stand for:Rules, Routines and Responsibilities.

RulesRules establish clear boundaries forchildren, whether they are imposed ornegotiated. While it is usually wise tohave as few rules as possible, makethem explicit, state them clearly, andbe sure that you always apply themfairly and consistently.

RoutinesRoutines establish patterns of familiar,expected behaviour which help childrenfeel secure. Once established, theyprovide a convenient short cut to givinglengthy instructions. Routines mayinclude procedures such as sitting onthe floor in a semi-circle for story time,starting lessons with a physical warm-up, stopping activities at a given signal,giving out materials, or clearing up.

F E A T U R E

The challenge ofteaching children

ENGLISH TEACHING professional 9

ResponsibilitiesResponsibilities may be explicit, withclass rotas for things like giving outmaterials or cleaning the board. Theymay also include things you want toencourage children to do independently,such as remembering their books andhomework, sharing crayons and othermaterials, speaking English in pair andgroup work, taking turns in games andlistening without talking when you oranother child is speaking.

General guidelinesParadoxically, the easiest way to createa relaxed, happy, child-centredteaching/learning environment is byworking systematically and persistentlytowards establishing clear parametersfor behaviour. Although this sometimesrequires a great deal of patience andperseverance, particularly in the earlystages, it is always worthwhile. Thefollowing are useful guidelines:

Treating children as individualsHowever large the class, it is vital thatchildren feel you know and care aboutthem as individuals rather than as agroup to be controlled. This mayinvolve adopting specific strategies, suchas start-of-class routines where you askdifferent children a few questions aboutpersonal things you know about them.

Valuing children and their work By doing things such as listening to whatchildren have to say, responding to thecontent of what they say (rather than justthe language) and decorating theclassroom with displays of work, you helpto enhance childrens self-esteem, andcontribute towards feelings of success.This has a positive influence on theirmotivation and levels of achievement, aswell as on their willingness to co-operateand make an effort in class.

Catching them Being Good (CBG) As well as showing approval for workand effort, it is important to findopportunities to praise children forgood behaviour too. This gives themessage that you value the way childrendo things in class and avoids theimpression that they can only get yourattention in a negative way, throughreprimands when they behave badly.

Keeping expectations highYour expectations of childrensbehaviour and their potential to achieve

are often self-fulfilling prophecies. Keepyour expectations high (although nottoo high!) as children will inevitably liveup to these.

Classroom activitiesSo far, we have focused on establishinga positive working environment withchildren. However, this is alsoinextricably linked to the way classroomactivities are selected and organised.Although many techniques familiar toteachers of adults can be adaptedsuccessfully to childrens classes, anumber of factors need to be kept inmind when deciding on their suitability,or ways in which they can be modified:

Process v product Adult learners can recognise the valueof the process involved in a languageactivity and are willing to suspendbelief . Children are not so generous.They tend to short-cut the process inorder to arrive at the product oroutcome as quickly as possible.

Activity v task Although these terms are often usedinterchangeably, when working withchildren it can be useful to make adistinction. In an activity, the reasonand pleasure are inherent in theactivity itself. In a task, the reason andpleasure are often based on a deferredoutcome. With younger children inparticular, activities which areintrinsically motivating andpleasurable, focusing on the here andnow, are likely to be more successfulthan tasks leading to distant outcomesand postponed gratification.

Teacher-centred v teacher-ledBeing teacher-centred generally has abad name in English languageteaching. However, in the context ofworking with children, this should notbe confused with activities or lessonswhich are teacher-led. It is often vitalthat the teacher gives a clear lead withlots of modelling, in order toencourage the whole class toparticipate in activities in English.

Competition v co-operationAlthough children can appearmotivated by competitive activities, theyare often difficult for the teacher tomanage and can be divisive (or evenupsetting for young children), especiallywhen the same children always seem towin or lose. If you do want to organisecompetitive activities such as teamgames, it is usually more useful to seethese as an opportunity to developsocial skills and co-operation within theteams, rather than to emphasise thecompetition between them.

Stir v settleWhen selecting activities, you need toanticipate their likely effect on thechildrens behaviour. Although it is vitalto include activities involving physicalmovement, these are likely to bestirrers which raise the level of noiseand excitement, so it is important toplan settlers to calm them down again.

Involve v occupyActivities that occupy the children andkeep them busy without engaging theirinterest or developing their thinkingskills have a limited value and quicklylead to children being off-task ordisrupting the class. It is important toselect and organise activities whichinvolve the children and present themwith an appropriate level of challenge,rather than ones which simply occupytheir time.

Language development v wholedevelopmentWhether children are learning Englishat school or as an extra-curricularactivity, the process of learning aforeign language forms part of theirgeneral education and wholedevelopment. Classroom activities andprocedures therefore need to takeaccount not only of childrens languagedevelopment (in L1 and L2), but also offactors in their current stage of social,psychological, emotional and cognitivedevelopment. They also need to linkEnglish to childrens reality andexperience, as well as to other areas oflearning both at home and at school.

Effective learningBearing in mind the above points, themost effective way to help childrenlearn a language is through engagingthem in activities which areappropriately supported, meaningful,

I found myself imposing

an emergency dictation

10 ENGLISH TEACHING professional

language teacher, you are also aneducator. It is largely through your owninvestigation and exploration of theimplications and responsibilities of thisexpanded role, both for you and thechildren, that you will become mosteffective in the classroom. Knowledgeabout good educational practice andchildrens thinking and learning can bepicked up from books. Skills forteaching children can be learnt andimproved through practice. However,there is one fundamental requisite thatunderpins everything that has been saidhere, and that is your own attitudetowards children and whether yougenuinely enjoy being with them, caringfor them and helping them learn.

Carol Read is a teacher,teacher trainer and writerwith many yearsexperience of working withchildren. She has runcourses for teachers andtrainers of young learnersin many different countriesin Europe and LatinAmerica, and is a SeniorConsultant to UCLES in thedevelopment of the newCertificate and Diploma inELT to Young Learners.She is co-author of twocoursebooks for children,Wonderland and EnglishClub, both published byHeinemann.

Key to brain map 1 Full of practice 2 Supported3 Meaningful 4 Purposeful 5 Enjoyable 6 Social

pEETT

The challenge of teaching children

There is constantrepetition andrecycling in differentways and in differentcontexts

All the skillsare involved

All the sensesare involved

There is lotsof exposureto language

By getting children toreflect on their learning By expanding, remodelling

childrens language

By praise

By askingquestionsappropriately

They can understandand relate to thereasons for doing it

It makessense and isrelevant tothe child

It fits into anatural, real orunderstandablecontext

Its wholeand notbitty

It fits withchildrensexperienceof humanintentions

Activities arechallenging(but not toochallenging)

Children aregiven a chanceto work thingsout from whatthey know

It helpsdevelopthinkingskills

Outcomes arevalued (by boththe child andthe teacher)

Activitieslead tosuccess

There is asense of fun

It arousescuriosity

It generatespleasure inlanguage

Children areencouraged to co-operate,respect andhelp each other

There is a naturalreal interaction

Classroomactivities are sharedexperiencesand events

There is asense ofcommunity

Children are givenopportunities tochoose what to say

It sparksinterest andattention

Language isused to dothings

It builds onwhat theyalready know(in life and L1)

By mime,gesture, bodylanguage

By visuals,realia, etc

Differentlearningstyles andstrategiesare cateredfor

6

5

4

1

2

3

We help childrenlearn languagewhen what we askthem to do is ...

purposeful, enjoyable, social and full ofpractice. The brain map summarises myunderstanding, based on my ownreading and experience as a classroomteacher of children. You may like toconsider which word or phrase shouldgo in each space.

Survival and successIn conclusion, although there are anumber of formidable challenges forteachers of adults who convert toteaching children, many existing skillscan be adapted and built on to helpensure both survival (!) and success.When you become a teacher ofchildren, you are no longer just a