Old techniques, new results
Anna
Silva has been a language teacher for over 20 years in Brazil, teaching in
state and language schools. In this article, she looks at ways of reinforcing
vocabulary and grammar through practical application for young learners.
It seems that
children can learn another language fast; however, they forget as quickly as
they learn. So teachers try to find ways to keep young children interested and
at the same time help them learn and use the knowledge acquired.
Is there a magic
formula to help us?
Over the years, I
have developed several projects and I repeat some of them year after year
because I do see good results. One of these projects is our cookery classes. I
have noticed that cooking really holds the students` attention and helps them
memorize vocabulary related to food and verbs related to instructions. Parents
have also expressed how surprised they are when they are abroad and see their
children mastering the use of simple structures and daily expressions or words.
One of these parents was especially amazed because he saw his son asking a
waiter for a straw as naturally as if he was using his first language.
In our cookery
classes, we follow some steps which I think are crucial to enrich the learning
process: introduce the ingredients/ vocabulary, explain the steps, ask students
to repeat and explain by themselves what was taught, make the recipe, taste,
take a sample home along with the recipe and do a follow-up activity.
As scientists have
emphasized the importance of using as many senses as possible to help our brain
retain the information taught, the classes are completely practical and the
hands-on technique is of crucial importance. Besides this, the very act of
cooking brings joy and a lot of laughter to our classes.
The follow-up
activity can be a simple and entertaining exercise like a crossword puzzle
or ‘match the columns’, ‘circle the ingredients used’ and ‘put the
instructions in the correct order’; but it´s another important step to help
them look over what was taught. Howard Gardner proposed that teachers shouldn’t
give priority to any one type of intelligence, but that, on the contrary, all
types should be catered for in every single class. We can easily follow this
advice in any cooking class because students are asked to listen, read, see,
make things, walk, taste, and speak.
Another project
which complements the cooking class is the gardening project. Every semester,
we teach the vocabulary related to gardening: soil, flowerpot, seeds, etc. After
this traditional teaching, students not only plant the seeds but often follow
their growth. Sometimes we even use them in our cookery classes or just make a
flower pot.
Two of our
gardening experiences were remarkable: planting tomatoes and strawberries. The
tomatoes were used to make a pizza and a smoothie was made with the
strawberries. Flowers were also a good idea, since the violets grown were given
to their mothers as gifts for Mothers’ Day in May.
The cookery
classes help me teach all the vocabulary related to food, which is absolutely
fundamental to everyday conversation. The gardening classes are also helpful,
not only in what refers to food vocabulary, but also in developing
environmental awareness. On Water Day, for instance, we discussed the
importance of water for our existence and elicited ways to save water, as well.
Although I love
using technology in my classes, I do think that nowadays these activities
outside the classroom are a way to surprise students, break the routine and
teach new vocabulary effectively! Why
don´t you give it a try?
Publicado em: http://oupeltglobalblog.com/2012/12/20/old-techniques-new-results/
Publicado em: http://oupeltglobalblog.com/2012/12/20/old-techniques-new-results/
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Aguardo seus comentários.Eles são muito importantes para mim pois meu objetivo é aprofundar conhecimentos e esclarecer minhas próprias dúvidas.