# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Effective Assessment in the Primary Classroom - Sarah Rogerson | ELTOC Chapter 5 2023

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Austin's Butterfly: Models, Critique, and Descriptive Feedback

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
My 5 Most Successful Classroom Management Strategies| Principal Approved

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
A three-phase process helps build strong teacher-student bonds, which can reduce disruptive behavior.

©Shutterstock/Monkey Business Images

It's a daunting but all-too-common sight for many teachers: A classroom full of rowdy students who are unable to focus on the lesson. Classroom management techniques may get things back on track, but valuable time has already been lost.

Many experienced teachers know that making meaningful connections with students is one of the most effective ways to prevent disruptions in the first place, and a new study set out to assess this approach. In classrooms where teachers used a series of techniques centered around establishing, maintaining, and restoring relationships, academic engagement increased by 33 percent and disruptive behavior decreased by 75 percent-making the time students spent in the classroom more worthwhile and productive.

"Strong teacher-student relationships have long been considered a foundational aspect of a positive school experience," explains Clayton Cook, the lead author of the study and a professor at the University of Minnesota. When those relationships are damaged, student well-being may be affected, leading to academic and behavioral problems.

In the study, teachers used an approach called Establish-Maintain-Restore to build positive interactions with students-a total of 220 in fourth and fifth grade-and boost their sense of belonging. (A follow-up study with middle school teachers used the same strategies, with similar results.) Relationship-building was broken down into three phases: the first meeting, maintenance throughout the school year, and points when a relationship may suffer damage, with useful strategies for each phase.

Since it can be easy for some students to fall through the cracks, a relationship reflection form-like the one we share here-can help teachers take notes on each individual student and highlight ones who need the most attention.

Starting on a Positive Note

At the start of the school year, the teachers in the study made time for establishing relationships. "The goal is to ensure all students feel a sense of belonging that is characterized by trust, connection, and understanding," Cook and his colleagues explain. For students with learning or behavioral problems, cultivating positive relationships provided "protective effects" that helped them stay focused on learning.

"Bank time" with students. Schedule one-on-one meetings with students to get to know them better. The goal is to "make deposits into the relationship" to help ease conflict in the future if you have to give constructive feedback or address disruptive behavior.

Encourage student-led activities. Students feel more invested in their learning if given opportunity to share their interests. Teachers can step aside, be supportive, and listen.

Welcome students into the classroom. Activities such as positive greetings at the door and icebreaker questions help create a warm classroom culture.

Use positive communication techniques. Open-ended questions, reflective listening, validation statements, expressions of enthusiasm or interest, and compliments help students-especially shy or introverted ones-ease into classroom discussions.

To establish positive relationships, teachers can:

Maintaining Relationships

Without active maintenance, relationships deteriorate over time, the study authors point out. Teachers may focus too much on academics and not enough on supporting students' emotional well-being, slowly using up the banked time they initially built up with students.

Take note of positive and negative interactions with students. Teachers should aim for a five-to-one ratio.

Regularly check in with students. Ask how they're doing and what support they may need. In an Edutopia article, Todd Finley explains how 5x5 assessment time helped him focus on a handful of students every day.

Acknowledge good behavior. When teachers focus attention on positive conduct, disruptive behavior is stemmed before it becomes an issue.

Teachers can maintain relationships by continuing to implement the strategies above, and in addition they can:

Repairing Harm Before Things Get Worse

Eventually, negative interactions such as misunderstandings, conflict, or criticism can weaken a teacher-student relationship. If these negative interactions are left unaddressed, students may feel disengaged and be less willing to participate in activities. They may also be more likely to misbehave, creating further damage. So it's important for teachers to "intentionally reconnect" with students to restore the relationship to a positive state.

Let go and start fresh. Teachers should avoid holding mistakes over a student's head, instead giving them a chance to start each day with a clean slate.

Take responsibility for their actions. Teachers can avoid blaming students when things go wrong, and think, "What could I have done to avoid the problem in the first place?" They shouldn't be afraid to apologize when that's called for-doing so helps build trust with students.

Show empathy. There are two sides to every story, and a teacher can acknowledge that students may have a different perspective about what happened.

Focus on solutions, not problems. Teachers can work with students to find a solution that everyone feels is fair.

Separate the deed from the doer. It's important to criticize the behavior, not the person. If teachers label children as "problem students," there's a danger that they'll internalize that label, making it more likely that they'll repeat the behavior in the future.

When relationships need repair, teachers can:

The takeaway: Effective classroom management starts with relationship building. When students feel a greater sense of belonging, they're more likely to be academically engaged and demonstrate positive behavior.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The Key to Effective Classroom Management

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
A three-phase process helps build strong teacher-student bonds, which can reduce disruptive behavior.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
My 5 Most Successful Classroom Management Strategies| Principal Approved

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Observe experienced Froebel teachers working with children during this day-long teacher-training event from 2017.

Friedrich August Wilhelm Froebel (1782-1852)

Friedrich Froebel revolutionized education by developing the first widely accepted method for early childhood education. His Kindergarten was intended as a prepared environment in which children were nurtured by parents and teachers as gardeners of the child's potential. Over the last 150 years there has been a great deal of misuse and misunderstanding of his original intention.

This site is a resource for those who wish to understand the core ideas of Froebel's Kindergarten and how to apply them to homeschool or early childhood environments.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Observe experienced Froebel teachers working with children during this day-long teacher-training event from 2017. Friedrich Froebel revolutionized education by developing the first widely accepted method for early childhood education. His Kindergarten was intended as a prepared environment in which children were nurtured by parents and teachers as gardeners of the child's potential.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Froebel’s Kindergarten: The Origins of Early Childhood Education

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
This guessing game is a great activity to get your students speaking and listening by describing common fruits and vegetables using vocabulary from the following categories: Season, color, adjectives, fruits, vegetables. Your students will have a blast guessing the food!

Sometimes it's difficult for students to organize their vocabulary words in order to accurately describe a fruit or vegetable. For this reason, I've included a student brainstorming worksheet where words can be brainstormed and written down before the activity or as a homework assignment the day before.

Included in this set there is also flip book where word "hints" are provided in case they get stuck and don't know how to describe the word or if students are doing the activity on their own in groups without the help of a teacher. It's a great "Ice breaker activity" and is also a fantastic way to review vocabulary. This game is always a hit in my ESL classes.

What's included in this download:

12 different Fruit "What am I?" cards

12 different Vegetable "What am I" cards

Descriptive Vocabulary Brainstorming Worksheet

B & W flapbook

full color flap book

This resource is also available for purchase on Teacher Pay Teachers. If you prefer to purchase it there, follow this link.

How to assemble and use this resource:
After printing the resource, I recommend laminating the cards and flap book before cutting. This increases durability and ensures that you can continue using this set again and again. The student brainstorming worksheet can be printed in black and white and attached to student notebooks.

How will you receive the resource?
After your payment has processed you will be redirected to a download page where you can immediately download the file and save it to your computer. You will also receive an email containing a link to the resource.
* Due to the digital nature of this product. Hot Chocolate Education does NOT offer refunds. Once the product has been downloaded, it can't be returned and refunds can not be issued.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Fruit and Vegetable Guessing Game for Young Learners - What am I?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
This guessing game is a great activity to get your students speaking and listening by describing common fruits and vegetables using vocabulary from the following categories: Season, color, adjectives, fruits, vegetables. Your students will have a blast guessing the food! Sometimes it's difficult for students to organize their vocabulary words in order to accurately describe a fruit or vegetable.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
“Taqdimot (9)” faylini siz bilan ulashmoqdaman

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.provider_name
World of Better Learning | Cambridge University Press

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
It's difficult to find a teacher of young learners who does not believe that lessons should be fun. While having fun should not be the main educational objective of a lesson, it certainly can bring a smile during a long day of study, increase motivation to learn, and provide some relief from the challenges and pressure of learning (and teaching). So, let's look at 5 fun activities to make sure everyone enjoys the classroom!

The idea of fun is complex. We all have different ideas of what is fun, and so do our young learners. When trying to bring fun into the classroom, we must be careful to choose a variety of activities so that everyone gets their own moments of joy while learning.

McManus and Furnham (2010) have researched types of fun that people have, and while their study did not focus specifically on young learners of English, it inspired me to think about planning for different kinds of fun in the young learner classroom.

Idea 1: Plan for Sociability

This type of fun is the kind we feel when we are 'hanging out' with friends. It is the joy we get from light-hearted interaction and cooperation. Having this type of fun in class can simply be accomplished by letting students work together on tasks and exercises instead of always going it alone. It is the type of fun that children have when they play games in their own groups, not as whole classroom competition.

Source: Fun Skills Level 5

Take for example this coursebook vocabulary activity. There is an opportunity for sociability here, and if we look at the suggestions from the Teachers' book, we can see how leading into this activity can provide this kind of fun:

Source: Fun Skills Level 5 Teachers' Book

Modeling the game and then letting the learners play it their own small groups for five minutes brings in this kind of fun in the classroom before the book is even open and provides a great lead-in to the first activity in the pupil's book.

Idea 2: Plan for Contentment

The idea of contentment-type fun is the feeling that some of us get while listening to music or gardening. With young learners, helping them to recognize their contentment and pleasure for being in the moment can be done simply by listening to songs or expressing themselves through coloring. Bringing in activities for mindfulness and gratefulness can help teach students at this age to feel the fun of contentment.

Even bringing in extensive reading where the focus is on giving students time to read for pleasure (not to pass a comprehension test) can bring this type of enjoyment into the classroom. As teachers, we often like to reward students with a game, but why not sometimes reward them with time to read something they want?

Idea 3: Plan for Achievement

This type of fun involves reflection of accomplishment after something that was difficult or challenging. A sense of achievement is something that can really motivate young learners. This is especially true if we are preparing learners to sit exams. One idea to bring this kind of fun in the classroom is to let students keep a portfolio of work that they are proud of.

The important thing is that they get to choose what goes in this folder or box, whether it is some piece of work that got a high mark or a picture they colored that was part of a task. It is a way that they can look back and visibly see how much they have learned. Also, training students to be good at self-evaluation can lead to this kind of fun, and for more on this, watch Jane Ritter's webinar: Self-Evaluation With Young Learners.

Idea 4: Plan for Sensory Fun

Many young learners, even older ones, enjoy using all their senses. One way to engage the senses is to make use of videos, which connect to the senses of sight and hearing and provides multimodal input. Getting tactile and incorporating the use of touch in class can also be fun. One thing I enjoyed using as a teacher was homemade playdough. Students could play games where they had to make shapes with the playdough and have others guess it, or it could even be used to create 3-dimensional visuals for story telling or role-plays.

Idea 5: Plan for Energetic Fun

This is the kind of fun that many people think of when we think about bringing fun into our classes. We need this type of fun, but I think it is important not to over-do it. While so many of our students do enjoy this type of fun, some would rather be in the corner reading the book (I speak from personal experience here).

Energetic fun is great to break up longer lessons or help students relieve that built up energy. I think it is even more powerful when it is incorporated into the lesson and not just offered as an extra or a reward.

From the Using Fun Skills Animations - Teacher Guide, available at World of Fun.
This is also the type of fun that fits with action songs and stories with movement. Teachers should remember that when planning a lesson that is going to have energetic fun, they need to also carefully consider how they will transition to other parts of the lesson.

Putting it all together

It would not be possible to plan for every type of fun to be in every lesson. The key to making sure every learner can enjoy the classroom is to make sure we are varying the type of fun we plan for in our lessons. Giving students the chance to experience the feeling of contentment or the pride of achievement is just as important as giving them the exciting experience of an action-packed game.

References

McManus, Ian & Furnham, Adrian. (2010). "Fun, Fun, Fun": Types of Fun, Attitudes to Fun, and their Relation to Personality and Biographical Factors. Psychology. 01. 159-168.
For more FUN ideas for to use in your classroom, check out Claire Medwell's 5 FUN stories for nurturing universal values in the young learner classroom.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
5 FUN Activities For Young Learners | Cambridge English

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
It's difficult to find a teacher of young learners who does not believe that lessons should be fun. While having fun should not be the main educational objective of a lesson, it certainly can bring a smile during a long day of study, increase motivation to learn, and provide some relief from the challenges and pressure of learning (and teaching).

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.authors[].name
ITTT International TEFL & TESOL Training

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
11 Fun ESL Activities for Young Learners | Teach & Live abroad!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
4 Design Tips for Building Better Learning Materials

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Strategies for Effective Lesson Planning | CRLT

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
A lesson plan is the instructor’s road map of what students need to learn and how it will be done effectively during the class time. Before you plan your lesson, you will first need to identify the learning objectives for the class meeting. Then, you can design appropriate learning activities and develop strategies to obtain feedback on student learning. A successful lesson plan addresses and integrates these three key components:

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Sociology Research Methods: Crash Course Sociology #4

# data[].attributes.headline
One of the way of motivating for young learners is giving a mark or giving some interesting stamps or stickers . 

# data[].attributes.subject
One of the way of motivating for young learners is giving a mark or giving some interesting stamps or stickers . 

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Can you remember the first time you truly felt motivated to do something? What were you motivated to do? What was it that motivated you?

The answers will vary greatly, from those who felt motivated to simply succeed because they were told they couldn't, to others who were motivated by financial gain. Some may have first experienced the feeling because they knew exactly what they wanted to do as a career for the rest of their life, and the thrill and enjoyment of knowing they were doing something they loved was supreme motivation.

Anyway, the specific answer doesn't really matter, but the point I'm getting to is, how do you spark that type of motivation in a child? How do you encourage someone who hasn't really reached a level of pride to develop an "I'll show you" mentality, or one who doesn't really care yet about earning anything financially, or what they want to do when they get older?

With kids, they know and are engrossed with what's in front of them, and don't really pay any mind to what might be waiting years or even weeks down the road.

So, how do you motivate such young learners? Both those who need a spark to get started, and those who need a kickstart to curb back to school burnout.

I'm speaking from the perspective of a parent because that's what I know and have experience with-how to motivate kids to work on their own without being told; how to motivate kids to continue learning from home the things they're learning at school; how to motivate kids to learn things they might not ever even learn in school.

All of that said, some of the general guiding points can be applied - to an extent - inside the classroom as well, with the overall goal, no matter who is reading this, to motivate children to keep moving themselves forward.

How to motivate young learners

1. Ask questions

Of course, we say a lot of things like kids "can't," "don't," or "won't," but sometimes we don't know, and are just guessing or assuming. In this case, it might be the thinking that "No, that wouldn't motivate my student," but do we really know that?

The best way to approach it, then, is to ask. Ask them what they enjoy, what they are learning about, and how they like learning about those things.

Of course, we can't let young learners dictate their days, but if we know there is so much in front of them that they should be learning, is there any harm in asking what they want to learn about today, and then asking again tomorrow in hopes that their answers change as they progress?

Now, if the answer is always the same, and kids aren't motivated to learn anything but the one thing they keep mentioning, then it's time to move on to another approach.

2. Connect learning with their interests

It's a basic idea but one we seem to overlook at times. For instance, if I want my son to read more at home, I can probably increase his motivation to do so by giving him books about Lightning McQueen and other Pixar characters.

There are countless examples and opportunities in this regard, and it doesn't mean you have to go out and "buy all the things." You might, however, have to use your imagination at times to think about how something like baseball can help kids learn arithmetic, or how to replace video games with different yet related hobbies, etc.

3. Play to their curiosities

What is one thing most kids are above anything else? Curious. "Why," "why," "why;" and "when;" "but what about XYZ.," etc.

Once a certain age is hit, the questions come fast and furious. And, no answer is good enough, and "just because" is more of an invitation for additional questions than it is the conversation-stopper you had hoped it would be.

So, use that to your advantage. Introduce something new and see what happens. Put something in front of young learners without context or conversation other than "here you go," and see what happens. You might get further by saying less, and allowing kids' curiosities fuel the questions, which in turn can fuel their motivation.

4. Introduce gamification

Gamification is powerful for all of us of at any age. For kids, it offers a built-in motivation system.

Meaning, many kids might not be motivated because they don't know what they don't know. A gamification system introduces structure, and dangles a carrot. Now they see what's in front of them; they see their progress, and make the connection between that progress and attainment, and are then motivated to engage.

5. Try different types of learning

Even just a few years ago, you hear "learning" and you might immediately think school, or even only think school. But today, education is much different, and comes in many different shapes and sizes.

So, if kids aren't motivated from their everyday schooling, give online tutoring a shot, or if during the summer and looking for inspiration, a virtual summer camp. There are also after school centers, self-paced online education portals, school clubs, and so much more.

6. Give them feedback, on the good and bad

Last, the ultimate piece, right? Encourage the good behaviors and extinguish the bad. The benefits of offering praise are obvious-it reinforces the behavior, makes kids feel good, and motivates them to achieve that feeling more and more.

And then, when you see them heading down the wrong path, letting them know starts to build accountability, and from that accountability comes the motivation to want to please and show us as parents that they are capable of doing what's being asked of them.

You're already on the right track

Meaning if you're here and researching how to motivate your child or student to learn more, or even better, to want to learn more, you're already on the right track. There are a ton of variables at play here, so some things will work, and some won't at all.

But, as parents or as educators, naturally, we will continue to try and do what's best for our young minds, so perhaps the final tip is to just simply give ourselves a break, and try to look at things not through the lens of "what am I doing wrong" and instead "it's only a matter of time."

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
How to Motivate Young Learners | Examples & Ways to Inspire at Home & School

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Can you remember the first time you truly felt motivated to do something? What were you motivated to do? What was it that motivated you? The answers will vary greatly, from those who felt motivated to simply succeed because they were told they couldn't, to others who were motivated by financial gain.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Teaching Methods for Inspiring the Students of the Future | Joe Ruhl | TEDxLafayette

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Role-playing exercises can be hard work for the instructor, both in preparation and in execution, but the work tends to pay off in terms of student motivation and accomplishment. As with any big project, it's best to take it one step at a time:

Fortunately, much of the work of preparation, once done, can be distributed to other educators. Many well-developed role-playing exercises are available on the scenario pages, organized by topic or by type.

Define Objectives

The details of what you need to do depend entirely on why you want to include role-playing exercises in your course.

What topics do you want the exercise to cover?

How much time do you and your class have to work on it?

What do you expect of your students: research, reports, presentations?

Do you want the students role-playing separately or together?

Do you want to include a challenge or conflict element?

Choose Context & Roles

In order to prepare for the exercise:

Decide on a problem related to the chosen topic(s) of study and a setting for the characters. It is a good idea to make the setting realistic, but not necessarily real. Consider choosing and adapting material that other instructors have prepared.
For problems and settings with lots of detail, have a look at examples in the Starting Point Case Study Module. The module itself contains more information about using cases to teach.

If the characters(s) used in the exercise are people, define his or her goals and what happens if the character does not achieve them.

You should work out each characters' background information on the problem or, better yet, directions on how to collect it through research. If possible, prepare maps and data for your students to interpret as part of their background information rather than the conclusions upon which they would ordinarily base their decisions (especially if the characters are scientists).

Introducing the Exercise

Engage the students in the scenario by describing the setting and the problem.

Provide them with the information you have already prepared about their character(s): the goals and background information. It needs to be clear to the student how committed a character is to his/her goals and why.

Determine how many of your students have done role-playing before and explain how it will work for this exercise.

Outline your expectations of them as you would for any assignment and stress what you expect them to learn in this lesson.

If there is an inquiry element, suggest a general strategy for research/problem solving.

Student Preparation/Research

Even if there is no advance research assigned, students will need a few moments to look over their characters and get into their roles for the exercise. There may also be additional questions:

Why they are doing this in character? Why did you decide to make this a role-playing exercise?

Students may have reservations about the character that they have been assigned or about their motives. It is good for the instructor to find out about these before the actual role-play. It can be very difficult for a student to begin researching an issue from a perspective very different from their own because even apparently objective data tends to be reinterpreted as support for pre-existing world-views.

With regards to environmental issues, many environmental groups have well-written, carefully researched, and nicely-engineered websites that will provide arguments as well as information for a student assigned a character to whom protecting the environment is very important.

Similar websites representing the very common viewpoint of the worker, property owner, or industrialist whose future may be in conflict with environmental interests are hard to find. One site, Debate Central, has constructed arguments for characters promoting property rights and wary of government intervention. Their topic coverage is still limited, however. A poorer alternative is to send students to the websites of companies involved in an issue to read their PR material.

Often, the best resource for understanding people is other people. Model UN encourages participants to call the embassy of the country they are to represent for advice. The same can be done with the PR divisions of mining firms and unions, environmental and taxpayer protection groups, etc.

If there is an inquiry component (i.e. student-led research), the students may need help coming up with a research plan and finding resources.

The Role-Play

Depending on the assignment, students could be writing papers or participating in a Model-UN-style summit. For a presentation or interaction, props can liven up the event, but are not worth a lot of effort as they are usually not important to the educational goals of the project.

Concluding Discussion

Like any inquiry-based exercise, role-playing needs to be followed by a debriefing for the students to define what they have learned and to reinforce it. This can be handled in reflective essays, or a concluding paragraph at the end of an individual written assignment, or in a class discussion. The instructor can take this opportunity to ask the students if they learned the lessons defined before the role-play began.

Assessment

Generally, grades are given for written projects associated with the role-play, but presentations and even involvement in interactive exercises can be graded. Special considerations for grading in role-playing exercises include:

Playing in-character

Working to further the character's goals

Making statements that reflect the character's perspective

In an interactive exercise, being constructive and courteous

For many assignments, being able to step back and look at the character's situation and statements from the student's own perspective or from another character's perspective.

Further Recommendations

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Role-playing exercises can be hard work for the instructor, both in preparation and in execution, but the work tends to pay off in terms of student motivation and accomplishment. As with any big project, it's ...

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
In addition to being enthralling stories, fairy tales have been teaching children important morals and life lessons for centuries. For example, " Little Red Riding Hood" demonstrates the importance of being careful who you trust, while the lesson learned from " The Three Little Pigs " is that putting in the hard work from the beginning-rather than taking a shortcut-will eventually pay off.
Shop our favorite fairy tales, myths, and legends books here.
Bringing fairy tales into your classroom is a great way to spark your students' imaginations while simultaneously teaching them about culture, history, and, of course, the art of storytelling-conventions such as narrative structure, themes, and archetypes. Here are three fairy tale-focused activities to help bring your lessons to life:
Compare and Contrast
Find different versions of the same fairy tale and have students compare and contrast them. Not only is this a great way to teach compare-and-contrast, it also opens up the possibility of book talks or universal book reports or presentations.

Check out these books that put a twist on classic fairy tales.
Act It Out
After reading some fairy tales as a group, discuss with students about how recognizing and summarizing the main ideas in a story, and conveying these through vibrant dialogue, are crucial to the writing of a dramatization. Then split the class into smaller groups and have them rehearse and act out a fairy tale of their choice.

Use fairy tales to teach the judicial process by putting characters on trial. For example, Jack from "Jack and the Beanstalk" is a great character to place under examination. Discuss the following questions with the class:
What crimes did Jack commit? (Theft, trespassing, etc.) What proof is there that he committed the crimes? Are there any witnesses? What might they say if asked to give evidence?
Divide the class into groups, with one group acting as the prosecution, one as the defense, and one as the jury (you could even add a judge, witnesses, and detectives), and then act out a mock trial in the classroom.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
In addition to being enthralling stories, fairy tales have been teaching children important morals and life lessons for centuries. For example, " Little Red Riding Hood" demonstrates the importance of being careful who you trust, while the lesson learned from " The Three Little Pigs " is that putting in the hard work from the beginning-rather than taking a shortcut-will eventually pay off.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.authors[].name
Baby Shark - Pinkfong Kids’ Songs & Stories

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The Great Big Turnip | Fairy Tales | Musical | PINKFONG Story Time for Children

# data[].attributes.headline
Teaching a language with toys to young learners is the best way for teachers . For example , soft toys or toys that can be weared to hands then teaching vocabulary or speaking . Bored boys are interested in this lesson simultaneously and teacher also conducts a lesson easily in an interactive way . 

# data[].attributes.subject
Teaching a language with toys to young learners is the best way for teachers . For example , soft toys or toys that can be weared to hands then teaching vocabulary or speaking . Bored boys are interested in this lesson simultaneously and teacher also conducts a lesson easily in an interactive way . 

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Want to find the perfect toy for your baby or toddler? Keep these tips in mind when shopping for your little ones.
1. Important First Choices
Most infant toys focus on stimulating your baby's visual and auditory senses. Although infants are pre-verbal, they are making sounds and are hard-wired for language, so any stimulation at this age will help as your infant develops into a toddler who is exploring language use. Reading and talking to your baby about books and toys will help him become attuned to the rhythm and inflection of language, and build a solid base on which he can develop language skills. Maybe even get your baby a stuffed animal toy.

2. Toddler and Preschool Aged Children

Toddlers seem to learn something new every day. Language acquisition often occurs in "spurts" - one day your toddler may have just a few words, and seemingly overnight he will acquire more and more. First words are usually for objects found in everyday life, such as "ball," "cup," and other words for tangible objects.

Toys that help develop toddlers' language skills are ones that engage more than one of their senses. You may find that letter blocks or puzzles with the alphabet on them great choices for providing a toddler the chance for real hands-on learning. Show your toddler how to put together letter cubes or assemble a puzzle of the alphabet, and he'll begin to associate letters with sounds.

Although it is tempting to purchase technological toys that tout early reading and increased vocabulary as natural results of their use, complicated electronic toys are not necessary. You may find that toys that allow your child to record his own voice and play it back, or to "talk" to a pre-recorded voice on a toy telephone or other device will encourage him to speak, but don't let that substitute for your interaction with him. Simple conversations in which you indentify animal figures, or ask questions about which shape goes in what part of a shape sorter will encourage language use.

For older toddlers and preschoolers, word scramble type board games that allow children to spell words by correctly assembling the corresponding picture puzzle will teach them to associate a written word with an object. Rhyming games are always fun and will help toddlers and preschoolers learn phonics while being silly.

Advertisement - Continue Reading Below
3. Preschool and Older Children
Electronic toys may be helpful for this age group's language skills, for building vocabulary, spelling, identifying parts of speech, and pronoun usage. Be wary of toys and software that do not encourage active learning, however. Make sure that any software you choose will encourage your child to participate in the game, not simply fill in the electronic version of a worksheet. Games that encourage your child to think critically and explore new words will enhance his language skills at this age.
4. Long Term Outlook
Language learning toys work best in the context of the "big picture" of language acquisition, and won't take the place of interacting with your child, talking to him about everyday activities, and introducing new vocabulary words. Use toys that teach language as a tool, and keep it fun, and your child will find these a wonderful complement to a language-rich environment.

What kind of toys does your baby or toddler enjoy?

Related Article: 10 Super Stellar Sensory Activities

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Want to find the perfect toy for your baby or toddler? Keep these tips in mind when shopping for your little ones. 1. Important First Choices Most infant toys focus on stimulating your baby's visual and auditory senses.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.authors[].name
Baby Shark - Pinkfong Kids’ Songs & Stories

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Family | Word Power | Learn English | Pinkfong Songs for Children

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
What makes for a successful song-based lesson? Adam Simpson, second-time winner of the British Council's Teaching English blog award for his post on conditionals (written with Paul Mains), explains.
One of the big problems we all face, whether teaching English to children or adults, is maintaining learners' interest throughout our lessons. Consequently, we often have to be very creative in the techniques we use. What makes music such a great teaching tool is its universal appeal, connecting all cultures and languages. This makes it one of the best and most motivating resources in the classroom, regardless of the age or background of the learner.
Planning for the use of songs in class
The process of selecting a song is one of the most difficult aspects of using music in a lesson. Here are some things you probably need to think about to ensure you get the right song.
Carefully examine what it is you want your class to learn in the lesson
Is this going to be a lesson focusing on vocabulary, grammar, pronunciation, or a particular topic? I once used 'You're so vain' by Carly Simon to introduce a text that looked at vain people. In another lesson, I used 'In the air tonight' as it uses the present perfect continuous tense. Whatever your focus, remember that this doesn't necessarily place a limit on what you can do with the song. For instance, you might wish to use the song in question to exemplify a particular verb tense, and structure your lesson accordingly, but you might at the same time wish to take the opportunity to look at those interesting idioms in the lyrics!
Think about the language level of your class
The language level of your class will determine not only which songs you can use, but also what other activities - such as games or written exercises - you will use to develop the lesson. Lower levels will become extremely frustrated with fast-delivered lyrics, for instance, while simple repetitive lyrics might not be interesting for more advanced-level learners.
How old are your learners?
If you're a teacher of young learners, you will probably want to use songs that are repetitive and very easy to understand. For teenagers, however, use contemporary or fairly recent pop and rock songs. My advice: it's often best to ask them 'what's cool'. Alternatively, for adult learners, who will probably have a more open approach to classes, use songs that are interesting to their age group.
Are there any specific cultural issues regarding the make-up of your class?
What kinds of things are generally unacceptable in the culture in which you teach? Whatever you do, don't use music solely based on your own cultural norms. Consider the audience and their sensibilities; even better, let them choose the songs that you use.
What kind of access do you have to the song?
Let's face it, this is the age of YouTube and you can find practically any song on this website. Nevertheless, an mp3, which doesn't require a connection, or even a good old-fashioned CD, can often be a useful backup.
Six steps for making a song the focus of your class
My intention here is to provide a basic outline you can use with any song. Remember, these are just suggestions so make sure to keep the profile of your learners in mind.

That's it - start things off by just listening. It's important to remember that this is supposed to be a fun activity; don't make it too serious or boring.

As an alternative, you can show a video clip if you have one - in fact, I strongly recommend it, as it will cater to more learners' learning preferences.

Ask learners if they've heard it before, and don't overload them with tasks at this point; simply let them enjoy the music.
2. Ask some questions about the title
Here are a couple of examples of the types of questions you can ask:

For John Lennon's wonderful 'Jealous Guy':

'What is a 'jealous guy'?'

'What are three things a jealous guy might do?'

'What kinds of jealousy are there?'

For Queen's classic 'We are the champions':

'What is a champion?'

'What kinds of champions are there in the world?'

'What activities have champions?'

Such questions tend to work really well as conversation starters, so group three or four learners together and then get feedback from each group on their thoughts. If you think it would help, make this your first step, i.e., before the initial listening.

Alternatively, prior to having listened to the song you can teach a couple of words and give a simple task for the first listening. My favourite strategy is to give three or four words from the song and ask to them to listen out for the words that rhyme with them. You could also brainstorm possible rhymes before listening.
3. Listen to the song again, this time with lyrics
This time, you should give learners the chance to read the lyrics to the song. At this point you might do one or more of the following activities:

Learners can just read the lyrics while they listen. They can possibly highlight unknown words for later discussion.

You can make a lyric worksheet as a gap fill; learners fill in the gaps as they listen.

You can make cut-out strips of selected missing words and again make a lyric worksheet as a gap fill; this time learners match the word strips to the gaps as they listen.

4. Focus on a particular verb tense or aspect of grammar
Virtually every song centres on a particular verb tense. This is too good an opportunity to pass up in terms of uncovering the grammar. My suggestion is to start with questions such as these:

How many examples can you find of the past simple in the lyrics?

Why did the writer of this song choose this verb tense?

This acts as a springboard for discussing the function of a specific tense, as well as examining its form. Furthermore, it often tends to raise awareness of grammatical flexibility and 'poetic licence' in the construction of song lyrics. Students often expect songs to obey the grammatical rules that have been drummed into them. In a surprisingly large number of cases, this can lead to the enlightening discovery that rules can be broken!
5. Focus on vocabulary, idioms and expressions
We've noted that many songs bend the rules of grammar. It's also useful to focus on the creative and artistic use of vocabulary we encounter in lyrics. Start with questions like these (again, for Queen's classic song 'We are the champions'):

What does 'I've paid my dues' mean?

What does 'my share of' mean?

What does 'I've taken my bows' mean?

Go through the meanings, illustrating with other examples if necessary. Songs often serve as really good contexts for phrases and idioms, but it's good to make sure that the meaning is clear. As with grammar, years of misunderstanding can come to light in this way!
6. Round things off with some creativity
Creativity is an important part of maintaining motivation but it shouldn't be limited to the teaching approach. Depending on the factors highlighted in the first part of this post (age, language level, cultural specifics, etc.), you might want to try finishing things off with an activity that stimulates creative thought. Here are a few examples of things you can do to get the creative juices flowing:

Write another verse of lyrics, maintaining the same mood and style as the original. This can be done individually or in groups. These new lyrics can be presented to the rest of the class. Perhaps several groups can work on this to come up with a completely new set of lyrics for the whole song.

A song tends to give you the perspective of the singer. Write a response (this can be a paragraph, i.e., not necessarily in lyric form) from the point of view of the person the song is being sung about, or any other protagonist.

Have the learners plan a music video for the song. In groups they decide the location, the characters, and what happens. Then each group explains their idea to the rest of the class and the learners vote on the best one. The results can be surprising, as they frequently come up with an interpretation that hadn't even occurred to you!

Write a diary entry for a character in the song. Get learners to examine the thoughts and feelings that inspired the story being played out in the lyrics.

Visit our award-winning website for more tips and activities for the English language classroom.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
How to use songs in the English language classroom

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
What makes for a successful song-based lesson? Adam Simpson, second-time winner of the British Council's Teaching English blog award explains.