Open books open minds
How do children
learn languages?
How do children learn languages?
1.
How do you think children learn their first language?
a) by imitating adults
b) by experimenting and trying out hypotheses about how the language
works
c) both of the above
2.
Do children with a high intelligence quotient (IQ) score learn to speak
foreign languages quicker and better than others?
a) IQ is a crucial factor
b) IQ is not a crucial factor
c) setting and context are more important
3.
How important is high motivation in successful language learning?
a) Not really important
b) The most important factor
c) An important factor but not the only one
4.
Is it better for pupils to learn a foreign language when they are below
the age of puberty?
a) definitely yes
b) probably yes
c) it depends on all sorts of other factors
What is different about
teaching children?
Children have a lot of physical
energy.
TPR activities
If you…, stand up.
Children get bored easily.
Children have a wide range of
emotional needs.
Children are still developing
physically and conceptually.
Children tend to be self-oriented
and preoccupied with their own
world.
A class in Budapest
Feedback on video
1. How did the teacher deal with any problems that
arose?
2. Would you have dealt with any of the problems
differently? If so, how exactly?
Problems…
1. Student doodling in his/her notebook after the
pairwork.
2. Student answering out of turn, until the
teacher tells him/her not to.
3. A student that says nothing unless the teacher
addresses him/her by name.
4. Student stands up and moves around after
the pairwork.
5. A student that starts crying when the teacher
asks him/her to work in pairs. He/she wants to
work with another student.
Children learn more slowly and
forget things quickly.
Children learn more slowly and
forget things quickly.
Children are excellent mimics.
Children seek meaning in
language.
Different children learn best in
different ways
What kind
of language
learner are
you?
What kind
of language
learner are
you?
What kind of language learner
are you?
An average class of adults
understanding of children
29comes
%
through the hands, eyes, and ears, so
physical world  dominant at all
34
%
times
Berman (1998)
37 %
Multiple intelligences
Learning
I’m learning to say thank you.
And I’m learning to say please.
And I’m learning to use Kleenex,
Not my sweater, when I sneeze.
And I’m learning not to dribble.
And I’m learning not to slurp.
And I’m learning
(though it sometimes really hurts me)
Not to burp.
And I’m learning to chew softer
When I eat corn on the cob.
And I’m learning that it’s much
Much easier to be a slob.
.
Judith, Viorst. (1981) If I Were in Charge of the
World and Other Worries: Poems for Children
and their Parents. Aladdin Books
Learning is fun
Thank you