dilluns, 31 de maig del 2010

dijous, 20 de maig del 2010

Discussion essay on language teaching

Currently, there is a lot of discussion about whether to introduce a foreign language at the age of 5 or wait until to primary education. But the fact is that the question is how to introduce this language in the classroom to teach English to children.

Songs and games should be the first way to introduce a foreign language to children. Children love to sing and play. In this way, their learning will be more meaningful and profound. We also can use storytelling, looking through magazines and newspapers (easily accessible to children) and new technologies as teaching resources, Internet, PowerPoint, films, blogs, ... In these early contacts with the language, vocabulary is important to be expanded in the following years. Another positive aspect of learning English at early ages is that children develop their intelligence as well as other abilities such as the sociocultural competence.

On the other hand, there some negative aspects to keep mind. It is possible that children could have some language delay when learning two or three languages at the same time. The time devoted to a foreign language learning in school timetables is usually not enough.

In conclusion, in order to introduce a foreign language at an early age, it would be necessary to spend more time working language in areas such as Arts, Math or Physical Education. We should always use appropriate teaching materials for children, such as songs, stories and games, and not the typical books. All the activities have to be first oral and then we can start writing. In my opinion, taking into account these things, we will create in children the love for learning a new language that will allow them to develop further autonomous learning.

Other interesting webs

Hello! I link here a few interesting webs to visit. They are about English songs.



http://www.beatboppers.com/



http://supersimplesongs.com/

Other interesting videos

The Skeleton Dance

Lesson Planning

How will be our garden?


Aims:
- Knowing the name of the flowers and
- Recognizing each flower
- Knowing the name of numbers
- Knowing colours
- Recognizing each colour
- Introducing grammar pattern
- Practising oral skills
- Singing a flower song
- Learning to listen to their classmates
- Enjoying learning English

Contents:
- The kind of flowers: roses, daysies, tulips, carnations, birds of paradise, anthurium, easter flower, gladiolus, hibiscus and pansies.
- The numbers: one, two, three, four five, six, seven, eight, nine and ten flowers
- The colours: blue, red, pink, orange, white, yellow, purple, green,...
- I like .../ questions(who, how many,...)
- Enjoy, learn and listen to our classmates

Methodology:
We will start the lesson talking about flowers (questions about flowers: before starting the ppt). We will be sitting in a circle on a carpet.

Then, we can watch the ppt (the questions in each slide). We will project the ppt.

When we will end the ppt (after questions about flowers: after ppt), we can sing a song.At first, the teacher will put on the song and then she will explain the song. She can sing the song once along and then, the children can start to sing. When they know the song, we we can sing the song along with the video.

This lesson is a part of a project. Future activities can be planting flowers, buying them, going to pick flowers,... Always enjoying learning English!

Material Resources:
- PPT Flowers!


Questions about ppt:
Before starting the ppt
- Can someone tell me any flower that he knows?

During ppt
- Who knows the name of this flower? (In each slide)
- How many flowers are there? (In each slide)
- What colours are the flowers? (In each slide)
- How many kinds of flowers are in the ppt?

After ppt
- What flowers do we like the most?
- What kind of flowers do you want to plant in our garden?

- Song of Flowers!


"I like the flowers, I like the daffodils, I like the mountains, I like the rolling hills, I like the fire side, when the light is low - boom dee ah da x8 (Bis 4)"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t6PKcnTGVX4

It's the same but changes "flowers" by "mountains".
Song: I Like the Flowers / I Love the Mountains - Add-on Pack



- PC
- Projector

Human Resources:
- Teacher

Time:
We can do this lesson in 30-45 minutes.

Place:
We can do this lesson in our class or in a pc class.

Evaluation:
- Have the children participated?
- Have they paid attention?
- Have they listened to each other?
- Have they enjoyed learning English?
- Have they tried to communicate in English?

Bibliography of images
http://www.plantasyjardines.es/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/mercadoFlores.jpg
http://www.visithuelva.com/travelguides/beaches/img/iconos/punto_negro.gif
http://www.visithuelva.com/travelguides/beaches/img/iconos/punto_rosa.gif
http://www.germinaciones.org/Imagenes/punto_rojo_mini.jpg


dilluns, 10 de maig del 2010

A Trick of the Twits: Tricks not always have a happy end



Transcirpcion:As we know, the Twits are a very ugly family who continually played tricks on the each other. Mrs. Twit, to take revenge on Mr. Twit for the trick of the stick and the balloons, decided to play a trick on him that consisted of the following. Mrs. Twit phoned an acting agency to take on a woman who would pass herself off as her husband’s lover so Mrs. Twit could get very angry with him.

The next day, while the Twits were walking along Misfortune street, a woman called them over. She was tall, thin, she had blond hair, blue eyes and she was dressed in a black mini skirt and a red t-shirt. In short, she was the opposite of Mrs. Twit and everything that a man could wish for in a woman. Susan had been paid by Mrs. Twit to play a trick on Mr. Twit.

When Susan approached to the Twits, she realized that the man was really her husband and that he was with another woman who said that she was his wife!!
- Hi darling - said Susan ironically - What are you doing with this woman? – she said angrily and jealously.

The Twits were astonished. Mrs. Twits though for herself that this woman could be that she had contracted in the agency to make pass for the lover of her husband to return him the joke. Nevertheless, Mr. Twit thought that they had to catch him and that he could not have way out.
- Who is that woman? - Mrs. Twits asked her husband.
- Who am I? I am his wife, and who are you? - said Susan nervously.

At that moment, Mrs. Twits thought that something was going wrong. Susan was not acting, she was talking seriously.
- You are his wife? No sorry, I am his wife! I have been married to this man called Mr. Horns for five years. I met him in one of his business trips to Miami and he brought me here. We also have two children and another one in the way. It was love at first sight - said Susan.
- What are you saying?? I have been married with to man called Mr. Twit for twenty years. But we never had a son because he never liked children... - said Mrs. Twit very sadly.

At that moment, both women realized that they had been cheated by Mr. Twit-Horns when he said that he was in a business trip. So both were turned to ask explanations from him and they said simultaneously:
- You have to choose!!
And Mr. Twits-Homs said:
- Girls girls, please calm down. Do not fight over me. Here there is a Mr. Twit-Horns for both of you - he said smugly.

So, what had started out as a trick played by Mrs. Twit to take revenge on her husband ended be the discovery of the double life of Mr. Twit-Horns.

Sleeping Beauty



If I can, I will upload a new ppt with better audio.

Transcription: "Telling a Faity Tale: Sleping Beauty Once upon a time, in a far away country, a king and a queen who had a baby, the princess called Aurora. They invited many people to her christening. They also invited her three fairy godmothers and Prince Philip, to whom she had been engaged since she was born. The three fairies, Flora, Fauna and Merryweather, were giving their gifts when, suddenly, the evil witch Maleficent came into the room. Maleficent was very angry because she hadn’t been invited to the christening so she laid a curse on Aurora. This curse was that on Aurora’s sixteenth birthday, she would prick her finger and die. When Maleficent had gone, Merryweather was able to reduce the spell. She could not remove it, but she did change it: Aurora would not die but fall asleep until she received her first kiss of love. Together, they decided that Aurora would go into the forest to live with her three fairy godmothers until she was sixteen.

Time passed, and on the day of her sixteen birthday, Aurora was having a walk in the woods, singing and playing with her animal friends. She met a very handsome boy and spent the afternoon talking to him. Neither knew who the other was. When Aurora came home, the three fairies told her the whole story of her real life and brought her back to the castle.

When they arrived at the castle, Aurora pricked her finger and fell asleep instantly. The fairies tried to find the boy who Aurora had met but Maleficient found him before them. They were eventually able to find him and rescue him.

Finally, Philip and the three fairies came into Aurora’s room and he woke her up with a kiss. A few days later they were married and lived happily ever after."