[quote=“tomthorne”]
Does anyone have any links to videos of good kindy teachers in action? I’d be interested to see how it can be done well.[/quote]
I don’t know of any, but I’ll look around. After 8 years in the Kindy/Preschool business, I’ve noticed a few things.
*** The language progression for many students tends to follow normal language progression of a first language, just at a different pace. For example, it is generally believed that for the first few months of life, babies do not tend to have a concept of the significance of language. I have a theory that many students when they start English class really don’t have a clue that you’re talking to them in a language. They have to constantly hear the language before they are ready to learn how to use it. To do what many preschools/kindergartens do here and force the child to repeat a phrase, at this stage, does much more harm than good. The child just isn’t ready for it yet.
*** Stories with repetition work better than stories without. The video clip you posted, there seems to be no repetition in the book. Examples of good books with repetition:
–Most Eric Carl’s books
–Caps for Sale
–Goodnight, Moon
–Alexander and the terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day
–Ticky Ticky Tembo (SP???)
When there is good repetition in the book, the children begin to learn the book faster. You can begin to pause and expect responses from the students. This helps with both their listening and speaking skills. It also gives them the opportunity to “read” the book later and look for familiar words in the passage.
*** Songs and dances are fun, but make sure you apply meaning to them as well. You might be surprised to find that your kids have been singing songs for 3 years, doing the actions, but still have no clue what the words mean, even if they learned the vocabulary separately. I had a material for the song “5 little monkeys swinging in a tree.” It had 5 monkeys, a tree, an alligator, and water. (All paper and cut, colored, and laminated). After realizing students didn’t make the connection between some of the words in the song and words they were learning, I presented this material and showed them how to act it out.
*** Present the practical life activities (a Montessori term). These are activities in the Montessori classroom that help children become more independent. They are mostly comprised of every day activities that can be done around the house. As children learn the words for these materials, they often immediately have a connection at home to these materials. These things can easily be reinforced at home and I often heard stories of children using the English names at home.
*** Avoid worksheets, workbooks, etc. as much as possible. Go instead for real activities.
If you have to do large group lessons, my biggest advice I can give is teach them a song very early. It is best if it is a long song that has a few repetitive verses (Think 5 Little Monkeys Jumping on a Bed). With that, you can train them to calm down when it’s appropriate. Write in a vertical fashion the numbers 4-0 on the board, with 4 on the top and 0 on the bottom. Point to four and scream, “EVERYBODY SAY 4!!!”
Let them get loud for a second and let it die down or bring them back around after 2-3 seconds.
Point to 3 and, in a normal voice say, “This is 3.”
If they scream it, tell them, “No. This is 3” (putting your hand at your mouth).
Raise your hand as you point with your other hand to four. Have them practice that level. Do the same with 3. Have them move between the two levels.
2 is just below a normal speaking voice. (Practice this)
1 is just above a whisper. (practice this)
0 you can’t hear anything I say. My mouth moves, but you can’t hear it.
Once you practiced that, take the song you know and sing it, pointing to the different numbers along the way. You want them to get energized and bring it down, so go between them. End up on a 0 or 1 for the last line. You’ll usually have a very calm class after the song. It only takes a few times for them to work out the visual cue of where your hand is so if they start getting too loud or the question they are asking is too loud, the visual cue is usually all I need for most students.
*** Remember you’re the model. If you yell across the room, others may do so. If you chase after a child that is running by running yourself, you allow others to run. If you don’t deal with your anger calmly, they have a right to act out on their frustration. If you’re drinking a coke, let them drink some too. You’re the model in the classroom. Hold yourself to the same rules you hold everyone else to.
