Computer Class for Grade 3 ESL Students

Work Teaching English in Taiwan
1

Has anybody taught a computer class with Grade 3 ESL students (or something similar)? What resources would you suggest for me? The students are low level. Thanks in advance.

2

How long is the class and how many lessons?

3

  1. ESL or EFL? I think most educators here have more experience in TESOL from the EFL perspective.

  2. In Taiwan? Probably not, if you’re teaching ESL. However, if you are, there are general principles for technology education (科技教育) and ICT education (資訊教育), which are considered as “educational issues” (教育議題,) at the elementary school level. There are no curricular guidelines for teaching computer science to students until Junior High School where the course of “technology” (資訊科技 and 生活科技) is a designated subject.

  3. From my experience, and based on the curricular objectives of the educational issues designated by the Ministry of Education, I would recommend a couple of directions that could be useful for third graders in terms of computer science: digital literacy and digital citizenship which involves online safety and related issues (I find it to be particularly relevant for a lot of kids at that age have a lot of access to technology or even have their own mobile phones), computational thinking and programming skills (software like Scratch and content on websites such as code.org, for example), or, taking a page from the playbook of local teachers in elementary schools who do teach computer classes, perhaps in the “alternative curriculum” (from the available 3 to 6 periods per week), basics of PowerPoint and Word are often covered in grades 3-4.
    Materials for any of the above should not be hard to find. There are plenty of online resources available. If you wish to know more you could send me a message privately or reply to this post.

Good luck!

An example below:

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4

Thanks for pointing out that there’s a difference. If you’re in Taiwan, is EFL.

@OP, besides what was said above, teach them keyboarding skills. Cut up a box to hide the keyboard but their hands can still reach the keys. Touch typing is not going away any time soon. There are a lot of free sites out there. Just make sure they know that chicken pecking is not how you type on a keyboard