Teaching English to children carries a very different approach compared to the way you teach adults, and thus requires an adaptable approach. Whilst kids do learn at a quicker rate than adults you will be contending with attention spans, playfulness, and about 20 ten-year old kids who have plenty of get-up-and-go about them! However, with the right knowledge and the right guidance you can achieve success in teaching English to children…it all comes down to the planning and that is what we wanted to look at today. Below are some things that you need to know before you head off into a classroom of children to teach them English skills. These tips will help you as a teacher get the message and skills across, whilst the children are able to learn at a faster pace in a controlled and fun atmosphere.
Tip 1. You Will Need a TESOL Certification
A TESOL certification will not just give you a better chance of getting a job teaching ESL to children over those that haven’t got one, but it will help you command a higher salary, and it’s a worldwide recognised certification program accredited by many governing bodies. Your first step before teaching kids ESL is to know that a TESOL certification online should be successfully achieved, or a certification in a classroom environment if you have the time to study
Tip 2. It’s All About Encouragement and Praise
In your classroom you should be able to get your students to ask you questions on their progress and how well they are currently doing on a project, this will allow you to sit with them and guide them through in a non-judgemental way in areas that they may need a slight helping hand in. If a child is struggling it’s also key to encourage them to keep going and help them in any way you can. Encouragement also goes hand in hand with praising them which is another key attribute that you will want to know before teaching ESL to children. Praise will help develop and build up children in a natural way, and if the children in a classroom are happy, this means the environment and atmosphere will be pleasant, which has a knock on effect for motivation and work-flow. Remember children’s attention span and personas can change in a second so keeping that environment pleasant and happy will be the key to a successful learning location for children. Crack this and you pretty much have them in then palm of your hand.
Tip 3. You Will Need to Get Children to Learn in Pairs
Another thing you will get with children is the fact that they get bored very easily, especially when they are on their own so it’s key to make them part of a wider group. Usually creating tasks or projects that require teams of 3 or 4 to work together to achieve a result is ideal. This helps them keep their attention spans up and stops them from getting bored, but it also has another added benefit; it helps children communicate with one another and engage in conversations which can help their progress of learning the English language through TESOL certification online.