Transcript Module 1 session 2 new pp

Session 2
How Children Learn Part 1
The Amazing Brain
1.
At birth, a baby’s brain has:
A.
B.
C.
One million brain neurons
Ten thousand brain neurons
One hundred billion neurons
2.
How fast does a child’s brain grow in the early
years ? By age three, a child’s brain
A.
B.
C.
Has tripled in weight
Has doubled in weight
Is the same weight as at birth
3.
Which of the following statements is accurate ?
A.
B.
C.
After birth, the brain does not change
The experiences which we have in our lives help to
shape the brain
The brain is already fully developed at birth
4.
Which of the following statements is accurate ?
A. You can continue to learn new things/new skills at
any age
B. The brain is like a sponge
C. Your genes are your destiny
Experiences shape the brain
We have a great deal of control over the way our
brains grow.
Our experiences can literally shape the way the brain
develops.
Learning involves feelings
Experiences which involve strong feelings, whether
positive or negative are more likely to be
remembered. This can act as a motivator or barrier to
future learning.
Remembering is multi sensory
If children use many different senses and many
different ways of learning something, the more likely
they are to remember it later. It gives them many
different ways of recalling.
Making sense is essential for learning
Children are more likely to learn from experiences
which make sense to them and they find relevant and
interesting. This enables the brain to create strong
networks.
Children’s characteristics
Children have no reason for learning
English
Quotes from Nikolov, M.
1999 Language Teaching
Research Vol 3/1, 33-56
Children give priority to meaning rather
than form
The 10 year old pupil is looking at a picture of a man sleeping
under a tree
1
5
P
T
P
T
P
T
P
T
P
10T
:
P
T
P
the
: the man is sleeping
: and then ?
: the mango is fell down
: then ?
: two men is taking his drum
: two
: two men is taking his drum
: you say two men ( teacher stresses the words
two men )
: two meen men ( pupil tries changing the
pronunciation).
no (the pupil still does not provide the answer the
teacher wants )
: is taking his drum
: again do you say is
: two men are taking his drum (teacher finally gets
answer she wants)
( from Moon, J. 2000 Children Leaning English. Macmillan Page 5)
Children’s ability to learn from active
and direct experience
Picking up language in chunks
‘How are you ?’
‘Finished’
‘Me too’
‘Gimme ‘
Using language creatively
T: Where did you draw the
leaves ?
Child : on the flower’s stick
Conclusions
Children bring to the classroom many instincts,
abilities and characteristics.
These make them different in some distinct ways
from adults.
Many of these instincts and abilities are very helpful
for second language learning.
Teachers need to develop an approach to teaching
which takes account of children’s characteristics and
makes use of their abilities and special instincts.