Teachers should create many colourful English games with a view togiving students a natural English enviroment, which helps students to grasp thelessons gently and effectively and games
Trang 11 INTRODUCTION
1.1 Reasons for choosing the research:
English is used in a lot of fields in our life and it is considered as the numberone international language in the world Therefore, teaching and learningEnglish has been achieving an important position and now it is a compulsorysubject in primary schools
As a teacher of English for children, I always try my best to find and selectinteresting activities and suitable teaching methods with a view to takinginspiration for childen and making learning gentle and natural, so that studentsare eagering to take part in learning activities
Review is a vital segment in grasping firmly knowledge for children Ithelps students to consolidate, widen, improve learned knowledge and fostersome certain skills for children.But in fact very few teachers take interest in
“Review” periods, they only consolidate learned knowledge and have students
do exercises, which makes both teachers and students bored According toteaching method innovation line, I always want to make “Review” periodsinteresting and effective for not only teachers but also students
Through my practical teaching, researching 4th graders and consultingcolleagues' experiences, I find that most elementary school students lack focus
on the lesson, so to draw attention to review In the lesson, students are active,arousing and training the sense of self-study so that students can think activelyand creatively, teachers need to innovate their teaching methods
Therefore, as an English teacher in elementary school, I am always anxious
to find solutions to improve the quality of English for 4th graders in general andfor review periods in particular I have obtained quite good results From my
work experience and practice, I would like to exchange experiences: "Some solutions to help 4th graders review phonics, vocabularies and sentence patterns effectively in review periods."at Nga Bach Primary School - Nga Son District, Thanh Hoa Province.
Trang 2- Thematic language games, group activities.
- Studying the teaching and learning English of Nga Bach Primary School
1.4.2 Practical research methodology:
- Researching the teaching and learning of teachers and students, colleagues
- Exchange, attend, discuss, discuss, talk with my colleagues
1.4.3 Experimental method:
- Carry out experiential teaching, control, exchanging experiences, assessing theeffectiveness of applying the innovation of content - teaching methods to pupils in grade4, NgaBachPrimary School
2 CONTENT 2.1 Theorical basis.
Review is an important segment in grasping knowledges for studentsbecause it helps them to consolidate and engrave learned knowledges
Therefore, a good review period will bring about high results Applyinglanguage games and pair/groupwork to “review” lessons is very necessary andeffective, which makes students excited and interested, so that students canmaster many knowledges easily
Moreover, through my study on English Textbook 4, I find that the book iscompiled to communicative purpose, helping students to initially form anddevelop communicative ability in English and the book has four main topics thatare very close to students After each topic, there is a review focusing oncommunicative skills (speaking, listening, reading and writing) and basiclanguage knowledge "phonic, vocabulary, grammar", so it is easy andconvenient for teachers to compile, choose games and pair- groupworkactivities About students 'psychology at these ages, their concentration is notgood, they are very active and they have image thoughts So they are veryinterested in language games andpair/ group work
Games are fun and children like to play them, they add variation to a lessonand increase motivation by providing a plausible incentive to use the targetlanguage Using games in class is a natural way to learn, children can getinvolved and work together, so playing games gives children a real reason to uselanguage to communicate with each other
Language games are very suitable and effective in review periods Theycan help students to consolidate knowledge easily As we know, childen at theseages are very active, so we must let them see that learning English is like agame Teachers should create many colourful English games with a view togiving students a natural English enviroment, which helps students to grasp thelessons gently and effectively and games attract students' attention, so they cangrasp knowledges quickly and effectively
Groupwork and pairwork also brings in a lot of advantages In groupworkactivity, student are more centered rather than teachers This can be moremotivating and stimulating for students More activities is generated, for example
in a speaking activity, more students get the opportunity to speak Furthermore, it
Trang 3encourages teambuilding and leadership skills Above all, students practiselanguage and learn from each other.
Using groupwork and pairwork during “Review” periods is a positiveteaching method Through discussion and debate, students not only consolidateand engrave knowledge but also they can develop cooperation, help eachother instudy, improve their friendship, creativeness, responsibility Throughdiscussions during review periods, students have chances to express their ideasand thoughts, and it encourages students to communicate, so coward and shystudents will have opportunities to intergrate, creating friendly atmosphere
Moreover groupwork helps students to be active and self-confident, so it willhelp them to revise effectively
In reviewing sounds, vocabulary and sentence patterns, the inclusion ofsongs and chants in the lesson is also very effective They not only help studentsmemorize the sounds, words, and sentence patterns they have learned, but alsomake the classroom atmosphere comfortable and fun
In sum, applying language games and groupwork, pairwork in to reviewperiods will helps students to grasp and engrave knowledge effectively But Inorder for review periods to gain good results, teachers needs to define the aims ofthe lessons to have logical revision activities Moreover, teachers should remindstudents to prepare the lessons at home Teachers had better supplement, orient,and suggest when necessary This makes interaction between teachers and students
- Toward the teacher:
+ Teaching in a large group (usually a class has about 30 students or more), the level
of awareness has many different levels, teaching aids are not synchronized These distract students'concentration, greatly impact on skills training for students, slow down the process of acquiring students'knowledge
+ Facilities and references are lacking
+ Students are not interested in English hours, because the same activities in the lessons are in the reading-translation-copy style
Trang 4+ The number of students in a class is large, the level is not uniform, so it is difficult
to convey knowledge as well as apply classroom teaching methods
+ Many students are shy, passive, and mechanic in memorizing words and sentences.And this makes my students unable to remember words and sentence patterns they learned in class
+ At their age, the ability to focus on studying is not much, they often neglect andlack observation, so they cannot follow the learning activities and progress in the classroom
+ Most parents of students do not know English, so they cannot help them with
studying at home
2.2.3 Results of the reality.
At the beginning of the school year 2019-2020, I got students in grade 4 (total:
111 students) to do the test and here is the result:
Class The Mark, the number of students and percentage
Looking at the table of figures, we see that the number of students scoring
at 9-10 is small, while the number of students scoring at 5-6 and below 5 is high
I find that the teacher should strengthen the organization of language games andteamwork, pairing in revision periods to create excitement for students andimprove learning efficiency
2.2.4 The causes of the reality.
First: Teachers have not often applied language games to revision sessions
to effectively review phonetics, vocabulary and structures
Second: Students are still confused when working in group and pair
activities during revision period
Third: Students are not interested in English yet, are afraid to speak, shy
and not bold in singing and chant parts
Fourth: Students do not know how to remember new words effectively.
2.3 Solutions.
2.3.1 Solution 1: Apply language games in review periods:
Organizing language games to teach English, we have to rely on the content
of the lesson, the time condition in each class to come up with suitable games
To organize a game in an effective review period, teachers must have athoughtful, thorough preparation plan and ensure the following requirements:
+ The game aims to reinforce and deepen the content of the revision period
+ The game is suitable for the psychology, the student's age, the instructional ability
of the teacher and the physical condition of the school
Trang 5+ The form of the game must be rich, diverse and carefully prepared.
+ The game must cause interest and passion for students to learn
2.3.1.1 Apply language games to review phonetics and vocabularies:
We can play games which focus on accurracy such as Rub out andremember, Bingo, Kim's game, Guessing game, Memory game, Jumble wordgame, Missing word game, Crossword game, Matching
Here are some language games that I often use in revision periods to helpstudents review phonetics and vocabulary:
a Rub out and remember.
+ Purpose: to help students remember the meaning of words and review words Thistrick applies to all types of words in lessons, especially long words that are difficult to remember
- Write some words on the board out of a certain order and circle them
- Delete a word, but not the outer circle
- Have students repeat the words, including the ones that were deleted
- Delete other words until all words are deleted (circles left only)
- Have students go to the board to rewrite or read the deleted words in the circles again
For example: In Review 1- English Textbook 4:
Words to check are country name, nationality, date, month and activities
- Teacher writes the words Japanese, Tuesday, Volleyball, March, Australia, Guitar,Swim, Wednesday, October on the board and circles them Teacher points to each word for students toread aloud Teacher ponits to each word for students to read again and then deletes the word but do notthe circle
- Teacher points to each empty circle for students to repeat the deleted words in that circle
- Teacher calls some students to go to the board and write the words in the circles inthe correct order Teacher calls other students to comment Teacher comments and gives praises
Students in Class 4A play game “Rub out and remember”
Trang 6b One, Two, Three or Four
- Purpose: To review phonetics and vocabulary and to practice listening skill for students
For example:
InReview 2- English Textbook 4
+ Teacher writes symbols of consonant clusters "sk", "str", "kt", "pl" on the board and numbered 1, 2, 3, 4 respectively
+ Teacher reads aloud words containing "sk", "str", "kt", "pl" sounds
+ After reading out each word, teacher asks students One, Two, Three or
Four
+ If the word contains the sound "sk" students say One, if it contains the sound "str",they say Two, if it contains the sound "kt", they say Three, if it contains the sound "pl", they say Four.+ After each time students say right, teacher will praise
+ If students guess wrong, teacher can read the word slowly so that students can guess again
Students in Class 4C play game: One, Two, Three or Four
6
Trang 7c Slap the board
- Purpose: to help students review words and practice quick reflexes for students
This game can also help teachers check and review the pronunciation andsemantics of words for students and is suitable for periods with lots of wordsand words with lots of abstract meanings
- How to play: Teacher write words or stick pictures on the board; call two groups to theboard, each with four or five students, equally spaced; The teacher shouted out the words in Vietnamese ifthey are on the board were in English and vice versa (If using pictures, shout out in English) and then therepresentatives of the two groups will listen and tap the correct pictures or words
For example:
In Review 4 - English Textbook 4
- Teacher puts pictures of clothes, animals, places and activities on the board
- Choose 2 groups of 5 students, each team makes a line and a student is the
controller
After the controller shouts out a word, the top 2 students in the row willlisten and slap the picture, the one who hits the right and faster will get 10 point,then move to the end of the row
The controller reads aloud the next word to let the top two students in the rowslap
Just like that until the last picture, the team that scores more points will win
Students in Class 4B play game: Slap the board
d Crossword puzzle
Trang 8- Purpose: To review vocabulary
- Procedure: Divide the class into groups of 4-6 and hand out to each group an A4sheet of paper containing the horizontal crossword, vertical line and clue pictures Students discuss tofind words The group that completes first will win
For example: Review 2
+ The teacher divided the class into groups of 4 students Each group has 1A4 with crosswords and pictures of their subjects Students work together to findwords according to the picture clues for each horizontal and vertical row
+ The group that finishes first will win
+ After all groups have finished, the correcting and comment teacher can ask students to form sentences with those words
Students in Class 4A do crossword puzzle about subjects
2.3.1.2 Apply language games to review model sentences.
We can play games that focus on fluency and practice like lucky numbers, noughts and crosses, pantomime, whispers, passing ball
Here are some language games that I often use in revision periods to help students review model sentences:
Example: Review 1: Teacher has students practice sample greetings that
introduce their name, destination, nationality, and abilities:
Hello My name is I'm from I'm I can
+ Teacher explains how the game is played
Trang 9+ Ask students to stand up, the teacher approachs the students to take the lead and
gave the students a ball and said "Hello My name is Phuong I'm from Vietnam I'm Vietnamese I can swim".
+ Students say the same sentence pattern, just change their name and interests and give the ball to the next student Students continue until the last student
Students in Class 4B play game: Passing ball b Chinese Whisper
- Purpose: Test sentence patterns; Hone students' listening and speaking skills
- How to play: Teacher prepares a number of questions to test; Divide the class into groups, each groupmakes a line
Teacher calls the first one of the line of each group on the board andwhisper something in their ears After hearing the teacher's words clearly, thesestudents run back to their groups and whisper into the second friend's ear, whowhisper to the third friend after hearing the first sentence And so on until thelast student at the end of the line
The students at the end of the line has the task of reading aloud the sentences that they have heard from their teammates
The group that reads first and correct should write 1 star The group that reads it first but reads it incorrectly has the right to answer for the other team
The game continues with other sentences until the number of sentences theteacher needs to check is over or the time prescribed by the teacher is over, thegame stops
The teacher sums up the stars and announces the winner
Example: In class 4C, I let the students play this game in Review
3-Textbook Grade 4- episode 2- Pages 36-37
Trang 10The class is divided into 2 teams A and B The representatives of each teamhave 8 players lined up vertically.
- Teacher whispers into the ears of the top two players of the two teams: My brother
is tall and thin.
- Teacher whispers into the ears of the top two players of the two teams the second
sentence: His favorite food is chicken.
- Teacher whispers into the ears of the top two players of the two teams with the third
sentence: She has dinner at 7.15 in the evening.
- Teacher whispers into the ears of the top two players of the two teams the fourth
sentence: My father is a doctor and he works in a hospital.
The difficulty of the sentences increases gradually After 4 times of play,team A wins with 3 times of right and 1 wrong and team B loses with 1 time ofright and 3 times of false
Students in Class 4C play game: Chinese Whisper c Mime and Guess
- Purpose: to practice concentration, creative flexibility and create excitement in a comfortable learning atmosphere for students
- How to play: Teacher divides the class into 2 teams, giving pictures to 2 teams fordiscussion Then represent each team up to describe the action so that the other team can guess what thepicture is about (when describing the action, students can ask questions for the other team to answer).The team with the most correct answers wins
Trang 11Example: Review 4
+ Divide the class into two teams Give each team 5 animal cards and ask them to discuss to mimic the actions of the animals on the cards they have
+ Some representatives stood in front of the class to perform the movement and
asked: "What animal do I want to see?" The other team answered: You want to see
Students in Class 4A play game: Mime and Guess * Results of using language games:
The lessons were very exciting, exciting and attracted the students' attention
In particular, they learned quickly, their communication skills increased and theorganization of language games during the review period helped some shy studentsovercome their passivity and cowardice Many underperforming students wereinterested in learning English In short, language games gave students an enjoyableand relaxing time to acquire knowledge I have applied it to "revision 1, 2, 3, 4" inEnglish textbook 4 in grades 4A, 4B, and 4C and it has got good results
2.3.2 Solution 2: Guide students to work in groups and pairs *The role of working in groups and pairs
Teamwork and pairing are essential elements of a student-centeredcurriculum They promote a child's sense of safety, achievement and confidence inusing English Therefore, using the method of teamwork and pair work in revisionperiods is essential and effective However, when preparing the lesson, teachers