Skkn cấp tỉnh integrating creative experiential activities to enhance the quality in teaching and learning english for 4th grade students at vinh hung primary school vinh loc district, thanh hoa province

VINH LOC EDUCATION & TRAINING DEPARTMENT EXPERIENCE INITIATIVE INTEGRATING CREATIVE EXPERIENTIAL ACTIVITIES TO ENHANCE THE QUALITY IN TEACHING AND LEARNING ENGLISH FOR STUDENTS IN CLAS

VINH LOC EDUCATION & TRAINING DEPARTMENT

EXPERIENCE INITIATIVE

INTEGRATING CREATIVE EXPERIENTIAL ACTIVITIES

TO ENHANCE THE QUALITY IN TEACHING AND LEARNING ENGLISH FOR STUDENTS IN CLASS 4C AT VINH HUNG PRIMARY SCHOOL, VINH LOC DISTRICT,

THANH HOA PROVINCE

Writer: Trinh Thi Nga Position: Teacher Place of work: Vinh Hưng Primary School Field of the experience initiative: English

VINH LOC, YEAR 2025

Orders Content Page

1.1 Reasons for choosing the topic

1.2 Objectives of the study 2 1.3 Objects of the study 2 1.4 Methods of the study 2

In the current integration period, foreign languages, especially English, play an extremely important role English is considered as one of the official subjects and one of three compulsory subjects in exams middle school, high school Some schools take English standards as one of the conditions for students who want to graduate In particular, July 23, 2018 the Ministry of Education and Training signed Decision No 2658/QD-BGD &DT on promulgating a plan to implement the Project on teaching and learning foreign languages in the national education system for the period 2017-2025 [1] Moreover, the Party and State have paid special attention to the issue of teaching and learning foreign languages English is taught as an official subject at all levels and fields of study, including elementary school, to help children initially contact, comprehend and develop a number of basic skills, create good conditions for the future

Our country's general education is making a transition from an educational program that approaches content and approaches learners' abilities, that is, from caring about what students learn, to caring about students What can you do through studying? To ensure that, it is necessary to successfully transition from a teaching method which only concentrates on imparting knowledge to a method of learning how to apply knowledge to practice skills, form capacity and qualities To achieve the above goal, teachers first need to have knowledge and good pedagogical skills And to have a successful lesson, teachers must know how to find new teaching methods, know how to combine many factors to promote students' positivism and initiative, and create optimal conditions for learning With this perspective, teaching tips as well as classroom activities have also been changed and developed more diversely so that they can

be applied flexibly, appropriately, and with high efficiency Teachers do not only simply impart knowledge in a rigid, mechanical manner but also they play

a central role in creating innovative and practical lessons that enhance interest, stimulate exploration, and prepare students with the necessary skills for their future, develop listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills through interdisciplinary activities: Music, Arts, and IT through using AI technology

As for myself, I am a teacher directly teaching English at a primary school, I realize that it is very important for us to change traditional teaching methods Teaching English combined with experiential activities such as: singing the song and chant, drawing pictures, playing game or role - playing makes the lessons become happier and more exciting Identifying teaching objectives through many years of teaching English at the primary level, along

with practical knowledge, I boldly offer my experience on “Integrating creative experiential activities to enhance quality in teaching and learning English for students in class 4C at Vinh Hung primary school, Vinh Loc district, Thanh Hoa province ” to do the research and did it successfully

1.2 Objectives of the study

The topic contributes to innovating teaching methods, teachers can be proactive in guiding students to take part in creative experiential activities Students are more confident, cooperate more actively in the learning process, and have the opportunity to express themselves, develop communicative skill and practice more listening and speaking skills

State the role and importance of creative experiential activities in teaching; Research the current situation of 4th grade students ( Class 4C ) at Vinh Hung primary school and point out some measures and skills to help students perform well and effectively creative experiential activities in the teaching and learning process

1.3 Objects of the study

With a limitation of time and ability, this study only investigates the current situation of the students in class 4C at Vinh Hung Primary School in learning English

The paper also studies some specific applications in integrating creative experiential activities in English class in class 4C in order to enhance their competence in learning English

1.4 Methods of the study

To complete this study, I have had to conduct a variety of methods Here are some of the main methods:

Document research method: Collected references, books and websites

related to teaching English, and documents were analyzed in details to form the theoretical background of this study

Observation method: Teacher observes the activities of students during

the learning time From that, gives feedback for them in time, or has suitable adjustment after each lesson

Experimental method: Teacher conducts to teach experimental lessons

with purposes of some specific requirements, combine some effective ways in teaching and learning English

Investigation methods: Teacher asked questions to students in grade 4 at

Vinh Hưng Primary school with a point of view to find out their attitudes, evaluation of the matter, and the difficulties they encounter as well as activities they like doing in one lesson

Method of summarizing educational experience: teacher can summary all

of experience after applying the measures to improve teaching method and enhance subject’s quality

2 CONTENT

2.1 Theoretical basis

During the opening economic period, foreign languages in general, and English in particular, are considered the golden key that opens the endless treasure trove of precious knowledge of humanity However, it is not really valued because many children are not aware of the importance of learning a foreign language

With the goal of "The majority of Vietnamese youth, after graduating from intermediate schools, colleges, and universities, have enough foreign language ability to use independently and confidently in communicating, studying, and working in an integrated, multilingual, multicultural environment” Turn foreign languages into the strength of the Vietnamese

people, serving the cause of industrialization and modernization of the country With the spirit and goals proposed by the project "Teaching and learning foreign languages in the national education system", we can see the importance of teaching and learning English today From there, we also realize the role of English teachers at all levels, especially elementary school, who help students master vocabulary, grammatical structures, lesson types, and styles the lesson, while also finding good methods suitable for the age of the students to help them absorb the lesson effectively In today's new perspective on teaching, the teacher

is not the one who imparts or crams knowledge, but the one who organizes, controls and guides students to discover knowledge themselves They play a central role in creating innovative and practical lessons that enhance interest, stimulate exploration, and prepare students with the necessary skills for their future A comfortable and relaxing atmosphere will be created by letting students learn while playing, allowing them to sing English songs and chants, or draw pictures, tell stories through group activities without forcing them forcing children to learn according to a specific pattern Therefore, using creative experiential activities during lessons is a very necessary and correct thing to do, in line with current teaching trends

2.2 Real basis

Currently, with the goal of making English become the second language

in all of schools according to the Foreign Language Project 2030, innovating teaching methods is always a top priority The system of textbooks and diverse teaching materials are powerful tools that support teachers in their teaching work They also frequently participate in workshops and training sessions organized by the Department of Education and the Education Office to learn from each other and discover effective teaching methods

However, beside that, there are still some teachers who have not updated their thinking and applied new teaching methods for students They are

accustomed to traditional methods They teach English but only focus on grammar, doing exercises without developing listening, speaking, and communication skills in real-life situations for students For example, when teaching new vocabulary, the teacher only writes the words on the board, then reads them as a model and asks the students to write them into their notebooks, reading them again in a mechanical and repetitive manner Teachers give students a lot of homework but do not provide opportunities for practicing communication and developing listening and speaking skills Therefore, when facing with real-life situations to communicate in English, students are unable to perform Gradually, they become shy and timid, feel bored whenever they study English

Moreover, elementary school students are still young, and their minds are developing They are always curious, energetic, and cannot sit still for long time

A repetitive activity will make them bored and tired

Faced with the above situations, I personally feel it is necessary to innovate teaching methods, in accordance with the psychology of students' ages and current educational goals, not to let students learn in a boring way Organize experiential activities for children to learn and play, talk, exchange and discuss with teachers and other friends, organize games, sing the songs, draw pictures, and find out new things Besides, the 4th graders of Vinh Hung Primary School were also familiar with the experiential activities in other subjects such as: Music, Art, Ethic so they understood the method and effectiveness of these activities

Because of understanding psychology, educational trends and the convenience of daily group activities, I have boldly applied the topic to my teaching activities

2.3 Learning situation before applying the teaching experience initiative

In the school year 2024-2025, I was assigned to teach English for students

in class 4C at Vinh Hung Primary school Through the results of the first term assessment test as well as observing learning attitude of the students in English subject, I myself realized that the old method of teaching and learning is not suitable and effective any more It is not easy for students to learn English because it is not mother tongue To develop four skills: listening, speaking, reading and writing, the learners must to be hard- working to practice communication skills However, the teachers just read and list all the new words

mid-on the board and then let students repeat several times This form of teaching and learning language makes students bored, only some students understand the lesson, the rest remember mechanically and forget quickly This is what leads to low students’ language competence The learning results and attitudes of the students through the test in September (as the first attached appendix) before I applied the teaching initiative are shown in detail in the following table:

Survey

time Class

Number

of students

Learning Attitude Learning Quality

Like learning English, be confident

Don’t like learning English, not

be confident

Understand the lesson quickly and perform the tasks well

Understand the lesson and do some parts

of the requirement

Don’t understan

d the lesson and cannot do the tasks Before

(67,6%)

7 (20,6%)

17 (50%)

10 (29,4%)

From that situation, I have been looking for ways to help students learn more excitedly and achieve better results Therefore, I have actively applied creative experiential activities to teaching English

2.4 Content and forms of solution

2.4.1 The goals of solution

The solutions and measures outlined in the experience initiative help teachers and students become more interested in teaching and learning English

At the same time, it helps them understand the knowledge and content of the lesson, improve listening and speaking skills, help and complement each other

in the learning process, and know how to apply the lesson to some simple communication situations in life

2.4.2 Content and methods of taking measures

2.4.2.1 Identify the importance of learning through creative experiential activities

As we all know, integrating creative experimental activities in English lessons is a new form of teaching organization in which students, under the guide of teachers, work together Students can learn through singing English songs and chants, playing games, role- playing or drawing pictures [ 2 ] They can work in pairs, in groups, teams or in the whole class These activities will give students many opportunities to express their ideas, broaden their thinking, and practice communication skills From that, they can also improve their life skills very well Organizing for students creative experimental activities is to create a favorable environment to form their personality and develop life skills When taking part in these activities, students will feel comfortable, more confident, not stressed as when working alone So their learning will be more successful

Using experiential activities in teaching English for grade 4 are also considered important activities, so they are always interested and used by teachers and students Most of the lessons, at least twice the teacher uses this teaching method, which is checking vocabulary and practicing sentence patterns

In addition, in lessons on reading comprehension skills, listening skills, writing skills, teachers also use this method

2.4.2.2 Methods of integrating creative experiential activities to solve problems

2.4.2.2.1 Integrating music (songs, chants, musical pieces ) related to the lesson content

Using music is an useful method to make the process of learning English enjoyable and exciting It helps to enhance students’ interest and motivation in learning Activities like music, games, or role-playing help create a fun and comfortable learning atmosphere Students find it engaging and no longer feel bored, which helps maintain focus and motivation throughout the lesson

Teaching English through rhymes and songs also helps students practice listening and speaking skills well They can learn many new words and phrases, and enables them to easily grasp and apply sentence structures, making it easier for them to remember lessons for a longer time and more deeply With this method, the lessons become more enjoyable and lively, and students are not under pressure or bored

Teachers can use music to:

* Warm- up the lesson

* Introduce new language

* Consolidate knowledge

* Practice listening skills

Steps to teach a chant/song to students: [ 2 ]

Step 1: The teacher lets the students listen to the entire song/chant

Step 2: Have the students listen and repeat each line of the song or rhyme Step 3: The teacher has the students listen again, sing along to the entire song/chant and they can perform actions or clap to the rhythm

Incorporating verses and songs helps students practice listening and speaking skills, learn many new words and phrases, and enables them to easily grasp and apply sentence patterns, leading to better retention and deeper understanding of the material

Example 1:

I learn smart 4: Unit 4: Activities - Lesson 1.2 [ 3 ]

At the beginning of the lesson, The teacher uses the IQ rap song from YouTube and incorporates it into the lesson by creating multiple-choice questions (A or B ) to warm up before starting the new lesson [ 5 ] This activity helps students review the vocabulary: play a board game, do a puzzle, eat snacks, read a comic book, take photos, play video games which they have learnt at the last lesson and engage in a fun and exciting way to have an effective lesson

Teacher and whole class: A or B , A or B, Is it A or B ?

Teacher: one, two , three A or B ?

Students : A

Teacher: What is this?

Students: Play a board game

Teacher: well- done !

And teacher does the same with another question

With this activity, the learners are very excited and favorable to start the new lesson They will become more confident and interested in discovering new knowledge during English lessons They feel that learning English is not boring ,

but very happy and wonderful

Students do warm-up exercises before starting

the new lesson

Example 2: I learn smart 4: Unit 2: What I can do - Lesson 3.2 [ 3 ]

At the end of the lesson, the teacher has the students to listen to the song

“ What I can do” , then sing again in chorus and use 'body language' to perform actions simultaneously or use percussion instruments from the music class to create an engaging chant about the activities they can do/he can do/she can do After the whole class sing/ chant and do the action, I will call team by team to stand up and perform the song/ chant again Then choose the best team to reward and give stars for them

This activity makes the lesson not be boring, Students can also remember the knowledge well and don’t feel tired They can review vocabulary about daily activities : jump, swim, read, ride a bike and sentences pattern: “ What can you do? – I can ” that they have learnt more easily and quickly after this activity

Lyrics :

“ How about you? How about you ? What can you do?

Jump- I can jump Jump- I can jump

Jump jump jump I can jump

Swim- I can swim Swim- I can swim

Swim-swim- swim- swim- I can swim

Read- I can read Read- I can read

Read- read- read- I can read

Ride a bike- I can ride a bike

Ride ride ride ride ride a bike ” [ 5 ]

Teacher and students perform the chant and the song

2.4.2.2.2 Using AI technology, mind maps, drawing in English class

As we know, AI technology is currently very popular and useful for everyone in all fields, and this is also true for learning English It can help teachers create engaging lessons and dynamic videos that capture students' attention Using AI technology, mind maps, drawing in English lessons helps students stimulate their brains, then enhance their creativity, thinking, and confidence From these activities, students deepen their knowledge, actively grasp information, and develop their initiative, flexibility, and creativity

Teachers can use AI technology, mind maps, drawing to:

* Introduce new lesson and vocabulary

* Check the students' vocabulary learning

* Teach structure

* Teach skills: Listening, speaking, reading, writing

Example 1:

English 4:

Unit 3: Weather- Lesson 1.1 [ 3 ]

Before starting the lesson Teacher shows a picture of a student This activity piques students' curiosity and excitement to see what the student in the image is doing Teacher creates a video of this student greeting, introducing their name, and saying a few sentences about today's weather From there, teacher leads students into the new lesson

To make this video, I explored and learned through artificial intelligence software such as d zine.com, runway-ml.com, and d-id.com But I am most impressed with the software d-id.com because it helps teachers save time and easily convert static images into animated ones with voice-overs, creating videos that make lessons more lively

*Steps to convert images into animated videos using the software d-id.com are as follows: [ 5 ]

Step 1: Teacher accesses Google, type the website: www.d-id.com to

create an account

Step 2: Select Get started, choose a free account, paid account

Step 3: Go to the “Create video” section and select the image you want to

transfer

Step 4: Choose Script, type the command to be converted, select the

voice, and export the video

Images of students before and after using AI software

Example 2: Using “ Mind map”

English 4: Unit 5: Getting around- Lesson 1.2

Step 2: Students look at the mind map to grasp the information, write the

names of the traffic signs they have learned, and complete the map

Do not enter No parking

Step 3: Teacher asks students to read the vocabulary on the diagram again

This activity helps Students review the vocabulary, practice writing and speaking them Additionally, to memorize the Vietnamese meanings of those words and change the atmosphere of the lesson, at the end of the class, teacher can have students work in groups to draw pictures about traffic signs After that, they will practice asking and answering with the structure they have learned at the last lesson

“ What does that sign mean? – It means ”

Students draw traffic signs and practice sentence patterns

2.4.2.2.3 Using role – playing with creative content in English lessons

Role- playing helps students practice speaking and using English in life situations, thereby enhancing their communication skills Pretending to act

real-in different scenarios (such as goreal-ing to the market, askreal-ing for directions, buyreal-ing and selling, etc.) will help them become more confident when communicating in English

When students participate in role- playing situations, they not only learn new vocabulary and sentence structures but also have the opportunity to express their creativity, thereby learning many different ways of expression Role -

Traffic signs

playing often takes place in groups, help students learn how to work together, listen to their peers' opinions, and find ways to coordinate in order to carry out a hypothetical situation

Teachers can use role- playing to:

- Teach vocabulary by topic

- Review structure

- Practise listening and speaking skills

* Steps to organize role-playing for students :

Step 1: Setting the scene: Choose a situation closing to daily life: going

shopping, asking for directions, visiting the doctor Then introduce a specific context: You are a customer in a store and you need to buy a shirt, or You have

a headache and need to see a doctor

Step 2: Introducing vocabulary and phrases (involving to the situation ):

List vocabulary, questions, and answers that students can use in that situation For example, in a shopping scenario, you can teach phrases like: How much is this? I would like to buy , Can I try it on?

Step 3: Assigning roles: Divide students into pairs or small groups, then

assign roles to each student

Step 4: Students begin practicing role-playing in small groups The

teacher moves around and supports the groups

Step 5: Correcting and responding

Example 1: Unit 3: Weather ( Lesson 3.2) - I learn smart 4 [ 3 ]

At the end of the lesson , I have students work in pairs to role play

Situation: Ask and answer about the today’s weather and activities he/

she would like to do with their friends

Objectives: Help students review vocabulary and structure about the

weather:

Vocabulary: sunny, windy, cloudy, foggy, rainy

Structure: - What’s the weather like today?- It’s

- Would you like to with me?

Teacher models for example with one student Then students practice with the partner and show in front of the class Teacher checks and gives feedback if they have any mistake

“Teacher : Hi, Nam!

Student : Hello, Miss Nga !

Teacher: What’s the weather like today, Nam ?

Student : It’s clear and windy today.Would you like to fly a kite with me,

Miss Nga?

Teacher: Yes, I’d love to And let’s bring your cap and sunglasses

because it’s sunny

Student : OK, thanks”

This activity helps students to review the vocabulary and structure about the weather and develop listening , speaking, communicative skills for them Students will become more confident