Let's start with how to teach English

When we are teaching English in nursery school we have to bear in mind some things, so, first of all, we have to think about:

What aims do I want to obtain?

1. I want them to improve oral skills.
2. I want them to follow instructions.
3. They have to identify the objects that I named.
4. They have to remember some types of text (songs, nursery rythmes, histories…).
5. I want to teach them how to pronunciate.
6. I want them to start talking a little bit in this language.
7. I want them to start knowing some things about this new culture, festivals, daily routines etc.
8. Etc.

How can I obtain this aims?

1. They have to enjoy learning English because, if they don´t, it will be difficult to make them complete a good learning.
2. The class needs some routines to acquire learning strategies.
3. We need in our classrooms resources or materials that allow our pupils learn vocabulary. For example, flash cards, posters etc.
4. Playing is the most effective way to stimulate the pupils, so, therefore, is the best way to make that they could learn English.
5. Also, if we use theatres or games with disguises, it´s a good way to practice speaking and oral comprehension.
6. At the same that we do in other subjects, we can divide our class in corners where pupils can make different activities.
7. It´s important to hear or pupils to know what they want to learn or what kind of things are they interested in.
8. To produce a good learning we have to relate the knowledge that they have with the new things that we are going to practice.
9. Also, we have to make activities that they relate with daily actions.
10. Finally, it´s really important work in groups as much as we can.

What can I do if they feel bad learning English?

At first, they are going to be a little bit disoriented and maybe, if they don´t know what are we doing or what they have to do, they can feel insecurity. So, what we have to do in this cases is repeat a lot what we want to teach them, and if it is possible, show them images or make gestures at the same time we are saying that things. Also, we have to congratulations them a lot when they do a good job and not correct them a lot because they could thing that they can´t do it. And, of course, we have to enjoy them with this learning.

Saint Patrick's Day

Introduction


Saint Patrick's day is an important festival, but it's to difficult to explain the meaning. In most schools explain three different stories
We are going to explain only the San Patrick one.
Saint Patrick's day is celebrated annually on March 17 to commemorate the death of St.
Patrick, irland's patron. The symbols of this holiday are the clover and the gnome. In this date
everybody have to wear green clothes. To work with this festival we have propused the following activities.

Activities

Songs: As we have said before singing is one of the best ways of teaching. Because besides of having fun our students will learn vocabulary and pronuntiation.

I'm a Little Leprechaun

I'm a little leprechaun
(hands on hips)
Dressed in green,
(point to shirt)
The tiniest man
(hold thumb and index finger about an inch apart)
That you have seen.
(point to the other people)
If you ever catch me, so it's told,
(make a motion like you're grabbing at a leprechaun)
I'll give you my big pot of gold.
(make a motion like you're giving something away)

Drawing: We can paint a picture of a leprechaun, painting is one of the activities. Colouring is one of theis favourite activities, this way we'll develop artistic and creative skills.

We can paint a picture of a leprechaun. Colouring is one of their favourite activities, this way we'll develop artistic and creative skills.


 Game: 

One of the student is a Leprechaun, he or she sits in the middle of the circle with eyes close, one of the children in the circle hides the shamrock behind their back - I always have an adult distribute the shamrock so all the kids get a turn.Circle children say: "Leprechaun, Leprechaun where's your shamrock? Somebody has it in their Pocket! Guess who? Maybe you? Maybe a monkey from the zoo! Come on Leprechaun find your shamrock." Leprechaun opens eyes and has 3 guesses as to who has the shamrock. Child with the shamrock becomes the next leprechaun.

Christmas

Introduction

We celebrate Christmas in the twenty five of December. It´s a date when all people stay with their families and also with the persons who they love. The night before Christmas there is a man who distributes presents to the kids that have had a good behavior during the year. This man is called Santa Claus and is an old man who has a white beard and is dressed with red clothes, but, we can´t see him because if we do, they won´t give us our presents.

To work in this topic we are going to propose five activities.

Activities

•  Dominoes: It´s good to practice the vocabulary. With this kind of game they can see the picture and also the word so; playing again and again they will finally learn the vocabulary of the topic that we are working in. Also, kids use to enjoy this game, so it´s a good way to learn more English.  

• Memory: At the same that dominoes is a good game to practice and learn the vocabulary. And, like dominoes, childrens like to play with this games, so, they can enjoy them learning.

•  Riddle: Other activity is to propose a riddle. In this case, kids can memorize the riddle and find the correct answer. It´s good to acquire more vocabulary and oral resources.

Who is coming on Christmas night?

Who is coming on Christmas night?

With a red, red coat and hair all white?

Eyes that sparkle like a starry night?

I know. Don’t you?

Who has a bag all filled with toys?

With wonderful things for girls and boys?

Who has a sleigh that makes no noise?

I know. Don’t you?

• Nursery Rhymes: There are a lot of songs about Christmas and kids use to like them a lot, so, we can teach them with this about this other culture or customs, and of course, they can learn more oral resources which is important to the memory, vocabulary and pronunciation. We have decided to put this song but, there are a lot of them, so, you can decide what you want to use with your pupils.

Here we go round the Christmas tree
The Christmas tree, the Christmas tree.
Here we go round the Christmas tree,
on Christmas day in the morning.


This is the way we open our presents,
Open our presents, open our presents.
This is the way we open our presents,
On Christmas day in morning.


Here we go round the Christmas tree
The Christmas tree, the Christmas tree.
Here we go round the Christmas tree,
on Christmas day in the morning.


This is the way we open our presents,
Open our presents, open our presents.
This is the way we open our presents,
On Christmas day in morning.

Christmas - Here We Go Round The Christmas Tree - Musica - Letra Lyrics - Video - NuestroTono.NET

• Film: Christmas is a good moment to have more time with our family and to show how much we love them and how much we need them. To make the most of this dates we are going to work the family. First of all, we are going to see a film about the family, and, after, we are going to talk about family and what we think about them and what we want to do in Christmas all together.

San Valentine's Day

Introduction

It is the day of love, fondness and affection. It is celebrated every year on February 14. This day consists in being with those whom you want and estimate. Giving cards and presents it´s the way you can say to all special persons that they are really important for you and that you are grateful about all the things that they have done for you and your relationship.

To celebrate this day, we can do activities with our pupils that make them feeling good with their classmates and realize of who are treating them well. For example, we can do this three activities.

Activities

•  We are going to give our pupils a piece of paper with the form of a heart. In that paper, they have to write (with our help) or draw what they want and give it to the classmate that they prefer. We have to try that they express they feelings about other people.
• The day before Saint Valentine´s day, we will give our pupils a postcard (making with paper or a cardboard) and they have to write or draw what they want to the person that they prefer in the school. Next day, they have to put the postcard in a mailbox that we are going to have in class. At the end of the day, we will distribute the postcards. All classrooms can do this activity, so, finally, all people could have a postcard to know how much we love them.
•  Nursery rhymes – You are my sunshine.

Nursery rhymes

You are my sunshine,
my only sunshine.
You make me happy
when skies are grey.
You'll never know, dear,
how much I love you.
Please don't take my sunshine away.


The other night, dear,
as I lay sleeping
I dreamed I held you in my arms.
When I awoke, dear,
I was mistaken
so I hung my head and cried.


You are my sunshine,
my only sunshine.
You make me happy
when skies are grey.
You'll never know, dear,
how much I love you.
Please don't take my sunshine away.

Halloween

Introduction

It's known as the witches night and it takes place on the early morning of the 31 of October. Although is more common to celebrate this night in the United States, nowadays more and more countries are joining this party.
This day is related with orange as the pumpkins, and black which represents the darkness, the fear...
The typical activities of this day are dressing up, caving the pumpkins out, telling ghost stories, watching movies, and of course the “trick or treat” which consists in going from house to house asking for kandy, and the homeowners will have to give them if they refuse to be victims of heavy jokes.
To work this item we have propoused the following activities.

Activities

• Make our own pumpkin: As we can't have a pumpkin for everybody, we will make one with a balloon, and some stickers. With this activity we're going to work with the handicrafts and we can decorate the classroom with them.
• Flashcards:  It's one of the best ways to improve and learn the vocabulary. For that reason we are going some repetitives activities with flashcards. For example we can make a circle, distribute the flashcards on the floor and ask the cildren to bring you one of them. In this case we are going to work with the visual memory, the pronunciation and the relations between the pictures and the words. But this is not the only way to teach using the flashcards. Also we can separate the picture and the word, so our pupils have to make and effort to remember the word, its pronunciation and the picture. For example we can make a similar activity changing the question, so we can ask which of the pictures is the which.
• Songs:  children love songs, for that a really easy way to improve the vocabulary, and to teach them the culture, and oral resources is singing. There are many songs about halloween. We have selected some of them but you can choose other.

•  As songs, with the nursery rhymes we are going to achieve the same objectives. We have selected only one, but there are plenty of them.

Halloween's coming.

Halloween's coming.
Skeletons will be after you.
Witches, cats, and big black bats.
Ghosts and goblins, too.
Flap, flap, flap go the big black bats
Ooooo. Boo!
"Meow, meow, meow," go the ugly cats.
Ooooo. Boo! 

Film: Nightmare before christmas: most of the children are afraid of some things from these
dates. We think this film it's good to work on that, because it shows a new face of halloween,
and it let as work with the fellings, like fear, sadness or confusion.

Puzzle: we can make a puzzle not only for having fun, but to achieve other objectives. In this case we have chosen a skeleton puzzle in which we can learn some bones vocabulary.