How to teach ten – year system english 6 vocabulary effectively

I INDEX Page INTRODUCTION Reasons for choosing the subject Researching aims 3 Researching objects Researching methods CONTENTS II Theoretical background Practical background 2.1 - Advantages 2.2 - Difficulties Teaching experiences and teaching methods 3.1 - Preparation: 3.2 - Some principles to teach vocabulary: 3.3 - Techniques for eliciting vocabulary: 3.4 - Steps for presenting vocabulary: 3.5 - Techniques for checking vocabulary: 3.6 - Some exercises to check vocabulary: 12 The effectiveness of the initiative 17 III 18 CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS Conclusions: 18 Suggestions: 18 2.1 For Department of Education and Training: 18 2.2 For school management: 18 REFERENCE BOOKS 19 I INTRODUCTION 1 Reasons for choosing the subject We all know that English is very important to everybody nowadays, especially to young generation English is spoken all over the world It is an international language, so it is a key to open the knowledge treasure of the mankind We need English in many fields: in learning, in communicating and in working Therefore, English is a must have for all the students Thanks to English, people around the world know, grasp and become friendly with each other English is one of the languages with extensive vocabulary Therefore, its learners and users encounter a lot of troubles with it Learning and speaking English fluently is absolutely not easy, since we not fully understand the manner of pronunciation and usage of stresses of used words which are highly important Most of students have not studied English in depth; as a result, they not have enough essential vocabulary to serve their daily learning and communicating Vocabulary is one of the most important parts of learning a language To develop any skills such as listening, speaking, reading or writing skills, we need a certain amount of essential vocabulary Such vocabulary cannot be built in one or two days, it takes us a long time to acquire, develop and enrich our vocabulary Therefore, in general students are hesitant and afraid of learning vocabulary In the new teaching method, teacher should promote creative thinking and self- perceived competence in knowledge of the learners, mastering knowledge, avoid cramming knowledge Innovative teaching methods is an extremely important task for each teacher as well as the teaching and learning of foreign languages to achieve the highest efficiency in targeted communication, capture and integrate knowledge with the development of society To comply with the training objectives and gradually improve teaching effectiveness, innovation approach is a matter of urgency and necessity New teaching method means each student plays an active role in the process of actively learning As a teacher of English in a secondary school, I am always aware of the motivation of the country development, which is improving the quality of education in accordance with the general trend of the country Therefore, I have thought about the way to teach English with good quality and desired effect From the practical teaching, I have found that: "Teaching English is not a simple matter." It requires teachers not only to have specialized methods but also to constantly learn to improve their qualifications and always actively seek out new approaches to achieve better results in their English learning and teaching That is the reason why I always think of the questions "How students learn and remember vocabulary effectively?"; “How can students comprehend and acquire knowledge promptly?”; “How can students love learning English?”; “How can students have necessary vocabularies and use their own words in the most effective way?” Accordingly, I not only try my best to practice in the teaching process but also have a decision to investigate and learn more to find out optimal solutions In this school year, I have still applied the methods in teaching English and have obtained certain results I hope that my experience will help passionate teachers in practical application and more successful in teaching, so I’m trying to give the initiative "How to teach ten - year system English vocabulary effectively” to receive heartfelt comments of colleagues and education managers at all levels Moreover, to broaden my experience in teaching and serve practical work in teaching, improving the quality of teaching in the period of renovation Researching aims - Finding out the optimal ways in using techniques and games in lessons This helps students learn vocabulary effectively - Sharing experiences with colleagues Researching objects - Grade students - Ten - year system English Researching methods - Reading documents - Experiences in teaching - Exchanging experiences and methods with colleagues II CONTENTS Theoretical background For a long time, our teachers have been familiar with the traditional way of teaching, teacher - centered lessons However, from the view of "Learner-centered approach", teaching and learning methods have undergone fundamental changes Teachers are not the only people who possess knowledge and impart it; they are just guides, supporters, mentors, controllers, etc Learners are not people acquiring knowledge passively, but the center of teaching process and actively creative in the learning process in order to achieve their learning objectives For teaching foreign language in general, and English in particular, innovation in teaching method is completely obvious and particularly significant to communicate by language Based on theoretical points above, direct participation in learning process, I think playing specific roles and using conversations, especially using techniques and games in teaching in a flexible and natural way, will create joy and inspiration in learning English Practical background 2.1- Advantages Almost parents are concerned and create good condition for their children's study Besides, They always remind their children to review the old lessons and their homework before going to school Some students are very studious, they always get good marks in exams They not only have a curiosity but also interest in the subject, so they usually fully prepare books as well as other instruments for learning They are the active factors to contribute an English study movement In some classes, instruments serving teaching and learning such as teacher's books, reference books, mini projector, textbooks, workbooks and other teaching aids are provided fully by school managing board Subject teachers also receive the support from other teachers of the same professional groups and colleagues 2.2- Difficulties Although the facilities, equipments and teaching aids for the subject have been improved, they have not satisfied the current demand yet, especially to some extent the current innovation in teaching methods, forms of teaching organization such as listening room and audio-visual equipment, etc… The majority of students are not confident in the communication field limited practice, so their vocabulary is limited, too; Some students often get bad marks because of their laziness Meanwhile, there are a significant number of students who have not been good at Vietnamese They are usually confused in acquiring and using vocabulary, especially in communication They feel rather afraid of learning because of problems in words' pronunciation and spelling That is the reason why students are not always willing to speak English in class Teaching experiences and teaching methods Here are some solutions that I have applied in ten - year system English teaching process in the 2014-2015 school year and the first semester of the 2015 - 2016 school year in my school 3.1- Preparation: * For the teachers: - Teachers need to spend a lot of time searching for documents and looking for images related to the topic, and constantly update information to support instruction - Using simple visual aids to inspire in class - Preparing teaching plan carefully * For students: - Collecting documents, pictures related to the teacher’s lecture - Preparing lessons carefully - Practicing pronunciation regularly - Making utensils, visual aids when teachers request - In lessons students must pay much attention, practice listening, speaking, reading and writing the words confidently 3.2 - Some principles to teach vocabulary: - In a class teacher should choose from to new words to teach They are active words, this means that students will use them frequently in class to practice basic skills, especially in fostering oral and written skills - The words should have a higher frequency means that they appear frequently in the text - The words need absorbing in the learning process of students - Students should not repeat the words too many times that can make lessons become boring and waste effort of students as well as teachers - Teachers should not transcribe when teaching new words because vietnamese language skills of students are limited The focus should be on writing both Vietnamese and English 3.3 - Techniques for eliciting vocabulary: Teachers can follow some eliciting techniques for teaching vocabulary to help students learn new words actively Translation Visuals Example Mine Seven techniques Synonym/ Antonym Realia Visual aids: Situation/ Explaination 3.3.1 Visuals: Use pictures or draw sketches for children to see This helps teacher explains meanings of words quickly Example 1: Period 9- Unit 2: MY HOME Lesson 2: A closer look (English 6) Teacher uses pictures to teach some new words such as: chest of drawers, microwave, attic And students can guess the meanings of these words quickly and easily Example 1: chest of drawers - Use a picture - Teacher shows the picture of chest of drawers and asks students to guess the meaning Example 2: Period 11- Unit 2: MY HOME Lesson 4: Communication (English 6) Example 2: stilt house - Use a picture - Teacher shows the picture of a stilt house and asks students to guess the meaning 3.3.2 Mine /Gesture: Show facial expressions, gestures, postures Example: Unit 3: My friends - Lesson (English 6) To teach the word "shy" Teacher asks students to look at the teacher’s facial expressions, gestures and listen to the teacher carefully to give the meaning of the words Teacher says: "I’m shy" and puts her finger on her mouth and lowers her head Then the teacher asks “What does shy mean?” Students’ possible answer: Shy means “thẹn, e thẹn” 3.3.3 Realia: Use real things Example 1: Unit 1: My new school - Lesson (English 6) To teach words of school things (calculator, rubber, compass, pencil case, pencil sharpener, ruler, school bag ) Teachers should use school things of students to illustrate her lectures - Teacher holds a student’s pen and asks: “What is this?” - Students’ possible answer: It is a pen Example 2: Unit 2: My home - Lesson (English 6) To teach the words of furniture in a room (ceiling fan, light ) Teachers should use real things in the class to illustrate her lectures Teacher asks students to look at the ceiling of the classroom, then teacher points at the ceiling fan and says “That’s a ceiling fan” 3.3.4 Situation/Explanation: Use situations and explain the new words to students so that they can understand the new words effectively Example: Unit 3: My friends - Lesson (English 6) When teaching new words "creative, sporty, talkative,….", teacher should give situations and explain Mina is very creative She likes drawing pictures She always has lots of new ideas Require students to guess the word "creative " and tell the teacher the meaning of the word Nam likes playing sports He plays sports every afternoon He is sporty Require students to guess the word " sporty " and tell the teacher the meaning of the word Lan loves talking She is always on the phone, chatting to friends She is very talkative Require students to guess the word " talkative " and tell the teacher the meaning of the word 3.3.5 Example: Unit 6: Our Tet Holiday - Lesson (English 6) To teach the word "furniture", teacher lists examples of furniture for students to guess its meaning “Tables, chairs, wardrobes, beds, televisions – these are called furniture” Who can give me another example of furniture? And “ what does furniture mean in Vietnamese?” - Students’ possible answer: Furniture means “đồ đạc” 3.3.6 Synonym/antonym: Teacher uses the words that are learned by students and the equivalent meanings to help students identify the meanings of words which they are going to learn Example 1: Unit 7: Television - Lesson (English 6) Example: cute To teach the word "cute", teacher can ask students to guess the meaning through a word that was previously learned - Teacher asks "What is another word for pretty?" - Students’ possible answer: Another word for pretty is cute Example 2: Unit 7: Television - Lesson (English 6) Example: clumsy Teacher gives the words she wants to teach, then gives the word which has the opposite meaning Students: Guess the meaning of the word - Teacher asks "What is the opposite of clever?" - Students’ possible answer: The opposite of clever is clumsy 3.3.7 Translation: Teacher uses equivalent words in Vietnamese to provide meanings of English words Teacher uses this tip only when there is no other way, this tip is often used to teach abstract words, or to explain meanings of a large number of new words in limited time Teacher gives suggestions to help students translate words by themselves Example: Unit 6: Our Tet Holiday - Lesson (English 6) Example: fireworks Teacher asks "How you say " pháo hoa" in English?” 3.4 - Steps for presenting vocabulary: - Use a suitable technique to elicit or show the meaning of vocabulary - Model the pronunciation clearly (three times) - Ask students to repeat the word chorally and individually - Correct students' pronunciation - Write vocabulary on the board and students write down vocabulary in their notebooks - Check that students clearly understand the meaning and pronunciation - Draw students’ attention to aspects of vocabulary such as part of speech, collocation, frequency etc… - Give students a written record (Maybe teacher checks that students write vocabulary in their notebooks correctly) 3.5 - Techniques for checking vocabulary: Rub out and Remember Jumbled words Bingo Ordering Seven techniques What and where Matching Slap the board A Rub out and remember: 1- Teacher presents or elicits vocabulary and builds up the list on the board 2- After each word teacher puts the Vietnamese translation 3- Teacher asks students to write down vocabulary in their notebooks and then close their notebooks 4- Teacher rubs out the new words one at a time 5- Each time teacher rubs out a word in English, points at the Vietnamese translation and asks “What is this word in English ?” 6- When all the English words are rubbed out, teacher goes through the Vietnamese list and gets students to call out the English words 7- If there is enough time, teacher gets students to come to the board and write the English words again *Note: This helps leaners to memorize vocabulary quickly Example: Unit - Lesson (English 6) - Teacher checks up vocabulary using technique: Rub out and remember - Teacher asks one or two students to go to the board to write the correct word in each blank ……………… (a): phấn chấn, phấn khích ……………… (v): mặc, đội ……………… (n): đồng phục ……………… (a): bảnh bao, nhanh trí ……………… (n): máy tính ……………… (n): com pa, la bàn ……………… (n): cục tẩy ……………… (a): nặng - Answer keys: excited (adj) phấn chấn, phấn khích wear (v): mặc, đội uniform (n): đồng phục smart (adj) bảnh bao, nhanh trí calculator (n): máy tính compass (n): com pa, la bàn rubber (n): cục tẩy heavy (a): nặng B Slap the board: 1- Teacher puts the new words in English on the board in bubbles - not in a list 2- If you want to check the understanding, put the Vietnamese translation of the new words or picture on the board 3- Teacher divides the class into two teams of five or six 4- Teacher chooses a student from each team and they stand at equal distance from the blackboard 5- Teacher calls out one of the new words in a low voice in Vietnamese 6- Two students must run forward and slap the word in English on the board 7- The one who slaps the correct word first is the winner and the win team gets one mark * Note: There are two points to remember in “Slap the board” If you use only English, leaners are only recognizing the word through listening However, if you use Vietnamese translation or picture you can check the meaning of vocabulary Example: Unit - Lesson (English 6) Checking vocabulary: slap the board - Teacher gives some new words on the board and asks students to play the game overseas playground international creative surround kindergarten C What and where: 1- Teacher writes the new words in the circles on the board not in a list 2- When all the words are on the board, teacher asks students to repeat the words in circles 3- Teacher rubs out one of the words but does not rub out the circle 4- Teacher gets students to repeat the words including the rubbed out words by pointing at the empty cicles 5- Teacher rubs out another word but leaves the circle 6- Teacher points the words or empty circles, students read and remember all the words 7- Continue until all the circles are empty 8- Teacher asks six or eight students to come to the board and fill in the circles with the correct words Example: Unit - Lesson (English 6) Checking vocabulary: What and where - Teacher gives some new words on the board and asks students to play the game Personalit y clever shy petal talkative hard -working creative confiden t * Note: This checking technique is not only good for learners to memorize the new words but also good for revision of vocabulary D Matching: 10 1- Teacher writes the new words in the list on the left side of the board 2- Teacher writes the definitions, translation or draws pictures on the right side of the board 3- Teacher asks the Ss to come to the board to match the items on the left with those on the right by drawing a line between them Example: Unit - Lesson (English 6) Checking vocabulary: Matching - Teacher asks one student to go to the board to the matching - One student goes to the board to the matching 1- fur a- khuỷu tay 2- tail b- kiên trì / kiên nhẫn 3- blonde c- lơng 4- chubby d- kiểu tóc ngựa 5- knee e- hoe 6- ponytail f- đầu gối 7- elbow g- mập mạp 8- patient h- đuôi * Answer Keys: 1- c; 2- h; 3- e; 4- g; 5- f; 6- d; 7- a; 8- b E Jumbled words: 1- Teacher sticks six flash cards with jumbled letters on the board or writes six words with jumbled letters on the board 2- Teacher asks students to write the words correctly 3- Teacher tells students the first group with the right words will get two points 4- Teacher corrects them 5- Teacher asks students to read the words again Example: Unit - Lesson (English 6) - Teacher sticks six flash cards with jumbled letters on the board and asks students to play the game icohr wfreorik topcoemitin iebrensposl rtfefirgihe asulu * Answer keys: 1- choir 3- competition 5- usual 2- firework 4- responsible 6- firefighter * Note: This checking technique helps students remember the words they have learnt deeply F Bingo: 1- Teacher gets the class to brainstorm a list of ten or fifteen new words and writes them on the board 11 2- Students choose any five and coppy them into their notebooks 3- Teacher reads out the words in any order 4- Each time the student has one of the words that teacher reads, she/ he puts a tick next to that word 5- The first student to tick all five words shouts “ Bingo” Who says “Bingo” first will be the winner * Note: This technique can be used to check and revise the new words you have introduced during the week G Ordering: 1- Teacher writes the new words on the board in the wrong order 2- Teacher has students copy the words into their notebooks 3- Teacher reads a paragraph or a story with the new words in it aloud and gets students to put the words in the correct order by numbering them Example: Unit - Lesson ( English 6) - Teacher writes the new words on the board in the wrong order and asks students to play the game Imperial galleries Perfume attraction cuisine Central Hue is the oldest city in (1) …… Viet Nam It’s near Da Nang, but it’s more interesting than Da Nang! It also has the most famous river in Central Viet Nam - the (2) …… River You should take a trip on the river, and you must visit the (3) …… City There you can find museums, (4) …… , and temple It’s Hue’s greatest (5) …… But many people travel here just for (6) …… - the food is really good It’s rainy in Hue, so remember to bring an umbrella! *Answer keys: Imperial (3) Central (1) attraction (5) cuisine (6) galleries (4) Perfume (2) 3.6 - Some exercises to check vocabulary: Group the words according to their topics tea coffee rice fish beer grape lettuce cabbage chicken FOOD apple onion melon DRINK FRUIT VEGETABLES FOOD DRINK FRUIT VEGETABLES rice chicken tea coffee apple melon onion lettuce *Answer keys: 12 fish beer grape cabbage Underline the word which does not belong to the group: ex: scientist chemist physician mathematics school history literature English walk read book watch Fill in the empty circles: - Teacher writes some words that students have learnt on the board - Teacher asks students to come to the board and fill in the empty circles with the correct words rice bread milk fish beer water egg chicken coffee lettuce pork tea lemonade drink foo d *Answer keys: rice lettuc e egg por k lemonade mil k bread drink foo d fis h bee r tea chicken coffee wate r a- Work in pairs to talk about your favorite foods and drinks I like……………… I don’t like…………………… 13 b- Interview your partner about his /her favorite foods and drinks then write the report What you like to eat ? What you like to drink? He/She likes…………… He/She doesn’t like…… c- Complete the passage to write about your daily meals: I usually have (1) meals a day I have (2)……… at (3)…………o’clock I like (4)………for breakfast but I don’t like (5)…………because it is (6)……… For lunch, I usually have rice, (7)… … and (8)… I like to drink fruit (9) ………….because it’s good for my heath I often have rice, (10)………… and vegetables for dinner *Answer keys: three sweet breakfast meat six vegetables bread juice milk 10 fish MODEL LESSON PLAN FOR TEACHING VOCABULARY 14 * Vocabulary: Step 1: Teacher presents the new words through the pictures or real objects Step 2: Teacher models the pronunciation clearly (3 times) Step 3: Teacher asks students to repeat the words chorally and individually Step 4: Teacher corrects students' pronunciation Step 5: Teacher writes the words on the board and asks students to copy them into their notebooks skis (n) boat (n) skateboard (n) ván trượt tuyết thuyền ván trượt có bánh xe góc kính bơi goggles (n) điệu sports shoes (n) racket (n) giày thể thao vợt (cầu lông) Step 6: Teacher checks up vocabulary 15 Match the words given with the right pictures skis (n) skateboard (n) boat (n) goggles (n) 16 sports shoes (n) racket (n) The effectiveness of the initiative Through new teaching methods, I see that many students are so excited and animated to learn vocabulary well They have guessed a lot of new words through context, situations and themes Many former students did not dare tell in front of the class, they are now confident to communicate with friends and teacher in English class I gave them specific situations, so they could engrave more words, especially those difficult words Above are some solutions to promote students in grade learning English that I have applied in the 2014-2015 school year and the first semester of the 2015-2016 school year in my school The results are as follows: A The results before applying the new teaching methods in lessons Poor Fair Good Excellent Class total amount % amount % amount % amount % 6C 33 10 30.3 10 30.3 27.3 12.1 B The results after applying the new teaching methods in lessons Poor Fair Good Excellent Class total amount % amount % amount % amount % 6C 33 9.1 12 36.4 12 36.4 18.1 The above results have demonstrated that my topic was effective in accordance with the direction of the school and the area So far, I have done and continued to promote the good points, overcome the bad points to improve the quality of teaching 17 III CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS Conclusions: To encourage students in learning English effectively and communicating with confidence in English, I think "How to teach ten - year system English vocabulary effectively” is very important It helps to impart the knowledge more favorable, and easier Moreover, students can acquire the knowledge faster, more realistically and more naturally However, we can not use stereotypes to the actual conditions of teaching we should organize more learning activities for students to learn and practice vocabulary to match with lessons, abilities of students, and attract the attention of students, giving students more confident, less stressful in order to promote the creativity of students in acquiring knowledge To create a positive learning environment, teacher plays a very important role In class, students are the main activities and teacher has to invest a lot of effort and time to prepare teaching aids, navigation methods, organization of learning activities in order to suit every student Teacher should help students overcome difficulties in learning in order to reduce the number of weak students The positiveness helps students achieve their desired results Suggestions: 2.1 For Department of Education and Training: - Continuing to open seminars for innovative methods in teaching English language - Keeping holding Internet Olympic English to motivate students in learning English 2.2 For school management: + Making a suggestion that People's Committees should build some functional rooms for teaching and learning English + Making well education tasks to buy new equipments for modern teaching Above are some of my experiences in teaching English vocabulary that I have summarized in the process of teaching and learning As a teacher of a foreign language, I am very eager to share my experiences with other teachers, I hope these experiences will be read by my colleagues and I will receive the comments of teachers to make my initiative perfect I sincerely thank you ! CONFIRMATION OF PRINCIPAL Thanh Hoa, April 6th, 2016 I am sure this initiative is mine I don’t copy other’s work Author Đỗ Thị Nhàn 18 REFERENCE BOOKS English language teaching methodology for teachers in lower secondary schools - Thanh Hoa Department of Education and Training Regular refresher material - Ministry of Education and Training English Textbook and teachers’ book - Ministry of Education and Training 19 ... passionate teachers in practical application and more successful in teaching, so I’m trying to give the initiative "How to teach ten - year system English vocabulary effectively to receive heartfelt... (English 6) To teach the word "shy" Teacher asks students to look at the teacher’s facial expressions, gestures and listen to the teacher carefully to give the meaning of the words Teacher says:... leaners to memorize vocabulary quickly Example: Unit - Lesson (English 6) - Teacher checks up vocabulary using technique: Rub out and remember - Teacher asks one or two students to go to the board to