Using flash cards to teach english vocabulary for primary student

THANH HOA EDUCATION & TRAINING DEPARTMENT THANH HOA CITY EDUCATION & TRAINING OFFICE EXPERIENCE INITIATIVE USING FLASH CARDS TO TEACH ENGLISH VOCABULARY FOR PRIMAY STUDENTS Implementer: Nguyen Thi Le Hang Position: Teacher School: Nguyen Van Troi Primary School Subject: English THANH HOA, YEAR 2018 INDEX CONTENTS 1: INTRODUCTION 1.1 The reasons for choosing the topic 1.2 The purposes of research 1.3 The object of the research 1.4 The methods of the search 2: CONTENT 2.1 Theoretical basis of the experiece initiative 2.2 Situation issuses before applying experience initiative 2.3 The sollution of implemented 2.4 The affect of experience initiative 3: CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS Conclusion Recommendations PAGE 1 2 3 5-6 7-17 17 17 17-18 REFERENCES INTRODUCTION 1.1 The reasons for choosing the topic With the general growth of society, English is becoming popular for all of people in over the world Teaching and learning English is a problem that the Vietnam educations care about English is not only taught in universities, high schools, junior high schools but also in primary school Vocabulary learning is an intrinsic part of language teaching A number of researchers agree that there is very little research carried out in the field of vocabulary learning and that the most effective means of vocabulary learning is still unclear In recent years, applied linguists have strongly advocated vocabulary teaching because of the important role it plays in language learning Vocabulary is necessary for communication and in expressing meaning through the productive and receptive skills There are many techniques employed by teachers in teaching vocabulary and they can improve their learners’ knowledge of vocabulary by helping them in building a large number of words to choose from anytime they want to convey their intended message in different contexts Students, however, complain that they cannot remember the words they have learned To solve this problem, vocabulary learning tool The researcher believes that an awareness of individual differences in learning makes EFL educators and curriculum designers more sensitive to their roles in teaching and learning Furthermore, it will permit them to match teaching and learning so as to develop students “potentials in EFL learning as well as to assist students to become cognizant of the ways they learn most effectively It also helps the students to develop techniques and tools to become more motivated and independent learners The understanding of the students” beliefs of vocabulary learning and their vocabulary learning techniques use enables teachers and researchers to design appropriate materials and activities to help them improve their vocabulary learning so as to enhance their lexical competence There are many methods used to teach vocabulary for primary school students, although what is the effective method? This research aims to find out the most effective one – using flashcards To help primary school students memorize thousands of foreign words quickly and easily teacher can use flashcards to teach them However, how flashcards can improve student’s English vocabulary, and is it really effective? This study demonstrates an initial attempt to explore how teachers in junior high schools use flashcards to teach English vocabulary, what the best way for them to use flashcards is And how students of primary schools can memorize English vocabulary when their teachers use flashcards 1.2 The purposes of research Research this topic to help teachers improve my pedagogical profession methods and create in teaching, contribute the teaching tasks that the Party and State assigned to and the quality of teaching English in general At the same time, students are interested in learning and motivated in activities, practice the language These things contribute to improve their ability of communication in English in the classroom.The teaching and learning follow morden teaching methods become better and more efficient 1.3 The object of the research As an English teacher at primary school, I always wondered, after agonizing over every hour to class.Although students have a good knowledge of grammar, when I exercises to develop skills : Listening, Speaking, Reading and Writing,they are not good at four skills They are not listening, speaking and afraid to speak.And they often wrote the wrong word to use and misspelled In the process of teaching and research I have realized that the vocabulary system is one of the three main aspects of the language, have a special meaning in the teaching of a foreign language System vocabulary helps students distinguish types of speaking and writing style in each particular case, therefore it makes students more confident in the process of communication with foreigners Howerver, most students are not aware of it and even we who live normally instead of teaching so many students, teachers provide knowledge Grammar helps students choose to write new words, include highly effective for students that create dependency and inertia Therefore teaching vocabulary is key because there is no certainly no word language We can not train and develop the four skills: Listening, Speaking, Reading and Writing for students that are not based on the foundation of vocabulary Volume vocabulary as much as it helps students to understand and communicate effectively quickly The vocabulary learning and use on a regular basis, which is the result of the learning process For this to be true teacher is to guide students to actively and positively in the learning activities Teachers must find appropriate teaching methods to help students practice and remember well the vocabulary they have learned At the same time, teachers must instruct students how to learn and practice self- review vocabulary at home to memorize vocabulary and develop their own With my little experience I boldly go into a topic: "using flashcards to teach English vocabulary for primary students" 1.4.The methods of the search With this topic I have applied the following methodology - Method of dialogue,interview - Method of observation - Material reseache method - Method of survey and statistics CONTENT 2.1.The oretical basis of the experience intiative Before I start my study of the vocabulary flash card strategy on the vocabulary knowledge, it is necessary to clarify some of the concepts involved in it * Vocabulary A person's vocabulary is the set of words they are familiar with in a language A vocabulary usually grows and evolves with age, and serves as a useful and fundamental tool for communication and acquiring knowledge Language teaching specialists generally agree that vocabulary is one of the most important aspects for foreign language learners to acquire since it is critical in conveying the meaning of a message Vocabulary, in the abstract, represents a set of words for a language or a set of words that its speakers might use (Hatch & Brown, 1999) A word as a “single unit of language” (Oxford Advanced Learner‟s Dictionary 2000), conveys meaning on its own and is not part of any linguistic pattern that might change the word’s meaning in connection with other words * Flash Card (FC) One strategy for learning vocabulary is the use of flash cards A flash card is a cardboard consisting of a word, a sentence, or a simple picture on it It should be noted that the letters on it must be visible and large enough for everyone sitting in the front and the back of the classroom To make sure that everyone can see the letters on the card, it is better to write words with capital letters Both sides of the flash card should be used in teaching vocabulary On one side, the new word is written in L2 and perhaps with a picture beside it and on the other side is the translation These flash cards can be made by both teachers and learners Various kinds of flash cards are on the market Flashcards for EFL teaching or self-study have been used for years and are a useful tool for teachers and learners Flash cards are useful for drilling new letters, syllables, words, and other information They are normally used in a classroom, but can also be used more informally A flashcard or flash card is a set of cards bearing information, as words or numbers, on either or both sides, used in classroom drills or in private study Flash cards can bear vocabulary, historical dates, formulas or any subject matter that can be learned via a question and answer format Flash cards are widely used as a learning drill to aid memorization by way of spaced repetition * Vocabulary flashcards Vocabulary flash card or Word flash card is perhaps worth mentioning at this point, even though they are not actually pictures However, being used in a similar way as picture flash card, they can often enrich the lesson Vocabulary flash card can be fun, colorful, and creative way to aid in memory and retention of vocabulary words Flash cards are a tried and tested teaching and learning device inside and outside the classroom, for kids and adults alike Some of these flash cards are designed to perfect your English while others can help you learn a new language entirely The key to using flash cards is to look at the word or definition on one side, and test yourself to see if you can remember the answer written on the other So you can perfect your knowledge of the vocabulary on the list and improve your overall vocabulary 2.2 Situation issues before applying experience initiative a Advantages - Nguyen Van Troi Prirmary School is one of the bigest school in the center of Thanh Hoa City The school's furnitures is modern and comfortable - Administrators of our primary school always care about and create favorable facilities and professional documents serve as teaching subjects: the paintings 3, 4, 5, projectors, language laboratory - Local governments and organizations in and outside schools are interested, help teachers in the process of work - Itself subject teachers always get the support from the teachers and professional groups and colleagues - Most students prepare books and supplies for learning English department For the teacher: After six years of teaching English to primary school students, I found that training for effective new words is a difficult problem I may state the following reasons: Teacher not pay much attention to this stage Teachers don’t know enough about students in general or in particular sections Activities are carried out at the group pairs Facilities lack to meet the requirements of the teaching and learning of this matter It’s true that new words teaching at primary school is necessary for students to study better at higher grades to up grade on they can communicate better How to teach new words skill at the primary shool is not easy for teachers To make a skills better teacher need to give enough time for students to access and use the method "Pre - While - Post" method in 40 minutes so that according to the distribution of English language program in grades 1,2 and 3, 4, 5, the section is coupled with other pieces so not enough time for teachers to guide students worked on request Thus students can not develop good remember words skills In the context of education and training efforts are innovative teaching methods towards promoting proactive creativity of students in learning activities One of the factors that impact directly to the learning outcomes of students as teaching methods So to help students with a solid foundation in science instructional periods, student-centered, promote self-discipline to acquire all of the children Teachers should identify specific objectives of the lesson Such as that class will focus on practicing speaking skills, say something, use the other structure? But we should remember never skills training to be completely independent Usually the classes always have at least two skills combined, such as listening, speaking or reading, writing or speaking, listening, writing Learners who learn English as a foreign language, memorizing vocabulary is a difficult problem There are now many effective methods to help learners in learning English vocabularies Using flashcards is one of these However, there are also many different opinions around using flashcards Some judge that flashcards is helpful to teach and learn vocabulary, but the others not agree So the question is given that if flashcards have any helpful roles in teaching and learning foreign language vocabulary Flashcards are motivating and eye catching Howard Gardener’s multiple intelligence Gardener’s research indicates that the teachers should aim to appeal to all at the different learner types at some point during the course It is particularly important to appeal to visual learners, as a very high proportion of learners have this type of intelligence Flashcards can be bright and colorful and make real impact on visual learners Especially, it is very useful to teach vocabulary for young students S.Jackson (England) said he taught adult beginners and found that flashcards are very useful in teaching English vocabulary He would not like to teach “cabbage”, “lettuce”, “cucumber”, without flashcards Angela (Canada) said: “I use flashcards when teaching my young students who struggle with word recall” Laurence (France) an English teacher in a secondary school said that she used flashcards mostly with young students; they were very receptive to any new methods of learning which was not in their book She gave an example that she taught the students in a secondary about the different parts of the body She began the lesson by drawing a pin man on the board and asking students to tell what they call in English As they answered they did not know She gave them the right words and made them repeat several times Afterward, she used flashcards to show them a hand a leg…The result was really better She also said that flashcards can make students pay more attention to the lesson Wilson (Sri Lanka) showed her students a flashcard, example, a dog’s picture and tell them that was a horse, the students immediately tried to correct it So they could memorize these words better and longer According to Joanna Burden, British Council, Spain “flashcards are really handy resource to have and can be useful at every stage of the class They are great way to present, practice and recycle vocabulary and when students become familiar with the activities used in lass, they can be given out to early-finishers to use in small groups I sometimes get the students to make their own sets of mini flashcards that can be taken home for them to play with, with parents and siblings” b Disadvantages Although our primary school located in the center of the city, the situations of the students face many difficulties For the students: The number of students is high in each class Students are not used flash cards during class There is not enough investment in English in time Students also are not familiar with the method of learning in English vocabulary learning as well as how to make really effective Through teaching to students courses of professional activities and discussions with colleagues, I found myself that English learning situation also reveals some negativeness In general, they are not also self confident in communicating, their remember new English vocabulary is limited use They can not to make sentences because they not remember vocabularies To the parents, also very difficult to check or guide them to learn a foreign language at home by subjects, parents not know They have limited access to communicate in English outside school hours Directions to the survey quality mastering vocabulary limited school year: Table 1: QUALITY SURVEY Class Well accomplished Accomplished Unaccomplished Students quantity % quantity % quantity % 1A/ 40 2C/ 39 3C/ 41 4A/ 39 14 17 20 18 35% 43,6% 48,8% 46% 22 19 17 18 55% 48,7% 41,5% 46% 4 10% 7,7% 9,7% 8% 5I/ 39 Total/ 198 21 90 54% 45,5% 15 91 38% 46% 17 8% 8,5% This is a surveytable before using flashcards to teach English vocabularies To sum up, there are many ways to using flashcards effectively; however this research took especially at the way to using flashcards to teach vocabulary for students of grade 1,2,3,4,5 at Nguyen Van Troi primary school Different from the previous study, this focus on: - How flashcards can help students remember new English vocabulary The students’ feelings when learning English vocabulary with flashcards 2.3 The sollution of implemented 2.3.1 Context and Participants This study was conducted at the Nguyen Van Troi Primary School in Thanh Hoa city The participants were 1456 female students and male students at the grade 1,2,3,4,5 in thirty classes All of them had studied English as a compulsory subject at school They had four periods of English per week 2.3.2 Materials The materials used in this study included a closed-ended questionnaire Students were asked to answer the question such as “How you feel when your teacher use flashcards to teach you vocabulary?”…The answer was given out four selects: a very interesting, b interesting; c normal; d boring All the items in the questionnaire were written in Vietnamese At the end, the students in all two groups were tested using the posttest 3.3 Procedure At the beginning time of the first semester in the school year 2017 – 2018, I decided to examine the quality of English subjects for all students of Nguyen Van Troi Primary School by not using flashcards to teach vocabulary test Five classes were selected with each consisting of 198 students The classes were similar in a number of ways:All the students were different age and all of them studying at the same school with the different English teachers During the treatment period, they were exposed to the same vocabulary items but through different techniques The tests that were given and the time for giving instructions were exactly similar for both the flash card and the word list groups Because of the time limitation, ten vocabulary items were selected All of the words were from the participants’ textbook (English 1,2,3,4,5) Group received instruction of vocabulary using flash cards and Group received the vocabulary instruction through word lists for lesson or lesson The instruction was given in ten minutes in both sessions Finally, two days after finishing the procedure, a post-test was administered to both groups to see which group had remembered more words 2.4 The effect of experience This study is learne about using flashcard to teach English vocabulary for primary school The result shows that using flashcards is effective or not, this depends on students’ interest and the way teachers use to teach them However, what is the most effective way, in here, the way to teach and learn vocabulary for secondary students is that using flashcards, but just using flashcards is not completely efficient It is necessary for the teachers to combine the flashcards and other visual aids such as posters, board drawing, or teach vocabularies is in context, the teachers should use all kind of skills Teachers should encourage students to use any words unnaturally In addition, students should also help their teachers in learning their previous knowledge Students learn the words they are supposed to study and believe they must be making progress At least, they feel that way in class If they leave the class, they don’t remember the words or don’t use them correctly and so are misunderstood By then, they can’t blame the teacher, they blame themselves! So teaching vocabulary by using flashcards is really effective when both teachers and students are good cooperation HOW TO LEARN VOCABULARY ? ( using flashcards to teach English vocabulary for primary students) A few helpful tips! A warm thank to the students at Primary School The favorable facilities and students of Nguyen Van Troi Primary School *Activities using flash cards + Memory Activities + Drilling Activities + Identification Activities + TPR Activities 2.4.1 Synonyms Ex: hard = difficult expensive ($) = dear ($) 2.4.2 Opposites Ex: big small tall short fat thin 2.4.3 Definitions Ex: a small feline you can have at home = cat A white drink some people have for breakfast = milk 2.4.4 Definitions with given letter Ex: what you put on toast for breakfast: B … utter/ B……acon / J….am / M…….armalade A flying animal, comes out at night: B … at! 2.4.5 Mixed letters, crossword puzzle (game) Ex: ohtberr (family) brother sit ysea ! ryt ti! it’s easy ! Try it! kmli (drink) milk 2.4.6 Series = lists freezing – very cold - cold - cool - warm – hot – boiling hot one – two – three – four – five spring – summer – autumn (fall)-winter 2.4.7 Categories (lexical field) clothes : jeans – shirt – shoes – boots – cap – hat – helmet -belt animals: cat – dog – cage – zoo – to feed – seeds – lettuce… 2.4.8 Pictures Look for pictures you like and write the word for one week, then rub it out 2.4.9 Matching words and definitions milk ……b dog ……a job …….c a a nice pet b a white liquid c what you hope to have later 2.4.10 Pairs Ex: mother and … father Mum and … Dad (dad) 2.4.11 Word in context Cats and ……… are often enemies 2.4.12 Plurals Man / men Child / children Baby / babies 2.4.13 The odd one banana – apple – shoe – strawberry Dogs, of course ! 2.4.14 Using flash cards to sing a song and tell a story Rather than trying to cram the vocabulary into a new, difficult-toremember list, Flash Cards is a groundbreaking learning method that helps students store knowledge in the long-term memory better When using flashcards to learn vocabulary, try to be secret,students will learn more easily and enjoy when they feel curious You can also use the vocabulary to reinforce other parts of the lesson, such as a song or a story English surely students will increasingly love English The aim of this study is to increase the students’ vocabulary knowledge through using flash card as a model to boost vocabulary learning *Here are the pictures of the students who are telling the stories with flash cards 2.4.15 Pick up pictures Take a look at the cards you use to teach your students Determine which panels are familiar to your students Put these plates on the floor and then say from English to pick up the corresponding card If you not know what word you are trying to say, act or use a voice to express your students For example, with an "elephant" card You can imitate the cry and use the arm to describe the tent Surely the students will be very excited 2.4.16 Guess the picture Use a piece of paper and cover up a piece of card and then let your students guess At first not waste much and if the students does not guess then slowly move the paper until it is predictable * Game: Cross the river Put the cards on the floor in the shape of a winding Each card represents a stone slab across the river Students must say words, phrases, sentences to step up it across the river * Here are the pictures of the students of class class 3C * Here are the pictures of the students in class 1A using flash cards 2.4.17 Jump along the picture Arrange many cards into vertical rows on the floor as steps to play hopscotch, for students to top the row You say a word and give the leap to the Card with the corresponding word * Here are the pictures of the students in class 3C 2.4.18 Find objects/ Catch animals Teacher face down Card with the picture down and ask students to choose a plate Then let the students find out what objects are in the class and coincide with the card, bring back to clasmates and say the word For example, a student from the "ruler" will find the subject ruler and give it to his friend When his friends hold the ruler, ask "What's this / that?" And he will answer "A ruler" * Here are the pictures of the students class 4A and I 2.4.19 Get students to work as teachers Pick up a card and ask students what this plate means Students especially like to express themselves in front of their teacher and friends, so they will definitely speak out In case students are shy, please suggest For example, if you hold the "Green" and ask "What color is it?", "Is it red?", "Is it green?" And the student answers "No" or "Yes" With these effective learning English activities, teachers will easily create interesting learning experiences for students *Here are the pictures of the students class 3C and class 2C * Example: Game: "Catch me if you can." Students of class - English A, B, C Book Students sit in circle After watching the selected word cards place in the middle of the circle Teacher pick up the first flash card and show to the students A student walks around outside the circle saying words in the subject and touching the head of the people around When a word "magic" is spoken Students who are confronted must stand up and expel the student that touches the head Ai sit in the vacant position to sit and pick the next word Students resume the game 2.4.20 Concentration Need two sets of cards Place two sets of cards down the table Students open two cards in turn (loudly) If these cards match, the player retains If the cards not match then the player returns The student with the most cards wins *Game: Darts Prepare a dart board Place the cards in the board and number them Divide the class into two to four groups The teacher asked: What's the picture number 3? If the student answers correctly, the dart will be scored Eg: Unit 16: Let's go to the bookshop.- Lesson 2- English book zoo cinema bakery swimming pool 21 Using flash cards to introduce some tricks to test new words I think just introducing new words is not enough, but also to take steps to check and reinforce vocabulary even in class The test procedure will encourage and reinforce students in active learning and more effective, moreover I can understand the students from learning to grasp it Here are some tricks I use to test new words: - Rub out and remember - Bingo - What and where - Ordering - Jumbled words - Up and down - Music words - Slam - Tic tac toe - Lighting flash cảds - Matching - Slap the board Eg: Slap the board *Here are the pictures of the students class 3C in diffirent classes They are playing slap the board and Ordering Teachers can use some tricks suggestive introduce new words to help students acquire from a proactive way as: To use the following realia application tools Eg : Unit 17 : What would you like to eat? English book 5- Lesson To teach the words food and drink Teachers should collect real objects to illustrate his lectures a packet of biscuits a bar of chocolate a glass of orange juice a carton of lemonade * Visual Have students look at pictures or drawing sketches for the children to look, help teachers semantics of words quickly Eg: Unit 12 : This is my house Lesson 1- English To teach the words: living room, kitchen, bathroom, bedroom, dining room, garden… Teachers should collect actual pictures to illustrate his lectures living room bathroom kichen bedroom diningroom garden Eg :Unit 10: What you at breaktime? Lesson 2- English To teach the words: skip, skate, hide-and-seek, blind man's bluff Teachers should collect actual pictures to illustrate his lectures Skip Skate hide - and- seek blind man's bluff * Translation - Teachers use words in Vietnamese equivalent to that provided in English - Teachers use this trick to teach from the abstract, or to essentially solve a word count but time does not permit, the teacher suggested that students from self-service * Discussion The results of present study have important implications The result is presented in table show that the students at class 1A, 2C, 3C, 4A, 5I of Nguyen Van Troi Primary School has much progress after using flashcards to teach vocabulary test to make foundation and goal setting for my initiatives Table 2: RESULTS Class Well accomplished Accomplished Unaccomplished Students quantity % quantity % quantity % 1A/ 40 2C/ 39 28 26 70% 66,6% 12 13 30% 33,4% 0 0% 0% 3C/ 41 30 73% 11 27% 0% 4A/ 39 5I/ 39 Total/ 198 27 28 139 69,2% 71,8% 70,2% 12 11 59 30,8% 28,2% 29,8% 0 0% 0% 0% With the achieved results, I will use this topic for the next school year, and hope to achieve better results Since vocabulary is a very important part of the language, a teacher must equip himself/herself with up-to-date techniques and methods of teaching them So, the results of this research can be valuable for language teachers at the level of primary school The findings of this research could help those dealing with foreign language teaching, such as syllabus designers, material developers, test makers, and the like The present study showed a new technique in vocabulary learning and teaching such as vocabulary flash card in order to facilitate vocabulary learning for students and also provides an opportunity for them to use or review their vocabulary in every situation This strategy (VFC) is very practical and useful for students in grade 1, 2, 3, 4, The results of this study proved vocabulary flash card is an effective way of enhancing vocabulary learning for students This study introduced a strategy (VFC) that makes vocabulary learning interesting and easy for learners It also familiarized teachers with a technique for presentation, practice and production The findings of this study promote the meaningful learning and decrease the problems of the rote learning Teaching English vocabulary by Flash card is quite interesting and quality learning method, this way also does not boring with the new pile of words, easy to cause frustration for students Teacher can apply this learning style so that learning new words is easier The findings of this study might be applicable to the learning of all language skills and sub-skills such as listening, speaking, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar and so on THE CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS The conclusion To conclude, we would like to by stating our hypothesis which was given out from the beginning of this study is using flashcards to teach vocabulary for secondary students is effective, that is not completely right Because from the result of the pilot study in some schools shows that Flashcards is one the visual aids using to teach vocabulary, however that is effective or not depending on the way the teachers use it If the teachers used so often without combining to other materials, students would feel boring and even In short, the teachers must pay attention to students’ interest When they teach them new words by using flashcards, should look at how flashcards can improve not only the vocabulary of their students, but also their interest Doing that, hoping in the future, teaching and learning vocabulary in particular, English in general will have high effect Beside, during the 2017-2018 school year, I participated in the City-Level Good Teacher Contest I have used flash card to teach English vocabulary for primary students I was the top teacher in the exam I have combined with the integrated method of subjects: English, Physical Education (TPR), Drawing, Music (chant, song) I succeeded in two good lessons 2 The recommendations The following suggestions are presented for those who are willing to contribute to the present study by conducting studies on the impact of using vocabulary flash card on students' learning - In this study, vocabulary flash card was used to teach vocabulary to Primary school students , it can be used to teach other components of the language, such as grammar - Interested researchers can investigate the impact of other types of alternative flash card techniques on language skills such as picture flash cards, etc - It would be fruitful to investigate the relationship between vocabulary flash card and students' motivation and retention HEADMISTRESS’ SIGNATURE I swear this thesis is written by me without copying content from others Thanh Hoa, March 20 th , 2018 Written by Nguyen Thi Le Hang REFERENCES Textbooks English 1, - A B C Publishing Education Textbooks English 3, 4, - Publishing Education 3 Dictionary - Oxford University Press Smart Technology in Education The teacher’s book 3, 4, of education Teach young learners English – Nguyen Quoc Hung, MA ... attempt to explore how teachers in junior high schools use flashcards to teach English vocabulary, what the best way for them to use flashcards is And how students of primary schools can memorize English. .. LEARN VOCABULARY ? ( using flashcards to teach English vocabulary for primary students) A few helpful tips! A warm thank to the students at Primary School The favorable facilities and students... teachers and learners Various kinds of flash cards are on the market Flashcards for EFL teaching or self-study have been used for years and are a useful tool for teachers and learners Flash cards