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Thoughts on learning English

Discussion in 'Schoolgoers & Teens' started by teacher, Sep 9, 2011.

  1. Traveller

    Traveller Gold IL'ite

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    Dear Rama,

    loved this post. as always very clearly written and informative as well. ah well I have a scenario... my boy 6+ years of age speaks english and german. at home we mix tamil and english a lot and he picked out english:) i still wonder if he 'thinks' first in german or in english... well that aside now he has started 1st grade (international school) and he's not considered a native speaker. I'm still trying to figure that out.. perhaps I would soon. But I wonder how, many bilingual families that I know of ,have children who clearly speak both the parents' mother tongue. and why most indian children find that difficult (i'm only talking about those living outside india) to achieve... i may be wrong and i speak only from my limited exposure to examples.
     
  2. teacher

    teacher Platinum IL'ite

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    Hi Latha,

    Children who are exposed to two languages from a young age take a while to reach the 'native speaker' level in either language...but the good news is that they do...

    Just last week I spent time with a 2 yr old whose parents speak English and her mother tongue at home. At playschool, she is exposed to German. Now to this mix, add the fact that she just came back from a month long trip to Chennai and the kids around her home spoke in Tamil. She has very good language skills but because of this multiple language environment, she speaks in phrases rather than complete sentences. I suggested that the parents speak to her in one language each, which was too difficult for them. They (like a lot of us) switch between languages all the time. This switching (there is a technical term, but I can't remember it off the top of my head) is very normal in bilingual people. With age (and better understanding of social rules) we learn to stick to one language as the occasion demands (eg in office,with elders, etc).

    When kids mix words from different languages in their conversations, it is a good idea to rephrase the sentence using one language. Modeling the correct usage is also less intrusive (as opposed to saying-oh that is wrong...correct it).

    I know what you mean about our kids living outside India not being as fluent in their mother tongue...I think that is because we look at it from 'oh, what is best for the future...?' scenario. We figure that being able to speak English gives them more opportunities-socially/academically and professionally...so there is not that much of a stress on equal fluency in the mother tongue. But having had that inital exposure it is easy for them to improve their skills in the native tongue when they go for long visits to India.

    I watched a young woman being interviewed on TV 5 or 6 yrs ago...she was being asked about her academic and professional achievements. The interview was in Tamil but she struggled to answer in kind (apparently Tamil was her mother tongue). But the clincher was her acknowldgement of her parents' support and encouragement-Avanga yenna make panninaanga...(for those who don't follow that-they make made me...). That response had me rolling with laughter. There was a telugu speaking person in the room and she asked, "Did she say her parents made her a goat? Is that something special in Tamil Nadu? What does that mean?"

    Having worked for so many years on the language/communication/behavior nexus, I can not understand that kind of a response from an adult. Formal and informal language use varies from culture to culture and setting to setting. I remember getting into trouble at school for responding to a friend in one language when she had addressed me in aother. My teacher reiterated that I had flouted an important social rule and my response was not a measure of my language skills. Surprisingly my non Indian friends are very aware of that rule but I don't see it often with a lot of my Indian friends. I guess it has become the norm in our communication pattern. Professionally speaking, I like to teach kids this rule. When they are very young they may not have the skills to stick to one language. As they grow older eaning these subtler rules help them understand how social rules extend to our language usage.

    One common comment I hear from parents about learning English is that, "Oh my child is very bright...she can read very well." They go on to add the name of some chapter book the child read.

    Keep in mind there are several processes going on here.

    Learning to read involves decoding and finding meaning. Reading increases vocabulary skills, provides models of correct syntax and semantics, etc. But the essential qestion is, is the child's comprehension at par with her decoding skills? A child who reads fluently doesn't necessarily understand everything. If there is no comprehension, then the child doesn't know how to use the words or phrases appropriately in conversation or to problem solve. So your job doesn't end with giving your child access to books. Follow up with lots of questions, relate events in the book to real life situations, or do some research on that topic...on the net or with books or with first person accounts.

    r
     
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  3. yvonnemommy

    yvonnemommy New IL'ite

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    Great thoughts. I think practice is important for english speaking. My DD learns vocabulary and syntax online from a website called beestar. This is an interesting way to help her remember lots of words. Based on it, DD reads and recites stuff she likes and communicates in english as best as she can. This is very helpful.
    Lisa
     
  4. teacher

    teacher Platinum IL'ite

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    Talking about English language learners...here's an interesting statistic I heard this week. This is for children who grow up in English speaking environments...children of professionals enter formal schooling having been exposed to 45000 words while children from below poverty line in the same countries enter school with an exposure to 15000 words.

    What does this exposure do? It gives children the vocabulary to use in their own communication, thinking and reasoning. As children understand more than they can read or say, their comprehension is greater too.

    One way to increase children's exposure is to read books-fiction and non fiction which challenges their thinking. They don't necessarily have to read books only at their reading level. You can read books at a higher level-introducing new words to them all the time. When you do read books with challenging vocabulary words, teach the definition/meaning but at the same time prioritize...
    Words they need to know-
    Words helpful to know
    Technical words...

    zoologist can be a need to know word or a helpful to know word...a young child listening to a non fiction book on animals has to understand who is a zoologist but a fifth class student has to know what a zoologist does. For a young child you may explain the meaning in context but for the older child you will make sentences with the word, ask him/ her to use the word and make new sentences, etc.

    This way you focus on a key words for indepth learning and others for overall comprehension of the book/text.
    R
     
  5. teacher

    teacher Platinum IL'ite

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    Last week at a gathering my friends and I were yakking about personal traits...along the way I remarked on how my mother never gets to a topic on time. 'Every second sentence is a proverb and every term will have long winding descriptions...it is actually a very distinct feature of the conversational skills in people fom her native region...'

    My friend who is an ELL (English Language Learner) teacher immediately responded, 'Then your mother did you a very big favor. She gave you the foundation for language and cognition by being very descriptive.' I probed a little more and she mentioned that ELL students who had a good vocabulary in their native tongue develop sound cognitive skills. They only have to work on transferring these skills into another language (over simplification, yes). She struggles with students who have very limited language skills even in their mother tongue (not because of any inherent cognitive deficits) because they do not live in a language rich environment.

    Adults must talk and talk and talk to their children...make it meaningful, purposeful and descriptive-no matter what the language. That first language foundation is crucial to developing second language skills.

    When you ask your children questions, make sure they are open ended (where the child has to give descriptive answers as opposed to yes/no).

    When you draw you child's attention to something, describe in long flowery speeches:) Makes language acquisition more interesting.
     
  6. priyasudhakar

    priyasudhakar Gold IL'ite

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    hi teacher,

    this post is very very useful, i like the activities u gave, plz give some more activities to encourage my kid to make him speak well
     
  7. teacher

    teacher Platinum IL'ite

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    Reading, writing and spoken language skills go together...activities in one area reinforce the skills in the other two.

    Engage in activities that build strong voabulary skills and fluency. Initially it maybe through modelling and imitating (repeating what is said or written, worksheets which have repeptitive patterns etc). But to develop fluency the child must start venturing into spontaneous and original sentences. At this stage they will make mistakes...an ideal opportunity to model correct syntax and pronunciation.

    Never eliminate the first language though...the child needs a break from learning to communicate in a new language...it can be fatiguing.

    1) Keep a narrative commentay during play or other activities you do with your child. "Oh this mango is to ripe..it feels soft and squishy...but that one is not ripe yet. Feel how hard it is?"

    2) After a weekend trip or special activity, make a book. Give your child a few sheets of paper and crayons/markers and ask him to write his/her own book. Before he starts, go through the steps with him..."what did we do this weekend? What happened first, next, last. What did you like about it? What did you not like about it? What do you want to write in your book about the weekend?" For older children you can make it more fun by talking about point of view..."You can be the narrator or how about our pet dog narating the story through his eyes? What do you think he will have to say about our activities?"

    You can also use photographs from the event as prompts.

    Let your child come up with his own descriptive sentences. You can help with correcting the syntax but do not give the sentence yourself.

    Next have your child narrate the story to the rest of the family members.

    3) We have a strong oral story telling tradition. Ever had dinner on the terrace on full moon days with your family sitting around and telling stories? When my friends and I get together that is one of our most cherished childhood memories...the setting serves as a pleasant backdrop and diminishes some of the anxiety of speaking in a new language...take turns making up fantastic and unrelaistic stories...the focus is the prolific use of language...

    4) you can make stories in other ways as well...you start the story by giving the first sentence...make it dramatic and intense to keep the interest level high..."It was a rainy night. Suddenly the lights went out..." the next person should takeit up and add a sentence to the story...then the next...the story can take any direction and it allows for creative and spontaneous use of langauge.

    r
     
  8. priyasudhakar

    priyasudhakar Gold IL'ite

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    hi teacher,

    i love the book idea very much, thx a lot my frnd, i also use the story telling games, thats also interesting, thx a lot for ur reply.
     
  9. teacher

    teacher Platinum IL'ite

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    Recently a primary student's parent brought up another aspect of developing bilingual skills...word order in sentences (syntax).

    In English the word order in a sentence goes subject-verb-object..the verb always follows the subject. The boy ate icecream. Indian languages on the other hand have variations. For example in Tamil and hindi the order is subject object-verb. A child who isn't fluent in the second language will form sentences in English using the syntax of his mother tongue. That will change the sentence to The boy icecream ate.

    Another common error is to skip 'do' from our sentences...what you like? Where you go?

    All of us do this from time to time (I am happy that my co workers will never connect me with my writing style here:rotfl) but when it comes to professional interactions and paperwork, we follow the necessary grammatic rules. When we switch languages we turn off one mode and turrn on the other...we relax the rules in non professional settings.

    A child who is still learning the rules will not know the difference. For that reason we must use grammatically correct speech in our interactions. The child develops fluency by listening/processing speech along with reading and writing. To lay the foundation correctly we need to monitor our mistakes.

    r
     

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