An Introduction to Teaching English to Young Learners

In this course you will examine how young learners develop cognitively, how they learn languages, and how your understanding of these two areas can help guide you in your role as a language teacher. In the 12 lessons, you will be introduced to ways of teaching the four language skills (listening, speaking, reading and writing), as well as techniques for using stories, songs and rhymes, games and role-play in your classroom. You will also consider the role of assessment and evaluation in teaching English to young learners. This course will combine theory with practice in providing examples that will help illustrate how you can teach language to young learners in your classroom.

This course includes a knowledgeable and caring instructor who will guide you through your lessons, facilitate discussions, and answer your questions.

Annie Hughes is a TEYL specialist and has been teaching and working with young learners, trainers and teachers for over 30 years now - and still loves it! She is the Assistant Director of CELT, Department of Educational Studies, University of York and Director of the MA in TEYL, a distance MA which focuses on English learners from 6 to 16 years of age. She is Director of all TEYL trainer and teacher development and training programmes at York. She is also a specialist TEYL consultant and works on EYL projects worldwide.

She was a member of the University of Cambridge Local Examination Syndicate Committee that created the CELTYL and the British Council Working Party on Teaching English to Young Learners for many years. Additionally, she was also IATEFL YL Sig coordinator for four years.

Annie co-wrote Carousel 1 & 2 (Longman), Treasure Trail 3 & 4 (Penguin), 100 Plus Ideas for Children (Heinemann) and wrote Carnival of Songs (Cornelson) and JET: Songs and Rhymes (Mary Glasgow). She co-created and edited The Penguin Young Readers Series and was the TEYL consultant for the Usborne ELT series. She has been involved with and directed the annual British Council Summer School for teachers of English to young learners, 1989 -2000, and directed the British Council Specialist Seminars on Managing Change in TEYL. She was also a TEYL consultant for the BBC World Service, particularly working on the 'Activate It!' series. She is particularly interested the teaching of language through song and story and believes this may be because she comes from Liverpool!

To obtain access to this course, select a start date and click the enroll now button below:

Requirements:

Internet access, e-mail, and the Microsoft Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox Web browser.

Syllabus:

All courses run for six weeks, with a two-week grace period at the end. Two lessons are released each week for the six-week duration of the course. You do not have to be present when the lesson is released, but you must complete each lesson within two weeks of its release.

A new section of each course starts on the second or third Wednesday of each month. If enrolling in a series of two or more courses, please be sure to space the start date for each course at least two months apart.

To obtain access to this course, select a start date and click the enroll now button below: