Language Acquisition in Pre-School Children

Language Acquisition in Pre-School Children

Interview

1. How do you introduce learning of language to pre-school children to foster development in the classroom?

Introducing the learning of language to the pre-school children needs to be simplified and made interesting enough to capture the attention of the children. The children in the pre-school class are likely to have short attention spans which means the words have to be simple and short at the beginning. It is important that as a teacher, one is able to present the children with objects that they see every day and get them to name them (Lynch Brown & Brabham, 2002). By so doing, some of them will get the spellings wrong at which point, the teacher gets a chance of correcting them.

2. What else do you use to support the student’s learning of languages?

The learning process is supported by the teacher exposing the children to people who have mastered the language better for interaction (Bunce & Watkins, 1995). This way, the children are able to pick up new words and their pronunciation. This helps children gain more confidence in trying to read new words and learning their meanings along the way. As a teacher it would also be beneficial to speak slower to ensure that the learners get all the words correctly, how they are used and can easily repeat the words. 

3. What non-verbal cues does one need to help the learners grasp new language better?

The use of non-verbal cues to help in the teaching process is equally important. As a teacher, it is crucial to incorporate gestures and intonations to make the language interesting (McGee & Richgels, 2003). The non-verbal cues extend to the use of facial expressions especially when teaching words associated with emotions and feelings.

4. How do you evaluate how well the learners are learning new words and pronunciations?

The evaluation process requires that as a teacher, one is able to test the children according to their ability to learn. There are children who will be slow in learning while typically, there are fast learners. This means that when evaluating the children, the teacher has to use methods that will not make any child feel pressured to pass. This can be done by sound-reading of words or filling in gaps in words attached to an object they know about (Lynch Brown & Brabham, 2002).

5. What type of learners’ activities do you incorporate in letting the learners practice the new language?

Learning activities in the pre-school ages should include matching words to objects. It is also possible to encourage the children to find new words while at home and bring them to the class to share with other pupils. This is one sure way of encouraging children to learn new language with enthusiasm.

Analysis of the responses

The responses presented above are standard and are easy to apply. Handling pre-school children is a crucial part of their studies. The use of non-verbal cues, class activities and regular evaluation is a good method of ensuring that the children are learning at an agreeable pace (McGee & Richgels, 2003). It also ensures that by the time a child is through with their pre-school education, they can easily transition to the next stage of their educational life.

Summary

Using non-verbal responses will always excite the children and encourage them to mimic and practice the language. This in the long run ensures that the children learn and get to practice language regularly. The class activities are also a good way of ensuring that the children learn language and interaction at the same time. In the long run, the children learn language and interaction skills at the same time (Bunce & Watkins, 1995). Evaluation will always challenge the children to do better each time. This means that the ability of the children to capture more words out of their own efforts are driven higher. Language acquisition at this tender age has to be handled with extra care to ensure that the child grows up with good language basics. This way, they can easily expand their knowledge in language as they advance in their class levels.

References

Bunce, B. H., & Watkins, R. V. (1995). Language Intervention in a Pre-School Classroom: Implementing Language Focused Curriculum. Building a Language Focused Curriculum for the Pre-school classroom, 39-71.

Lynch Brown, C., & Brabham, E. G. (2002). Effects of Teachers’ Reading-aloud styles on vocabulary aqcuisition and comprehension of students in the Early Elementary grades. Journal of Educational Psychology, 465-473.

McGee, L. M., & Richgels, D. J. (2003). Designing Early Literacy Programs: Strategiess for at-risk preschool and kindergaeten children. New York: The Guilford Press.