It was quite difficult to think about what I was going to share with you this evening. But I finally settled on the idea of talking about one of the things I consider to be a big part of My life, both as a professional, and as an individual.This is one area some of you may have had some experience with. And it’s relevant to all of us as we progress in our M.A. It is, of course, teaching English-teaching English to children, in particular.

I came to be an English teacher only by accident. Back in University, my major was in the field of Nursing. But when I came to Thailand, the first job I got was as a teacher of English. And as years went by, I have come to love and appreciate this live of work.

“Why teach kids?” I’ve been asked this question many times. “Why not teach adults instead? Isn’t it that kids run around the classroom, climb our chairs and tables, and speak too much in class?” And I say, “yes, actually they do.” But those are the very reasons why I think teaching children is a worthwhile experience. I’m going to tell you how this is so…

First, children are spontaneous. They’re not afraid to make mistakes. Their main aim is simply-to communicate. So they play around with Language, coming up with imaginative and creative combinations to get their message across.

Let me tell you something that actually happened at work one day. There was this 7-year-old boy who came upon to his teacher in class. Apparently, the boy wanted to say something very important, very, very urgent. But, he couldn’t seem to remember the words to say. Finally, after much thought, he raised his eyes to the teacher, and clearly, and carefully said….”I’m a toilet.”

Now that was very funny at first. But when you really think about it, that boy took a chance and spoke up. He was able to use the Language, and in the end, the teacher got the message he was trying to convey, that he actually wanted to go to the toilet.

Oftentimes, we can’t find the same spontaneity with our adult learners. We, adults, in general, are afraid to make errors, we’re afraid of getting embarrassed. We would much rather sit quietly in class, and not speak up. The result? We don’t get as much chance to use or practice the Language as children do.

Secondly, children are very active learners. They are more willing to get their hands dirty, so to speak. They’re always enthusiastic to join an activity that would require
Them to move about.

When you tell a child in the class to “go to that corner, jump three times and make a funny face”’ chances are, the child would do it. When you tell a kid to “go, touch your friends nose”, chances are, he would even be happy to do so. A child thinks-it’s fun.

That’s why learning can sometimes be more meaningful to children, when done in the context of play. A child is more willing, more enthusiastic, to get down on his knees and do the work in language learning. As adults, we are sometimes concerned more about not acting silly.

My third and final point is that: children speak a lot! Even at times that you don’t really want them to. Some may think this to be a disadvantage in class. Perhaps, but not necessarily. When we used by the Teacher accordingly, this quality can actually further language learning.

Children may make a lot of mistakes and errors as they speak more. But the more they use the Language, the more they gain confidence. The more confident they are, the more motivated they become. When learners are motivated, the more they learn about the Language.

Children are spontaneous and active learners. And when guided accordingly, they are more willing to use the Language in speech. These are but a few of the hundred and one reasons why I find teaching children a very interesting experience.

One might think, “OK, I’ll teach children. It’s easy. I’ll just play some language games.”

Not quite a lot of time, effort and energy and thought go into the preparation and the actual teaching in class. But I still think that the satisfaction I get at the end of the day has more value than the time, energy and effort I felt into it.

So, if you haven’t done it yet, I do hope that sometime in your life, you would have the chance of teaching English-to children. Thank you

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