Brief overview of characteristics of primary learners

1) Learning needs
a. How do they learn the best? By:
i. imitation and drilling of the phonetic-phonological aspects of English, and of
the linguistic structures because of the mechanical short-term memory
ii. being active, not passive
iii. being challenged by language close to the potential level that the pupil can
reach with the help of a mediator
iv. going from less complicated words and phrases to more complicated
b. What activities and strategies do they prefer?
i. Learning through play- keeps young learners interested and motivated
 Educational play- used for automatization of language, accuracy
focused
 Communicational play- used for motivation of a learner to speak,
fluency focused
ii. Learning through narrative and dramatization techniques
 Narration- the best tool to present a situation or context which
learners can understand despite not knowing all vocabulary included
 Dramatization- motivates learners to participate in interaction in a
foreign language
iii. Project based learning- based on the use of all language competences in
different phases of a project
iv. Activity-based learning- based on active learning and cognitive activity of the
pupil
v. TPR activities
vi. playing with language sounds, imitating and making funny noises
c. Model activities for young learners.
i. Activity 1 – Under the blanket
 We need- music, a blanket
 Procedure- When music plays, learners walk around the room, when
music stops, they lie down and close their eyes. The teacher covers
one child with a blanket. Then the teacher claps her/his hands to
signalize non-covered learners one or more questions about e.g., the
name of the covered pupil, age, colour of his eyes/clothes he/she is
wearing…
ii. Activity 2 – Taste testing
 We need- fruits/vegetables,… and a plate with a 3 pieces chopped
food on a tooth-pick, something for covering eyes
 Procedure- On a signal, learners start taste testing food one by one in
order. After each test, they guess what they ate.
iii. Activity 3 – Singing hello
 We need- musical instrument, if not available, our voices are enough
 Procedure- First pupil tells his/her name and we sing him a short
hello song in tempo and volume in which he uttered his name. We
repeat this process with each pupil
 Lyrics- Hello, hello, hello (name), Lyrics- Hello, hello, hello (name).
 Suggestion- learners ask the student the question “What’s your
name?” before he gives the answer (you can ask students to use the
whole sentence to answer the question and then sing the hello song).
 2) Psychological needs
a. What do they need emotionally to support a successful learning process?
i. Respect for their personality characteristics, emotions, opinions, attitudes
such as meeting their group or individual, permanent or current needs
ii. Needs placed lower in Maslow’s pyramid to be met- The most effective
learning occurs when pupils can satisfy the highest need, i.e. the need for
self-implementation and success. But for that to happen, all other,
hierarchically lower needs (from physiological to security and safety needs,
social Relations, self-esteem and self-esteem) must be satisfied
iii. Positive relationship to learning foreign language
iv. Positive atmosphere in the class
v. Use of humour- use of humor in foreign language lessons, shared laughter
vi. It strengthens motivation in pupils and creates more permanent memory links

Sources:
Lojová, G. - Straková, Z. (2010). Teoretické východiská vyučovania angličtiny v primárnom
vzdelávaní. Bratislava: UK. (ch. 3 and 4).
Marciová, M. & Procházková, Z. (2015). Inovujeme vyučovanie AJ na 1. stupni ZŠ. (ch.1)
Slattery, M. & Willis, J. (2014). English for Primary Teachers. Oxford. (pp. 4-5)