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Age Characteristics
Age Characteristics
The Three-Year-Old
Characteristics of the Child
• Walks and runs, but is still uncoordinated. Likes doing things with his or her hands but
does them awkwardly.
• Has more language skills. Likes to talk and learn new words. Has a short attention
span. Is curious and inquisitive. Often misunderstands and makes comments that
seem off the subject. Enjoys pretending. Likes finger plays, stories, and musical
activities.
• Enjoys working alone. Does not engage in much cooperative play with others, but likes
to have friends around. Is self-centered. Has difficulty sharing. Prefers to be close to
adults, particularly family, because they provide security.
• Wants to please adults. Needs their approval, love, and praise. Strikes out emotionally
when afraid or anxious. Cries easily. Is sensitive to others' feelings. Is developing
some independence. Has intense, short-lived emotions.
➢ Use simple activities such as pasting, molding clay, and coloring. Avoid activities that
require refined skills and coordination, such as tying or cutting. Be prepared to clean
up messes.
➢ Teach ideas in a simple, clear way. Use visual materials to reinforce ideas. Encourage
questions and responses to the discussion, but have the child take turns with other
children. Use a variety of teaching methods such as stories, songs, discussions,
dramatizations, finger plays, and simple games. Alternate between quiet and lively
activities.
➢ Show approval and confidence in the child. Avoid criticism. Help the child understand
others' feelings and solve conflicts. Encourage the child to be self-sufficient.
The Four-Year-Old
Characteristics of the Child
• Is very active. Moves quickly. Likes to skip, jump, race, climb, and throw.
• Enjoys talking and learning new words. Asks many questions. Has a short attention
span. Uses artwork to express feelings. Enjoys pretending and role playing.
• Plays more cooperatively with others. Is sometimes physically aggressive, bossy,
impolite, and stubborn, but can also be friendly. Is learning to share, accept rules, and
take turns. Responds to sincere praise.
• Often tests people's limits. Is boastful, especially about self and family. May be
agreeable one moment and quarrelsome the next. Has more self-confidence. May
have tears and feelings of insecurity.
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IPPI / PPD 2
• Is becoming aware of right and wrong, and usually desires to do right. May blame
others for his or her wrongdoing.
➢ Alternate between quiet and lively activities. Model appropriate ways to express
emotions.
➢ Use discussions and activities that will encourage thinking, such as simple riddles and
guessing games. Clarify misunderstandings.
➢ Use pictures, objects, and actual experiences. Introduce new words. Have the child
draw pictures that relate to lessons. Accept and encourage the child's creative efforts.
➢ Allow the child to explore his or her surroundings. Use role-playing activities.
➢ Provide opportunities for the child to play and work cooperatively with others.
➢ Teach kindness, patience, and politeness. Help the child follow simple rules such as
taking turns. Establish and firmly follow limits.
The Five-Year-Old
Characteristics of the Child
• Is very active. Has a good sense of balance, and is becoming more coordinated. Can
kick a ball, walk in a straight line, hop, skip, and march.
• Enjoys drawing, coloring, and participating in activities and games. Is learning to lace
and tie shoes and button and zip clothing.
• Recognizes some letters, numbers, and words. Likes to pretend to read and write.
May be learning to read.
• Is talkative. Asks questions, makes comments, and gives answers that show
increased understanding.
• Is good at problem solving. Is curious and eager for facts.
• Has a short but increasing attention span.
• Likes definite tasks, Enjoys jokes and tricks, but cannot laugh at himself or herself.
Likes stories, singing, poetry, and dramatizations.
• Is friendly and eager to please and cooperate. Is beginning to prefer being in small
groups of children, but may prefer a best friend. Creates less conflict in group play. Is
beginning to want to conform, and is critical of those who do not. Is beginning to
understand rules, but often tries to change them for his or her benefit.
• Centers interests on home and family. Gets embarrassed easily, especially by his or
her own mistakes.
• Wants to be good. Is learning the difference between right and wrong. Sometimes tells
untruths or blames others for his or her own wrongdoings because of an intense
desire to please adults and do what is right.
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IPPI / PPD 2
➢ Engage the child in physical activities. Use simple games and other activities. Allow
the child to cut and paste and to put puzzles together. Allow for independence.
Express confidence in the child. Accept and encourage the child's efforts.
➢ Allow the child to talk and ask questions. Assign simple tasks and responsibilities Use
drawing activities, true-to-life stories, and visual materials.
➢ Vary activities, using pictures, games, songs, and discussions. Use problem-solving
activities such as riddles and discussion questions.
➢ Allow the child to pretend, dramatize, and use puppets. Laugh with the child.
➢ Help the child learn the value of individual differences. Frequently teach the value and
importance of the family. Give the child an opportunity to share feelings about his or
her family. Give specific praise for positive behavior. Avoid activities or expressions
that might embarrass the child.
➢ Model appropriate behavior. Do not be shocked if the child says something that is
untrue or inappropriate.
The Six-Year-Old
Characteristics of the Child.
• Is very active. Is often noisy, restless, and exuberant. Likes to participate in activities
and perform small tasks, though they still may be difficult to do. Dislikes being a
spectator.
• Needs concepts taught in concrete ways. Has improving memory. Is talkative, and
asks many questions. Is learning to make decisions, but often is indecisive.
• Has an increasing attention span.
• Likes reading, writing, singing, hearing stories, and pretending.
• Is more interested in group activities and interacting with playmates, but is still self-
centered. is sometimes bossy, aggressive, and unkind to peers. Is concerned with
how others treat him or her. Is eager for social approval.
• Is boastful. Exaggerates and criticizes. Is easily excited, silly, and giggly. Can be
generous, affectionate, and compatible, but mood can change easily.
• Is concerned with good and bad behavior, particularly as it affects family and friends.
Sometimes blames others for wrongdoings.
➢ Be patient with the child's abundant energy and restlessness. Use activities such as
writing, coloring, cutting, pasting, and molding cloy. Use games that allow the child to
use his or her energy.
➢ Use problem-solving activities such as riddles, reviews, and open-ended stories. Use
pictures, flannel cutouts, and other visual materials. Introduce new words.
➢ Ask questions. Allow the child to make decisions. Discuss the importance of choosing
the right, and allow the child to practice making decisions with limited choices.
➢ Provide opportunities for reading, writing, singing, hearing stories, and role playing.
➢ Encourage sharing and participation with others. Provide opportunities for group
activities. Give specific praise and approval.
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IPPI / PPD 2
➢ Praise the child's specific efforts so he or she feels less need to boast. Praise honesty.
Do not criticize. Laugh with him or her, but do not laugh at him or her.
The Seven-Year-Old
Characteristics of the Child.
Motor development
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IPPI / PPD 2
• Take advantage of his eagerness to learn by asking open-ended, thought-
provoking questions, doing puzzles, and playing thinking games.
• Initiate discussions about right vs. wrong.
• Provide opportunities for independent decision-making.
A 7-year-old child, typically in second grade, normally will be developing more complex
sentences as they grow.
• They’ll learn to speak better and be able to follow a longer series of commands than they
could at age 6.
• They have begun to see that some words have more than one meaning. That helps them
understand jokes and puns and start verbally expressing a sense of humor.
• Children in early school years can show fast growth in mental ability.
• Understand the concept of numbers
• Know day from night, and left from right
• Can tell time
• Can repeat three numbers backward
The Eight-Year-Old
Characteristics of the Child.
The Nine-Year-Old
Characteristics of the Child.
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IPPI / PPD 2
• Are curious about relationships between boys and girls. Few will admit to this
interest.
Language development
Most children by age 9:
• Read frequently and enjoy books.
• Often read with a goal of learning about something of interest.
• Have speech patterns that are nearly at an adult level.
The Ten-Year-Old
Characteristics of the Child.
Language development
Most children by age 10:
• Enjoy reading. They may seek out magazines and books on subjects of special
interest.
• Can converse easily with people of all different ages.
• Have speech patterns that are nearly at an adult level.
The Eleven-Year-Old
Characteristics of the Child.
Emotional/Social Changes
Children in this age group might:
• Start to form stronger, more complex friendships and peer relationships. It becomes
more emotionally important to have friends, especially of the same sex.
• Experience more peer pressure.
• Become more aware of his or her body as puberty approaches. Body image and
eating problems sometimes start around this age.
• Develop better decision-making skills.
• Begin to question authority figures.
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TEACHING KIDS ENGLISH
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IPPI / PPD 2
5. Mix it up
ESL classes may include singing, dancing, and jumping, as well as writing, reading, or
listening. The best ESL lessons combine the right mix of teaching strategies. You may begin
class with a short song, then move on to a reading exercise. The best rule of thumb is to
switch between quiet, independent tasks to those that require action and movement.
6. Be prepared to deal with parents
Unlike teaching adult students, when you teach the little ones you have to interact with their
parents as well.
These must be informed about:
• Your goals, i.e., what you hope to accomplish throughout the year
• The children’s learning goals, i.e., the syllabus for the school year
• Their children’s progress, i.e., if they have achieved their learning goals satisfactorily
It is also recommended to encourage parents’ active participation in their children’s English
learning. Even if they don’t speak English themselves, they should be encouraged to ask the
kids what they’ve learned, share songs, etc
9. Teach in context
Lessons should be planned in accordance with learning goals. And vocabulary, grammar,
and language should be taught in context. For example, when teaching children foods in
English, it should be within a meal context like breakfast, lunch or dinner, and should never
be a list of items they must study or memorize.
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IPPI / PPD 2
stars do they admire? Writing interview questions for their favorite NBA player will be a lot
more interesting than just a list of questions in simple present.
Emotional/Social Changes
Children in this age group might:
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IPPI / PPD 2
• Want more independence but know they need guidance and support
• Consider academic goals as a secondary level of priority; personal social concerns
dominate thoughts and activities
• Confront hard moral and ethical questions for which they are unprepared to cope
• Be reflective, analytical, and introspective about their thoughts and feelings
• Have lengthy attention span
Emotional/Social Changes
Children in this age group might:
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IPPI / PPD 2
• Begin the meeting by simply asking about how their week has been going prior to starting
any lesson or activity with them. Not only will this allow you to gauge how receptive the teen
might be on that day, but it will also make the teen more willing to listen to you because they
feel that you showed interest and concern.
• Since adolescents are very self-concerned, try to engage them in discussion by asking how
the ideas, subject, situation, or outcome may impact their lives. Putting it in that context is a
way of making the discussion personal and of interest to them.
• Reverse roles. Instead of the adult always being the teacher or mentor in the relationship,
try learning something new from the teenager. This allows the teen to be an expert on a
subject that you may know little about, which gets the teen participating and also helps to
bridge the gap between generations.
• Try learning a hobby or participate in an activity that is new to both the adult and teen. This
creates a sense of equality in the relationship and can help establish trust because of the
shared experience.
• Provide options and choices when assigning a task; teenagers greatly value their
independence and want to do things their own way. That means giving teens several options
to choose from when working on a project or task so that they still feel a sense of control in
the situation. This makes it more likely they will participate and be committed to completing
the task.
• Use technology as a tool rather than topic of conversation. Teenagers do not view
technology as one of their interests. To teens, technology is a normal part of daily life
integrated into almost everything they do. Not only can you have them incorporate
technology to complete projects and tasks, but also try to connect through various apps (e.g.,
games, fitness, mindfulness).
• Be sincere and genuine when working with teenagers. Teens are not expecting you to be
trendy or cool, and trying too hard to be may backfire. They already know you are an adult.
What they need is for you to be yourself and honest in your interactions.
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