In this section, I am going to introduce the kind of activities and games that I carry out with my 4 year-old students. I only have 30 minutes of class three times per week so it is important that students are engaged in the classroom in order to produce as much output as possible from them. When I started teaching this class I didn't have any curriculum to follow so I designed my own lesson plans getting resources and ideas from the internet and books. In one of these attempts of finding interesting activities for my students I came across with the "Jolly Phonics" method.
This method is thought to teach phonics to native speakers of English but I consider that it can also be implemented in ESL classrooms. I believe that in order to follow it, teachers need to spend around 10 hours per week applying this method. Since I only have 1h 30 mins per week, I cannot get the same outcome as if I had 10 hours, but I am happy with the results :)
Here is a description of how I use "Jolly Phonics" to support my teaching.
1. Teach one sound per week (group 1: s-a-t-p-i-n/ 2 months)
2. Each week, review the previous sounds so students do not forget them.
3. Sing the letter song
4. Realize picture worksheet and tracing worksheet
5. Play games
Lesson plan (example /a/)
1. Introduction to the new sound.
- Show how the letter looks like
- Say that it sounds like "a, a, a". Let the students repeat it.
- Show around 5 pictures that represent words that begin with the /a/ sound ( not with the letter a). For example: "apple", "ant", "arm", "astronaut" and "alligator". Say the word at the same time as you show the flashcard. Let the students repeat the word. Make sure students hear the /a/ at the beginning of the sound. Show the flashcards several times to helps students remember the vocabulary.
2. Review of previous sounds and vocabulary.
3. Introduction of the song
- Sing the song of the /a/ sound. Play several times and help students remember the lyrics and movements.
4. Picture worksheet or tracing worksheet.
- Students sit down on their chair and work on their worksheet. One day I do the picture worksheet and another day the tracing worksheet. They listen and sing the song as they color and trace.
5. Phonics/ Vocabulary games:
We play one or two of the following games per day depending on how much time we have left.
1. Letter race:
- Divide students in two groups.
- Place the letters that they have learned and some that they have not learned yet on a table.
- The first student in each team will start playing. They shake hand before starting.
- Say a letter sound. Eg. /a/
- Students have to go to the table and look for the letter that makes that sound.
- If they get the right one they give it to you. If they get the wrong one, they can try again
until they find the correct one. Give students as many opportunities as they need. Always
recognize students' effort.
- Don't make the game a competition. Tell students that the most important thing is to find
the right letter; how fast you find it is not important.
2. Picture race:
It has the same rules as the "letter race" but the teacher will say a word such as "apple" and students will have to pick up that word.
3. Letter/picture race:
This variation of the previous games is suitable for more advanced students. The teacher will say a letter sound and student will have to find a picture whose name begins with that letter sound. You can also play the other way round. You can say the word and students will have to find the initial sound of that word.
4. Lucky dip:
- Students sit down in a circle
- Put some pictures and letters in a bag or box.
- Ask students to pass the bag to each other at the same times as they say "pass"
and while the music is on.
- When the music stops, ask the child who has the box to close his eyes and open it. The
student will get a picture or letter and will have to say the name or the sound.
- If the child is correct, he will keep the picture. If he is wrong, he will put the picture into the bag and the game will continue.
- Play until there are not more flashcards left.
5. Bingo:
I created a bingo set with pictures and letters that belong to group 1 (s-a-t-p-i-n).
This method is thought to teach phonics to native speakers of English but I consider that it can also be implemented in ESL classrooms. I believe that in order to follow it, teachers need to spend around 10 hours per week applying this method. Since I only have 1h 30 mins per week, I cannot get the same outcome as if I had 10 hours, but I am happy with the results :)
Here is a description of how I use "Jolly Phonics" to support my teaching.
1. Teach one sound per week (group 1: s-a-t-p-i-n/ 2 months)
2. Each week, review the previous sounds so students do not forget them.
3. Sing the letter song
4. Realize picture worksheet and tracing worksheet
5. Play games
Lesson plan (example /a/)
1. Introduction to the new sound.
- Show how the letter looks like
- Say that it sounds like "a, a, a". Let the students repeat it.
- Show around 5 pictures that represent words that begin with the /a/ sound ( not with the letter a). For example: "apple", "ant", "arm", "astronaut" and "alligator". Say the word at the same time as you show the flashcard. Let the students repeat the word. Make sure students hear the /a/ at the beginning of the sound. Show the flashcards several times to helps students remember the vocabulary.
2. Review of previous sounds and vocabulary.
3. Introduction of the song
- Sing the song of the /a/ sound. Play several times and help students remember the lyrics and movements.
4. Picture worksheet or tracing worksheet.
- Students sit down on their chair and work on their worksheet. One day I do the picture worksheet and another day the tracing worksheet. They listen and sing the song as they color and trace.
5. Phonics/ Vocabulary games:
We play one or two of the following games per day depending on how much time we have left.
1. Letter race:
- Divide students in two groups.
- Place the letters that they have learned and some that they have not learned yet on a table.
- The first student in each team will start playing. They shake hand before starting.
- Say a letter sound. Eg. /a/
- Students have to go to the table and look for the letter that makes that sound.
- If they get the right one they give it to you. If they get the wrong one, they can try again
until they find the correct one. Give students as many opportunities as they need. Always
recognize students' effort.
- Don't make the game a competition. Tell students that the most important thing is to find
the right letter; how fast you find it is not important.
2. Picture race:
It has the same rules as the "letter race" but the teacher will say a word such as "apple" and students will have to pick up that word.
3. Letter/picture race:
This variation of the previous games is suitable for more advanced students. The teacher will say a letter sound and student will have to find a picture whose name begins with that letter sound. You can also play the other way round. You can say the word and students will have to find the initial sound of that word.
4. Lucky dip:
- Students sit down in a circle
- Put some pictures and letters in a bag or box.
- Ask students to pass the bag to each other at the same times as they say "pass"
and while the music is on.
- When the music stops, ask the child who has the box to close his eyes and open it. The
student will get a picture or letter and will have to say the name or the sound.
- If the child is correct, he will keep the picture. If he is wrong, he will put the picture into the bag and the game will continue.
- Play until there are not more flashcards left.
5. Bingo:
I created a bingo set with pictures and letters that belong to group 1 (s-a-t-p-i-n).
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