Children are unique learners and they can easily imitate
something for example a language. To know a language, they need an environment
surrounded by targeted language that is meaningful because of the context and
because of the way the teacher speak to them. As a language teacher, it is
better that before teaching young learner, teachers should know the young
learners’ characteristics in order to give ease to understand them. The
characteristics cover their ways of thinking, their attitude, their aptitude,
learning language, et cetera.
Here some researchers give their ideas as below 1. Brumfit (1997: v) gives a list of the
characteristics which young learners share:
a. Young learners are only just beginning
their schooling, so that teachers have a major opportunity to mold their
expectations of life in school.
b. As a group they are potentially more
differentiated than secondary or adult learners, for they are closer to their
varied home cultures, and new to the conformity increasingly imposed across
cultural grouping by the school.
c. They tend to be keen and enthusiastic
learners,
d. Their learning can be closely linked
with their development of ideas and concepts, because it is so close to their
initial experiences of formal schooling.
e. They need physical movement and
activity as much as stimulation for their thinking, and the closer together
these can be the better.
2. Halliwel (1992: 3-5) clarifies the
characteristics of children;
a.
Children are already
very good in interpreting meaning without necessarily understanding the
individual word.
b.
Children already have
great skill in using limited language creativity.
c.
Children frequently
learn indirectly rather than directly.
d.
Children take good
pleasure in finding and creating fun in what they do.
e.
Children have a ready
imagination, children words are full of imagination and fantasy, and it is more
than simply matter of enjoyment.
3.
The characteristic of young
learners mentioned by Clark (1990: 6-8):
a.
Children are developing
conceptually: they develop their way of thinking from the concrete to the
abstract thing.
b.
Children have no real
linguistics, different from the adult learners that already have certain
purpose in learning language, for instances, to have a better job, children
rarely have such needs in learning a foreign language. They learn subject what
school provide for them.
c.
Children are still developing;
they are developing common skill such as turn talking and the use of body
language.
d.
Young children very egocentric,
they tend to resolve around
themselves.
e.
Children get bored easily.
Children have no choice to attend school. The lack of the choice means that
class activities need to be fun interesting and exciting as possible by setting
up the interesting activities.
Furthermore we can conclude that the
characteristics of young learners are
1. They have short attention span. So
teachers should vary their techniques to break the boredom. They should give
varied activities as handwriting, songs , games etc.
2. They are very active. Try to ask
them to play games, role play dialogues and involve them in competitions.
3. They respond well to praising.
Always encourage them and praise their work.
4. They differ in their experience of
language. Treat them as a unit, don't favour those who know some English at the
expense of those who do not know.
5. They are less shy than older
learners. Ask them to repeat utterances, resort to mechanical drills.
6. They are imaginative. Use Realia
or pictures to teach new vocabulary related to concrete meanings.
7. They enjoy learning through
playing. Young learners learn best when they learn through games. Let games be
an essential part of your teaching.
8. They are less shy than older
learners.
9. They enjoy imitating and skillful
in listening accurately and mimicking what they have heard.
10. They respond well to rewards from
the teacher.
11. They are imaginative but may have
some difficulties distinguishing between imagination and real world.
see next article about the Characteristics of Teacher for Young Learner
References
see next article about the Characteristics of Teacher for Young Learner
References
