Alice’s way of teaching vocabulary reminded me of teaching students the foundations.
When groups presented their ideas about teaching vocabulary, I considered that were good ways to attract students who would learn well. However, I realized that interesting games were not enough after Alice demonstrated her way. High school students still need to learn the basic rules, such as pronunciation, meaning/spelling, collocation and so on. I remembered that I went to a junior high school for extra student counseling. The student was the second year. As I saw his textbook, I felt so familiar that he used the Chinese phonetic symbols to imitate the sound of vocabulary. There might be some students used that way, but it was not good. When I was a freshman in junior high school, my English teacher didn’t care the vocabulary and just left out. I tried to remember all words and used to use the Chinese phonetic symbols. After a while, I knew it was bad. I couldn’t memorize them really and usually forgot what’s the meaning. Thus, it’s better to give students the bases first.
That day, most of us tried to create new activities but forgot the basic. Alice reminded me that the foundation is the most important.
Hi, Miranda,
At different stages, I use different strategies to teach vocabulary. Foundations are important, to be sure. Once I’m sure that students have build a solid foundation in vocabulary learning and that they become active learners, I spend less time in vocabulary teaching. So, we need to be sensitive about the needs of our students and be aware of the goal of our teaching in different situations. It takes practice and sense to plan our teaching activities effectively. But having a clear idea will save you a lot of energy and time.
Hello, Miranda.
My name is pinch hitter, live in Japan.
I agree with your opinion; basic rules are really important in each stage.
However, we are apt to encounter many difficulties in teaching vocabulary.
So if you know effective ways, could you tell me about it?