HANDOUT 3

How children learn a foreign/second language

1. Children have no reason for learning English
Children do not have their own reasons for learning English. The decision to learn English is
taken for children by a local education authority or by parents on behalf of-thay mặt cho
children. The child may not know what language learning means. By contrast, adults know
what it means to learn a language. They usually have very clear reasons and a need for
learning a language. So with children, the PELT teacher has to motivate them so they are
willing to try and use the new language. Children are initially motivated to learn English
because they like their teacher or because of interesting activities. As children get older (9
onwards), they become more aware of the importance of English and begin to find their own
reasons for wanting to learn English.

2. Miss I am bored! Children are still developing their ability to manage their own
behaviour
Children tend to lose interest in things they are doing in unpredictable ways. One minute they
seem engaged and then suddenly they seem to have lost interest. And it is this which makes
them different from teenagers/ adults. Children will quickly let the teacher know they are
bored through their actions: they become restless, they move around in their seats, they
distract other children, and so on. Very young children may innocently announce to the
teacher ‘I don’t want to do this activity anymore’, without feeling any embarrassment. Adults
may also feel bored or frustrated with aspects of their language learning class but because
they have chosen to learn English, they will usually keep trying and hide their feelings.
Children are not quite clear why they are in school and have not chosen to be there. So they
will need to be managed far more carefully than adults when they are carrying out activities in
pairs and groups. They do not yet know how to manage their own behaviour. However, as
they go through school, they will gradually learn how to regulate-điều tiết themselves.

3. Children give priority to meaning not words

Children tend to focus on the meaning of a situation rather than the words used to express the
message. They are very quick to work out what is happening by using situational or context
clues and knowledge of people’s intentions. The general tendency in children is - to give less
attention to the words themselves. Teachers need to build on children’s instinct for meaning
as it is very useful for language learning- children can work out what is going on before they
have acquired very much language. Once they understand what is happening then it is easier
for them to begin to associate certain words with the meanings in that situation. Teachers need
to respond positively to children’s attempts to make sense of things even if this is expressed
inaccurately. Accuracy is important but can be dealt with later once children are familiar with
the meaning.
4. Children can learn from direct experience and activity
Children have a strong urge or instinct from birth-ngay từ khi sinh ra to explore and interact
with their environment. Young children like to touch and play with things. If they see a
puddle, they will jump over it or splash in it. If they find switches or buttons, they want to
press them. This strong tendency enables them to learn about the world and build up their
understanding of the world they live in. When children are engaged in doing activities, the
language is closely related to the physical actions. So children can get clues about the
meaning of the words from the physical activity and the context. Through their involvement
in such activities, they pick up some of the language associated with the activity quite
unconsciously. Children are much more likely to learn/acquire key grammatical points (e.g.
past tense) when involved in playful or communicative activities. In such situations, the
particular grammatical structures naturally arise out of doing the activity; there is no
deliberate focus on the grammatical forms.

5. Using language creatively

Children use their existing knowledge of English to create phrases or words that they need for
communicating. They do this by recombining words they already know in order to create new
words and phrases e.g. a flower’s stick (child does not know the word ‘stem’). They have not
been taught such phrases. Although their phrases are not ‘correct’ in adult terms, we can get
an idea of what they mean. Such attempts are useful for language learning as it means they are
experimenting with their knowledge of language. They are stretching their language to make
it go further and beginning to break down language chunks into words. Through such
attempts, they can get feedback on their internal hypotheses about how the language works.
They are not usually aware of this process. Teachers need to provide opportunities for
children to be creative - to go beyond what they have been taught.

6. Picking up language chunks-khối

Children tend to pick up ready-made phrases or chunks of language e.g. I don’t know in the
early stages of language learning. These allow them to take part in conversations before they
have learned very much language. They are called chunks because children acquire them as
wholes - they are not learned word by word. They pick them up from cartoons or by taking
part in songs, rhymes and storytelling. Children tend to use them in appropriate situations. An
activity had just come to an end in a lesson and a child shouted out ‘Finished’. There is some
evidence that children do break down these chunks later into individual words which they
then recombine with other words (see creativity) and this needs to be encouraged if children’s
language is to develop. A child might pick up ‘I don’t know’ as a chunk but evidence that the
child was breaking down the chunk would come if you saw him/her start to say things like ‘I
don’t know his name/ I don’t know dancing or We don’t know/ he don’t know. He/she has
begun to realize that the bits of language can be put together to make many new sentences.
QUESTIONS
Handout 3: True/False
1. Children have their own reasons for learning English from a young age.
2. Children are more likely to show their boredom during lessons than adults.
3. Children focus more on individual words rather than the meaning of a situation when
learning a language.
4. Children can learn language more effectively when they are involved in playful or
communicative activities.
5. Children tend to pick up chunks of language as whole units before breaking them down
into individual words.

Question 1
Children have their own reasons for learning English from a young age.
Answer: False
Explanation: According to the text, children do not initially have their own reasons for
learning English. The decision is usually made by parents or educational authorities. Only as
they get older (from age 9 onwards), they start finding their own reasons for learning.

Question 2
Children are more likely to show their boredom during lessons than adults.
Answer: True
Explanation: The text states that children openly express their boredom through their actions,
such as becoming restless or directly saying they are bored, whereas adults tend to hide such
feelings due to their self-motivation to learn.

Question 3
Children focus more on individual words rather than the meaning of a situation when learning
a language.
Answer: False
Explanation: The text highlights that children give priority to the meaning of a situation and
rely on contextual clues rather than focusing on individual words.

Question 4
Children can learn language more effectively when they are involved in playful or
communicative activities.
Answer: True
Explanation: The text mentions that children are more likely to acquire grammatical
structures during activities where the language naturally arises, rather than through deliberate
grammatical instruction.

Question 5
Children tend to pick up chunks of language as whole units before breaking them down into
individual words.
Answer: True
Explanation: The text explains that children often acquire ready-made phrases (chunks) like
"I don’t know" and use them in appropriate contexts. Over time, they break these chunks into
smaller parts and recombine them to create new phrases or sentences.
Handout 5: Gap filling
1. Young learners tend to have short _________ and a lot of physical energy.
2. One way to make the learning more fun is to involve students in the creation of the
______ or realia.
3. For young students, from ages ______ especially, it is a good idea to move quickly from
activity to activity.
4. It is a good idea to use ______ unit planning because it builds a larger context within
which students can learn language.
5. Teachers should use ______ and contexts familiar to students.
6. Young learners function well within a structured environment and enjoy repetition of
_________ and activities.
7. Because many interpretations of various communicative approaches try to enforce the
__________ rule, teachers sometimes feel bad when they use L1.
8. If possible bring in helpers-_________, student teachers from the local university, or older
students studying English—to tell a story or help with some fun activities.
9. If other teachers at your school are willing, visiting each others _________can be a
wonderful way to get to know what is being learned in each others classes and how.
10. Most importantly, keeping in contact with other ____________ helps keep your classroom
fresh with new ideas, and collaboration can help to construct new ideas and solutions to
the common problems that teachers face.

KEY
1. Young learners tend to have short attention spans and a lot of physical energy.
2. One way to make the learning more fun is to involve students in the creation of the visuals
or realia.
3. For young students, from ages 5 to l0 especially, it is a good idea to move quickly from
activity to activity.
4. It is a good idea to use thematic unit planning because it builds a larger context within
which students can learn language.
5. Teachers should use stories and contexts familiar to students.
6. Young learners function well within a structured environment and enjoy repetition of
certain routines and activities.
7. Because many interpretations of various communicative approaches try to enforce the
"English only" rule, teachers sometimes feel bad when they use L1.
8. If possible bring in helpers-parents, student teachers from the local university, or older
students studying English—to tell a story or help with some fun activities.
9. If other teachers at your school are willing, visiting each others classrooms can be a
wonderful way to get to know what is being learned in each others classes and how.
10. Most importantly, keeping in contact with other TEYL professionals helps keep your
classroom fresh with new ideas, and collaboration can help to construct new ideas and
solutions to the common problems that teachers face.