Teaching English To Children: A Unique, Challenging Experience For Teachers, Effective Teaching Ideas

It is fundamentally essential for children to learn English from a young age in this rapidly globalizing world. English knowledge will help to open many opportunities for them in the future and it will be invaluable in their future careers. However, teaching English to children is not an easy job. But it is also not difficult, if we already know how to do it. Many teaching positions involve teaching children - a unique experience that is both challenging and fun. Compared to adults, children are more energetic, have shorter attention spans, and learn language according to specific stages of development; these present planning challenges for the teacher. The key to teaching English to children is to understand the principles of language acquisition and apply it in ways that keep children motivated to learn. Children's world is playing and imitating. The present paper deals with the following subjects : what are the principles of teaching English to children, what are the characteristics of a language teacher, why do we teach children a foreign language, teachers social and psychological preparation, the emotional and physical aspects of young learners, the teachers main roles in class, a review of TPR, and finally some practical tips and teaching techniques for beginner teachers of English language. (C) 2011 Published by Elsevier Ltd. Selection and/or peer-review under responsibility of the 2nd World Conference on Psychology, Counselling and Guidance.